Alternative Treatments for Depression and Anxiety

Written by HealthyPlace.com Staff Writer

Which alternative treatments work for depression and anxiety? A succinct summary of the scientific evidence.

Most people with depression or anxiety try to manage the illness themselves. Some of these self-management approaches have undergone some reasonable scientific testing and can therefore be tried, especially when the depression is not severe or life-threatening.

Some common strategies like drinking more alcohol or smoking cannabis are clearly unhelpful.
Other people try alternative therapies or adjusting their life-cycle. Some activities like increased physical activity or attention to sleep patterns are clearly beneficial.
Herbal remedies and other alternative health practices may be either helpful or harmful.
Some of these approaches have undergone some reasonable scientific testing and can therefore be tried, especially when the depression is not severe or life-threatening. Treatments in the 'poor evidence' box below need more studies to see whether they are helpful or not.

TABLE 1. EVIDENCE-BASE OF DIFFERENT ALTERNATIVE TREATMENTS FOR DEPRESSION

Good Evidence	Some Evidence	Poor Evidence
- St John's Wort - Physical exercise - Self-help books involving cognitive behavior therapy - Light therapy (for winter depression)	- Acupuncture - Light therapy (for non-seasonal depression) - Massage therapy - Negative air ionisation (for winter depression) - Relaxation therapy - SAMe (S-Adenosylmethionine)* - Folate - Yoga breathing exercises	- Ginseng - Lemon balm - Painkillers - Vervain# - Colour therapy - Prayer - Chocolate

*SAMe is an amino acid that occurs naturally in cells. # Vervain is a traditional herbal remedy for depression consisting of the aerial parts of a flowering plant.
Source: Jorm AF, Christensen H, Griffiths KM, Rodgers B. Effectiveness of complementary and self-help treatments for depression. MJA 2002; 176 Suppl
May 20: p. S84-96.

TABLE 2. EVIDENCE-BASE OF DIFFERENT ALTERNATIVE TREATMENTS FOR ANXIETY

Good Evidence	Some Evidence*	Poor Evidence
- Kava - Exercise - Relaxation therapy - Bibliotherapy	- Acupuncture - Music - Autogenic training# - Meditation - Inositol## - Alcohol avoidance - Dance/ movement therapy	- Bach flower remedies - Berocca - Ginger - Gotu Kola - Herbal preparations - Homeopathy - Lemongrass - Licorice - Magnesium - Passionflower - St John's Wort - Valerian - Vitamin C - 5-Hydroxytryptophan - Aromatherapy - Hydrotherapy - Massage/ touch therapy - Humour - Prayer - Yoga - Caffeine reduction - Carbohydrate rich, protein- poor diet - Nicotine avoidance

*The evidence for the alternative treatments in this column pertains to specific types of anxiety disorders ranging from generalized anxiety disorder to obsessive compulsive disorder. #Autogenic training is a self-relaxation procedure that is based on passive concentration on bodily perceptions (eg. heaviness and warmth of legs). ##IInositol is an isomer of glucose and it occurs in the normal human diet with around one gram per day being consumed. Source: Jorm AF, Christensen H, Griffiths KM, Parslow RA, Rodgers B, Blewitt KA. Effectiveness of complementary and self-help treatments for anxiety disorders. MJA (in press).

back to: Alternative Medicine Home ~ Alternative Medicine Treatments

reviewed by:
Harry Croft, MD (Psychiatrist)
Medical Director, HealthyPlace.com

Created on December 07, 2008 Last Updated on June 27, 2011