MEDICINAL PLANTS USED IN PERSIAN MEDICINE TO TREAT DEPRESSION

Depression is a common psychiatric disorder and a major worldwide health problem. Many herbs can play an important role in the treatment of psychiatric disorders with fewer side effects.Various herbal remedies have been used in traditional Persian medicine (TPM) for depression. Nowadays some of these herbs are used forthe treatment of depressed patients. In the current study, known sources of TPM were searched and the writings of prominent scholars and physicians about medicinal herbs that have been used for treatment of depression were collected. PubMed and Google Scholar were then searched and eight medical herbs having the ability to alleviate depression were found. The aim of current study is to summarize the biological activity of some natural antidepressant drugs to further understand the beneficial effects of these herbs against depression. It is hoped that further investigation of medical plants will be conducted for the treatment of depression. Key words: Herbal medicine; Depression; Medicinal plants; Traditional Persian Medicine