Frankincense – The New Antidepressant

Photo by wernerbrau.

“Religious leaders have contended for millennia that burning incense is good for the soul. Now, biologists have learned that it is good for our brains too.” This quote is taken from an article published on the ScienceDaily website.

I happened across this article when researching the Frankincense essential oil for the previous post.

The study mentioned in the article has shown that Frankincense can help to alleviate anxiety and depression.

They found that Incensole acetate, an incense ingredient, significantly affected areas in the brain known to be involved in emotions as well as in nerve circuits that are affected by existing anxiety and depression drugs.

The research relates to the incense form rather than the essential oil of Frankincense but the findings are interesting none the same. The Frankincense essential oil also has antidepressant properties. More information on the essential oil can be found in the Essential Oil in Focus: Frankincense post.

It is good to see that research is being carried out in to the therapeutic properties of essential oils and other alternative remedies – it’s just a shame that some of it is still being carried out on animals.

References:
Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (2008, May 20). Burning Incense Is Psychoactive: New Class Of Antidepressants Might Be Right Under Our Noses. ScienceDaily. Retrieved January 20, 2009, from http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080520110415.htm