Sertraline vs St. John's Wort for mood
Short answer: For mood, more users report improvement with St. John's Wort — 87% of 127 reports, versus 65% of 54 for Sertraline.
Sertraline has 318 meta-analyses and 906 randomized trials on PubMed; St. John's Wort has 98 and 111.
Based on 136 reports about Sertraline and 314 about St. John's Wort. Not medical advice.
| Sertraline Medication | St. John's Wort Supplement | |
|---|---|---|
| Users say it helped | 37%helped86 reports · medium confidence | 50%helped151 reports · high confidence |
| Verdict | Mixed | Mixed |
| Research | AResearch: Strong | AResearch: Strong |
| Meta-analyses / RCTs | 318 / 906 | 98 / 111 |
| Mainly used for | ||
| Mood % reporting improvement | 65% (54) | 87% (127) |
| Anxiety % reporting improvement | 86% (37) | 82% (44) |
| Energy % reporting improvement | 33% (9) | 60% (10) |
| Focus % reporting improvement | 57% (7) | 71% (7) |
| Libido % reporting improvement | 10% (10) | 33% (3) |
| Common side effects | fatigue, numbness, brain fog, sexual dysfunction | photosensitivity, serotonin syndrome, eye problems, dissociation |
| Typical dose reported | Not listed | 100 mg |
All antidepressants were more efficacious than placebo in adults with major depressive disorder. Smaller differences between active drugs were found when placebo-controlled trials were included in the analysis, whereas there was more variability in efficacy and acceptability in head-to-head trials. These results should serve evidence-based practice and inform patients, physicians, guideline developers, and policy makers on the relative merits of the different antidepressants.
Lancet, 2018 ↗“The first 2 months were amazing. No thinking before every word. I just reacted, talked, did things. Pleasure. I could enjoy games, sunrises, weather. Anxiety gone. Woke up with energy no exhaustion.”
Our research supports the use of SJW as it reduced the number of depressive patients and their HAMD scores while having fewer risks and side effects than conventional medications.
Adv Clin Exp Med, 2023 ↗“St. John's Wort, Passion Flower, Hops, and Skullcap. My sleep improved with those.”
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Percentages come from first-hand user reports and are not clinical outcomes. Talk to a doctor before starting, stopping or combining anything. How we rate