RestAid™ - Research Brief

RestAid™ - Research Brief:

What is stress

Who can boast not to have been subjected ever to stress, whether in personal or professional life? It is a worrying phenomenon of today society implicating both individual health disorders and of economic difficulties.

Stress is “a state of mental, emotional, or other strain” (Concise Oxford Dict.). It seems that one of the major consequences of stress is the high secretion of cortisol, reported hormone “of stress”. This reaction leads to a certain number of physiological and psychological disorders with an influence on the general state of health.

There is no universal definition of stress. On the other hand, there are numerous theories relating to what is believed to be stress.

The organism tends to permanently support a constant equilibrium or homeostasis and tolerates restricted modifications. When modifications produced by internal or external agents are extreme, they affect the homeostatic mechanisms of the organism which is very busy restoring equilibrium. Stress is then the result, speeded up by any extreme urges, which permit adaptation by maintaining the basis equilibrium of the organism. This reaction is not specific as it does not depend on the stressful agent.

Usually, the state of stress is generated by a stressful agent or the apprehension of stress. The attack, internal or external, is not confined in the psychical sphere but in repercussions on the body and draws away organic modifications.
Stress results therefore in an inability to deal with a strong accumulation of tension.

Stress is an inherent phenomenon in life; it can be perceptible as positive or negative. However the sector of the population complaining about the inconveniences linked to stress is in constant increase. It doubled for instance in only 10 years in industrial countries.

Our society tends to always demand more effectiveness, more output, more performance with so many conditions resulting in the increase of persons put on edge. The main sources of extended stress recorded by the practitioners on their patients are the following: a poor state of health, financial or professional difficulties, the loss of a job, an uprooting, etc.

The consequences of a state of extended stress are numerous. This phenomenon could lead to physiological, physical and psychological disorders. To find out more on the repercussions of stress on our organism.

Stress results in physiological, physical and psychological reactions.

Physiological disorders

Stress related disorders are numerous and various. The following highlight in particular the harmful effects of stress on:

- The hormonal system: stress can unsettle for instance the regularity of menstrual cycles in women, or else diminish fecundity in men.

- Immunity. The state of stress is most often accompanied by a fall of immune reactions. Glucocorticoids – of which production is speeded up by stress – can be found in the nervous and immune systems.
- Premature ageing: generally due to numerous consequences on the organism, an extended and extreme stress contributes to speed up the process of ageing.

Physical reactions

Stress also acts on our mental state leading to:

- sleep disorders: stress creates agitation making the falling asleep phase difficult;
- indigestion: stomach cramps, slowing down or even blockage of digestion, etc.
- problems of hypertension,
- headaches,
- loss of appetite or attack of bulimia resulting in weight loss or gain.

Emotional and psychological disorders

- concentration difficulties, loss of memory, lack of effectiveness in the job often driving to a depreciation of oneself; 
- impatience, hyperactivity, irritable, aggressiveness or passiveness;
- guilt feelings, general malaise, possible depression. "Under pressure of stress, the neuro-psychiatrists believe that approximately one person of five will experience a depressive episode at least once in their life" (Les Echos, February 13th, 2007).

Just as there is no precise definition of stress, there is also no miracle cure. The complex variations facing a stressful element make the task all the more difficult. We are unfortunately progressively more numerous to opt for anti-depressants, sleeping drugs, or other medicinal substances. However, the problem of these medications is not insignificant. They can have numerous long-term side effects and particularly create dependency.

Fortunately there are natural solutions to regain calmness and well being.
Sessions of relaxation or the practice of sport in a regular and moderate manner remain the best means to reduce or to eliminate daily stress.
Herbal medicine is also part of these alternatives and offers a traditional and natural answer.

Among plants known for their calming virtues, notably include lemon balm (Melissa officinalis L.) whose leaves are traditionally used to liven up our cooking. Apart from its traditional usage, Lemon balm leaves have been validated for their calming properties by several scientific studies.

The traditional history of lemon balm usage

Lemon balm is an aromatic plant that has been known forever.

Traditionally used since the Middle Ages, notably in the form of liquor and often in association with other plants, Lemon balm is appreciated in European cooking as flavouring for salads, in marinades or in desserts and drinks. Lemon balm is a condiment bringing freshness with a touch of lemon.

Appreciated for its tasting qualities, lemon balm is traditionally acknowledged as a condiment with beneficial effects on our health. The aerial parts of Lemon balm are part of the universal pharmacopoeia and have been used since Antiquity in Greek and Islamic medicines against nervous disorders.

Generally, lemon balm is used in traditional medicine against:
- anxiety, nervousness and hysteria;
- splitting headaches;
- gastric disorders.

Further to this usage in traditional medicine, scientific literature discovers more and more information on the various health properties of lemon balm.

Based on the scientific data and its expertise on extraction Berkem developed Cyracos®.

Thanks to a rigorous selection of the aerial parts of Lemon balm (leaves), an expertise in natural extraction and an unparalleled quality and analytical controls in all the stages of manufacturing process, Berkem guarantees a particular composition of Cyracos® thus preserving the totum of the selected plant.

Cyracos® is a pure Lemon balm extract preserving all the active constituents of the plant. A clinical study of its particular composition was carried out on humans validating its anti-stress power.

Cyracos® is therefore an ideal choice, as well as traditional and efficient, to regain serenity and well being daily.