Gotu Kola

Galaxyshock

Gotu Kola is one of my all-time favourite herbs. I find it pretty much as effective anxiolytic as Lorazepam yet it also improves cognition. I also experience this general healthy feeling and improved blood flow.

Pharmacological Review on Centella asiatica: A Potential Herbal Cure-all
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3116297/

Any experiences? It's pretty cheap herb to try.

Neuro

Galaxyshock Interesting, I've been looking for a herb that helps with anxiety. How long does it take for the effect to kick in and does it improve with chronic dosing or the opposite and tolerance forms?

I always thought Gotu kola had stimulant-like effects. I might be confusing it with Yerba Mate.

Looks like it improves cognition in elderly people: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18191355/

Seems to affect

Dopamine
Norepinephrine
Serotonin
Acetylcholine

Effects of gotu kola extract in the improvement of working memory function, delayed recall memory, and executive function are presumably through modulating the production of dopamine in the prefrontal cortex area, while the long term effects on memory are presumably through modulation of norepinephrine, serotonin, and acetylcholine in the frontal cortex and hippocampus area
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/labs/pmc/articles/PMC4908235/

Yeah, the prices on iHerb seem reasonable. Do you take a standardized extract?

Galaxyshock

Gotu Kola is often confused with Kola Nut which is a caffeine source.

In my experience Gotu Kola kicks in within a few days if not immediately. Tolerance does form but very slowly. I've used it for a couple of months now and the effects are still there. I remember one anecdote where Gotu Kola was still effective after over a year of use.

I use Solgar brand Gotu Kola extract 3 capsules once or twice a day. It's the only brand sold here locally. I used to buy Gotu Kola from iHerb but they changed the law here and now all orders have to be cleared through customs. In my experience Gotu Kola works pretty well both as the whole herb and an extract.

Neuro

Galaxyshock I see, thanks I'll try to get some.

Have you noticed any side effects? Does it decrease motivation or positive feelings?

Is Gotu Kola prohibited in Finland? I think iHerb orders also have to be cleared through customs here in Canada, at least when I check the order tracking it usually says in the log that it went through customs.

Galaxyshock

No side effects except in very high doses it can make me feel a bit blunted/empty. No decrease in motivation and Gotu Kola actually promotes this positive mood feeling that seems to last all day.

I'm not sure if it's prohibited, I think things like Ginseng is so Gotu Kola might also be. It's unfortunate that they want to control import of safe herbs here in Finland. It used to be so that you could order maximum 35 euros worth of goods and they would come through because you wouldn't have to pay taxes for that but recently they changed that.

Neuro

I see, do high doses give any extra benefits?

That's odd that Ginseng might be prohibited for import in Finland. How do you know this? I can't find anything about it on the Internet but then again I'm assuming that the law is written in Finnish, not English. But the Fedex site doesn't list herbs as being restricted nor prohibited.

Have you tried ordering from iHerb?

Huh, so they got rid of the tax-free import limit? In Canada, I believe you can import up to $50 worth of stuff before you get charged import taxes.

Galaxyshock

Well the high doses provide some extra anxiolysis. I'm trying to decrease the use of Lorazepam which is the reason why I may take higher doses of Gotu Kola even if it makes me feel a bit blunted - I'll rather feel a bit empty than anxious.

Finnish Medicines Agency has a list of herbals and other supplements that are prohibited or considered medicine or something I don't exactly know lol but a friend of mine pointed it out once. Some have had to pay several hundred euros of fines because the products they ordered were on that list. For this reason I haven't ordered anything from abroad in a long time. Luckily I can buy the supplements I currently need from local sellers.

Neuro

Galaxyshock How safe is Gotu Kola at high doses? Is there any concern for long-term negative effects, even at lower doses?

I see, that sounds terrible. You should be able to buy supplements without worrying about prohibitions. This is regressive, not progressive. Isn't the PM of Finland a young lady? I would have thought she'd implement more progressive policies. Maybe she doesn't have much power or just doesn't care about these things?

Galaxyshock

I remember a study where Gotu Kola was taken 12 grams a day without side effects. That's definitely a high dose as it's usually effective at 1-3 grams a day. I think there is some evidence that long term mega doses of Gotu Kola extracts can decrease fertility in rats but I highly doubt that's something concerning to humans taking normal doses.

Yeah I don't like how they want to regulate everything so strictly here. I guess the politicians don't care that much about it.

Neuro

Galaxyshock Sounds good, seems like it has a high tolerable upper intake.

Yeah, it seems to be happening everywhere. More regulations or in other words more restrictions.

Neuro

I bought 2 brand of Gotu Kola:

Solaray Gotu Kola Aerial Extract
Nature's Way Gotu Kola Herb

Might take one of them tomorrow but I'm not sure which one to start with. Maybe the Solaray since it's a lower dose? Though, it's an extract, but I'm not sure if that actually means it has more active compounds than the non-extract.

Galaxyshock

I'd probably start with the whole herb. Nature's way brand is good, I used to buy it. Start with the recommended dose for a few days and if it doesn't feel strong enough then increase the dose. If it's still weak then perhaps try what the extract does. You could also combine the extract and whole herb.