Depression is one of the issues today’s world faces and tries to overcome and the treatments that proved to be most useful were therapy and different types of medication, like Prozac or Seroxat.

Often enough, nature can be the source of some very powerful and useful medicine as St. John’s Wort was proven to be a successful treatment for depression. St. John’s Wort is an herb that comes from a star-shaped flower and, apparently, this plant carries the right amount of serotonin to act as an effective anti-depressant.

This treatment has been used for decades as an alternative treatment for people suffering from depression, stress or anxiety. St. John’s Wort is an over the counter drug and it may come in the form of capsules, liquid or a tea bag. The serotonin that this plant contains is the same substance the brain uses in order to make one think joyful thoughts or, to simply put it, feel right, happy. Scientists explored the possibility of this plant and after some research, they concluded that St John’s Wort can be considered a reliable alternative to Prozac.

The study was conducted in Munich, Germany and 5,500 people, suffering from different types of depression, were tested. The results showed that the herb had fewer side effects than other anti-depressants.

St. John’s Wort proved better than a placebo and a dummy pill and because of the fact that it has fewer side-effects than other medication, the herb is going to be prescribed by doctors more often. Still, therapy is considered the best treatment for depression and it’s widely considered to be the first step to be taken when confronted with this condition.

Depression is nothing to joke about, currently this condition affecting approximately 120 million people worldwide and it’s the leading cause of suicide.