Lemon Balm

Scientific Name(s): Melissa officinalis L.
Common Name(s): Balm, Lemon balm, Melissa, Sweet balm

Medically reviewed by Drugs.com. Last updated on Jan 21, 2025.

Clinical Overview

Use

Primary interest in lemon balm surrounds its effects on the central nervous system. One small study demonstrated decreased stress and agitation in patients with dementia and Alzheimer disease. Another small trial supports a potential cholesterol benefit. Lemon balm cream has shown some efficacy in herpes virus lesions in a few small placebo-controlled trials.

Dosing

Crude lemon balm herb is typically dosed at 1.5 to 4.5 g/day. Doses of 600 to 1,600 mg extract have been studied in trials. A standardized preparation of lemon balm (80 mg) and valerian extract (160 mg) has been given 2 or 3 times/day as a sleep aid, and has also been studied in children. A 1% extract cream has been studied as a topical agent for treatment of herpes virus lesions.

Contraindications

Contraindications have not yet been identified.

Pregnancy/Lactation

Information regarding safety and efficacy in pregnancy and lactation is lacking.

Interactions

None well documented.

Adverse Reactions

Clinical trials generally report no adverse reactions.

Toxicology

Research reveals little or no information regarding toxicology with the use of this product.

Scientific Family

• Lamiaceae (mint)

Botany

Lemon balm is a low-growing perennial herb with ovate- or heart-shaped leaves that emit a lemon odor when bruised. The small yellow or white flowers are attractive to bees and other insects. It is indigenous to the Mediterranean region and western Asia, and widely naturalized in Europe, Asia, and North America. The leaves are harvested before flowering and used medicinally.1

History

Lemon balm has been used in herbal medicine since the times of Pliny (Roman, AD 23-79), Dioscorides (Greek, AD 40-90), Paracelsus (Austrian 1493-1541), and John Gerard (English, 1545-1612). The name Melissa corresponds to the Greek word for bee, while balm is a contraction of balsam. The plant has culinary and medicinal uses, with principal historical medicinal uses being carminative, diaphoretic, and antipyretic.2

Chemistry

Lemon balm leaves contain 0.2% to 0.3% of a lemon-scented essential oil similar to that of lemon grass. Major mono- and sesquiterpenes include geranial, neral, beta-caryophyllene, beta-caryophyllene oxide, linalool, citronellal, nerol, and geraniol.3, 4, 5 R(+)-methyl citronellate is characteristic of Melissa oil and distinguishes it from lemon grass oil.6, 7 Flavonoids, oleanane, and triterpenes have also been isolated from the plant.4, 8 Major nonvolatile constituents are caffeic acid and its di- and trimeric derivatives, including rosmarinic acid and melitric acids A and B.7, 9, 10

Uses and Pharmacology

Anti-inflammatory

Rosmarinic acid was found to inhibit the C3 and C5 convertase steps in the complement cascade.(27, 28, 29) This action may play a role in the anti-inflammatory action of Melissa extract, because the action was observed in vitro and in vivo in rats with oral administration of the compound.

Antimicrobial

Animal data

Lemon balm has antiviral activity against a variety of viruses, including herpes simplex virus (HSV) and HIV-1.(11, 12) The activity has been attributed to caffeic acid and its di- and trimeric derivatives, as well as to tannins. A concentration-dependent inhibition of HSV-2 proliferation by lemon balm essential oil has been demonstrated, possibly due to the citral or citronellal components.(13) Activity against bacteria and fungi has been evaluated with varying results.(4, 8, 14) Activity against culex mosquito larvae has also been demonstrated.(15)

Clinical data

Placebo-controlled trials have shown symptomatic improvement for herpes virus lesions after application of a standardized lemon balm cream applied 2 to 4 times daily for 5 to 10 days.(16, 17, 18)

Antioxidant

In vitro antioxidant activity has been described for lemon balm essential oil and its extracts.(4, 10, 14, 30)

Cancer

Activity against human and mouse cancer cell lines has been demonstrated in vitro.(5)

Cholesterol

In hyperlipidemic rats and mice, lemon balm extracts improved the lipid profile as well as liver enzyme markers (AST, ALT, alkaline phosphatase) and increased glutathione levels in the tissue.(31, 32)

A double-blind, randomized, placebo controlled trial (n=58) in borderline hyperlipidemic adults documented a significant improvement in low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels (P=0.022) as well as AST (P=0.009) with administration of M. officinalis leaf powder (500 mg 3 times daily for 2 months) compared to placebo. Baseline mean LDL dropped by 13.96 mg/dL with the intervention compared to a 1.17 mg/dL increase with placebo. Similarly, mean AST decreased 1.35 units/L with treatment and increased 2.23 units/L with placebo. No significant differences were found between groups in total cholesterol (TC), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), LDL:HDL, TC:HDL, fasting blood sugar, triglycerides, ALT, creatinine, body mass index, or physical activity. No serious adverse events were reported.(41)

CNS effects

Animal data

The lyophilized hydroalcoholic extract, which does not contain the volatile oil components, exhibited sedative activity in several mouse models when given intraperitoneally.(19) This extract was also active in an acetic acid writhing analgesia assay but not in a hot plate test. The volatile oil of the plant had much weaker activity or was inactive in the same assays.

Clinical data

In a series of trials investigating the effects of lemon balm extract on laboratory-induced stress, a dose-dependent effect was demonstrated for single doses of Melissa officinalis.(2, 20, 21) Cholinergic receptor-binding properties have also been demonstrated.(20) With 600 mg of extract, increased calmness and decreased alertness were demonstrated compared with placebo. With 300 mg, no modulation of stress was found, but speed and accuracy of mathematical processing increased.(21) At the highest dosage of 1,600 mg, a paradoxically negative effect on mood resulted, with reduced alertness.(20) Lemon balm 80 mg combined with valerian 160 mg taken for 1 month significantly improved sleep quality compared with baseline (P = 0.001) and placebo (P = 0.0001) in women experiencing sleep disruption/disorders subsequent to natural menopause. The placebo group in this randomized trial (n = 100) also experienced a significant improvement in sleep scores compared with baseline (P = 0.0001). No adverse events were reported.(40)

In patients with mild to moderate Alzheimer disease, 60 drops of lemon balm extract (citral 500 mcg/mL) increased cognitive function and decreased agitation over placebo.(22, 23, 24) Essential oil of lemon balm applied to the faces of patients with dementia decreased agitation compared with placebo.(25, 26) In a randomized, self-control trial among 49 nursing home patients with and without dementia, lemon balm essential oil did not reduce the frequency of agitation in patients overall compared to when they received lavender or placebo treatments. However, when stratified by dementia status, lemon balm significantly improved the neuropsychiatric index (NPI) total score, NPI irritability score, the agitation total score, and the physical non-aggressive behaviour score in patients without dementia compared to those with dementia, whereas lavender was more effective in dementia patients. The majority of patients were female (75.5%); comorbid diagnoses included depression (57.1%) and anxiety (34.7%).(42) In contrast, a Cochrane review found no robust evidence to support the benefit of aromatherapy (including lemon balm aromatherapy at concentrations of less than 2% and 10%) for agitation, overall behavioral or psychological symptoms, quality of life, or activities of daily living in patients with dementia.(43)

Of 10 randomized controlled trials identified in a systematic review, 6 (n=435) provided sufficient data to conduct a meta-analysis for the effect of lemon balm on anxiety and/or depression. The majority of patients (78.5%) were adults and 15.8% were adolescents (the age of patients was not reported in one study). Compared to placebo, lemon balm resulted in significantly lower mean anxiety scores (P=0.003; 5 studies, N=375, high heterogeneity) and depression scores (P=0.0005; 3 studies, N=233, no heterogeneity) overall. When stratified by temporality, patients with acute but not chronic depression benefited from supplementation (P=0.0007), while neither acute or chronic anxiety patients per se exhibited significant benefit compared to controls.(44)

Gastrointestinal

The contractility of rat ileum was reduced with essential oil of lemon balm and its citral extract.(33) Babies with colic given a combination preparation containing lemon balm extract as well as 2 other extracts showed improved symptoms.(34)

Dosing

Crude lemon balm herb typically is dosed at 1.5 to 4.5 g/day. Doses of 600 to 1,600 mg have been studied in trials. A standardized preparation of lemon balm 80 mg and valerian extract 160 mg, Euvegal Forte, has been given 2 or 3 times/day as a sleep aid, and has also been studied in children.35, 36, 37 A 1% extract cream has been studied as a topical agent for herpes.17

Pregnancy / Lactation

Information regarding safety and efficacy in pregnancy and lactation is lacking.

Interactions

None well documented. A small animal trial evaluated the cardiac effects of lemon balm and reported possible cardiac muscarinic receptor stimulation or calcium channel-dependent blockage.38

Adverse Reactions

Most clinical trials report no adverse reactions.2, 20, 37

Related/similar drugs

Toxicology

Melissa extract was not found to be genotoxic in a screen of several medicinal plants.39

References

Disclaimer

This information relates to an herbal, vitamin, mineral or other dietary supplement. This product has not been reviewed by the FDA to determine whether it is safe or effective and is not subject to the quality standards and safety information collection standards that are applicable to most prescription drugs. This information should not be used to decide whether or not to take this product. This information does not endorse this product as safe, effective, or approved for treating any patient or health condition. This is only a brief summary of general information about this product. It does NOT include all information about the possible uses, directions, warnings, precautions, interactions, adverse effects, or risks that may apply to this product. This information is not specific medical advice and does not replace information you receive from your health care provider. You should talk with your health care provider for complete information about the risks and benefits of using this product.

This product may adversely interact with certain health and medical conditions, other prescription and over-the-counter drugs, foods, or other dietary supplements. This product may be unsafe when used before surgery or other medical procedures. It is important to fully inform your doctor about the herbal, vitamins, mineral or any other supplements you are taking before any kind of surgery or medical procedure. With the exception of certain products that are generally recognized as safe in normal quantities, including use of folic acid and prenatal vitamins during pregnancy, this product has not been sufficiently studied to determine whether it is safe to use during pregnancy or nursing or by persons younger than 2 years of age.

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