Sour date seed (Zizyphus jujuba) are used in Traditional Chinese Medicine for their anxiolytic, and sedative effects. Other names for sour date include jujuba, Suanzaoren, red date, Chinese date, Korean date or Indian Date. The plant is a member of the Rhamnaceae or buckthorn family. Sour date is a thorny deciduous tree and reaches a height of around 5 to 12 meters. Flower are greeny yellow and the subsequent fruit is an apple tasting oval shaped dupe. The seed from the fruit may have medicinal properties. Animal studies have provided evidence that consumption of sour date seeds produces anxiolytic and sedative effects. Mice administered sour date seed extract show significant reductions in anxiety. Sour date seeds contain a group of compounds called the jujubosides, which are thought to be the main active ingredient. Jujubosides may exert their effects through inhibition of excitatory glutamate pathways in the brain. In this way the compound may be able to decrease neuronal activity and have a calming effect on the brain.
Sour date (Zizyphus jujuba) seed extract may have anxiolytic and sedative effects in humans and animals. The fruits are a drupe, with an apple-like taste. Inside the fruit is the medicinal seed.
This may make it extracts of sour date seeds useful in the treatment of insomnia. For example, in one study, researchers administered extracts of the seed of Ziziphus jujuba to rats at a dose of 9 mg per kg body weight for 3 days. Treatment with the extract significantly increased total sleep time and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, without changing the amount of non-REM sleep. When the extracts of Ziziphus jujuba were given in combination with the barbiturate drug phenobarbital, a known sedative, they can significantly increase the sleeping time, when compared to the drug alone. In addition, when the water extracts of Zizyphus seed are given with the anxiolytic benzodiazepine drug diazepam, there is a significant increase in sleep time compared to administration of the drug alone. As sleep disruption plays a significant role in the development of anxiety and depression, the sedative effects of sour date seed extracts may make it s useful treatment for these conditions.
The dried fruits of the sour date tree. The fruits are edible, but it is the seed that contains the jujubosides that have the anxiolytic and sedative medicinal properties.
The effects of sour date seed extract in combination with other medicinal plants has also been investigated. Sour date seeds are part of a Traditional Chinese Medicine called the Suanzaoren decoction. The Chinese pharmacopoeia (2015) records all of the medicine used in this decoction which includes Zizyphus jujuba (sour date seed extract), Poria cocos (Fu Ling mushroom), Ligustici chuanxiong (Chuanxiong root), Anemarrhena aspodeloidea (Zhi Mu root), and Glycyrrhiza glabra (licorice root). This medicine is traditionally used as a treatment for insomnia and its effects have been investigated by researchers. Suanzaoren significantly improves mood in human subjects. Studies investigating the effects of Suanzaoren decoction have suggested that its effects may be mediated through alteration to serotonin levels in the brain. The sour date seed extract within the Suanzaoren may be contributing to the sedative, hypnotic and mood elevating effects of the medicine.
Eat Well, Stay Healthy, Protect Yourself
RdB
