Lavandula angustifolia Mill. · essential_oil
Evidence tier: moderate
Reduces anxiety and promotes restful sleep
Acts on the nervous system. Linalool and linalyl acetate are thought to damp down neuronal excitability, with Silexan reported to act on voltage gated calcium channels rather than by binding the sedative receptors that benzodiazepines use, which fits the trial finding that it calms without sedating. Leading hypothesis, not settled fact.
Moderate for anxiety, and ONLY for the standardised ORAL preparation (Silexan, 80 mg once daily). A meta analysis of all five completed double blind placebo controlled Silexan trials (1213 people) found it significantly better than placebo on the Hamilton Anxiety scale (PMID 36717399). The caveat that keeps it moderate rather than strong: most of that pooling is authored or co authored by the manufacturer, and NCCIH names the lack of independent funding directly. What lifts it is independent corroboration: a Bayesian network meta analysis with no manufacturer involvement found a significant effect (PMID 35378276), and the 2022 WFSBP and CANMAT guideline provisionally recommends lavender for anxiety disorders (PMID 35311615). AROMATHERAPY is weak: NCCIH says it is unclear whether it benefits anxiety, stress, sleep quality or insomnia. On sleep, a mediation analysis found MORE THAN 98 PERCENT of the sleep effect was mediated by the anxiolytic effect, with the direct effect on sleep marginal (PMID 36259937). Lavender is not a sedative, it is an anxiolytic that lets anxious people sleep. EMA registers it for mild mental stress and to aid sleep, but on traditional use only.
20 to 80 mg of the essential oil daily (the EMA registered oral dose). The studied anxiety preparation is Silexan at 80 mg once daily, which sits at the top of that range, over trials of 10 weeks.
Oral: take in the evening. Aromatherapy: diffuse at bedtime.
Onset: ~7 days
Oral lavender oil preparations are generally safe at studied doses. Topical use is well tolerated; dilute before direct skin contact. Aromatherapy considered safe in pregnancy at standard exposure. Oral high dose lavender may interact with CNS depressants and sedatives.
Pregnancy: avoid
Breastfeeding: avoid
Used in European folk medicine since at least the medieval period for headaches, nervous conditions, and as a wound healer. Lavender water was a calming tonic in 17th century England. Still one of the most widely used herbs in aromatherapy worldwide, with a particularly strong evidence base for anxiety via inhalation.
Active compounds: linalool, linalyl acetate, caryophyllene epoxide
Remedies using Lavender · Browse by body system · Check it against what you take
*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.