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Preliminary examination of the efficacy and safety of a standardized chamomile extract for chronic primary insomnia: a randomized placebo-controlled pilot study

Suzanna M. Zick, Benjamin D. Wright, Ananda Sen, J. Todd Arnedt
BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine 2011 11:78

Bibliography

PubMed
PMID 21939549
PubMed Central
PMC3198755
DOI
10.1186/1472-6882-11-78
Trial registry
View on ClinicalTrials.gov Registered trial — results not yet published in a peer-reviewed journal.

Study snapshot

DesignRandomized double-blind placebo-controlled pilot trial
ModelAdults with chronic primary insomnia
Samplen = 34
InterventionStandardized chamomile extract 270 mg twice daily versus placebo
Duration28 days
EndpointsSleep diary outcomes; Sleep latency; Total sleep time; Sleep efficiency; Daytime functioning; Adverse events

What the study showed, in plain terms

This pilot RCT tested a standardized chamomile extract in adults with chronic primary insomnia. Chamomile contains apigenin, but the trial did not isolate apigenin as the active treatment.

Key findings

The trial did not find statistically significant differences in the primary sleep-diary outcomes between chamomile and placebo, although some secondary signals were explored.

What this study can and cannot tell us

The sample was small and the intervention was a multi-compound botanical extract. The result cannot establish either efficacy or inefficacy of isolated apigenin for sleep.

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Dr. Khaled Mahmoud, MBBChCritical Care Medicine, Longevity Science & Editorial Direction Dr. Amr Yasser, PhDCardiometabolic, Musculoskeletal, Gut & Bioavailability Dr. Abdulla Mostafa, PhDCellular Senescence, Neurological, Mitochondrial & Brain-Ageing Biology