Pycnogenol Aids Hot Flashes, ADHD

HOBOKEN, N.J.Two new studies underscore the efficacy of Pycnogenol® French maritime pine bark extract for different health conditions. The first study examined the effect of Pycnogenol on perimenopausal symptoms, including hot flashes, depression and high cholesterol (Acta Obstet Gynecol. 2007;86:978-85). The randomized, double blind, placebo-controlled study was conducted at Ham-Ming Hospital in Taiwan and included 155 perimenopausal women. Patients received 200 mg/d of Pycnogenol or placebo, and recorded their symptoms using the Womens Health Questionnaire (WHQ); body mass index (BMI), blood pressure, lipid profile and antioxidant status were assessed at the clinic at one, three and six months after start of treatment. After six months, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol dropped by 10 percent in women on Pycnogenol compared to those taking placebo; antioxidant levels were also increased in the intervention group. All symptoms of the WHQ improved significantly in the Pycnogenol group compared to start of treatment.

The second study, set for publication in Nutritional Neuroscience, is a follow-up from a 2006 study published in European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry (15(6):329-35) that showed Pycnogenol reduced hyperactivity and improved attention, concentration and motor-visual coordination in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The new study sampled 57 outpatients with ADHD, average age 9.5 years, from the Department of Child Psychology at the Children University Hospital in Slovakia; in addition to ADHD symptom tracking, the new study measured urine and blood samples for hormonal impact. Participants on the active (n=41) received 1 mg/kg body weight/d of Pycnogenol for one month. Intervention lowered adrenaline by 26.2 percent and dopamine by 10.8 percent, balancing the levels of stress hormones and brain physiology. 

The findings acknowledge that children with ADHD have dramatically elevated levels of stress hormones known to increase heart rate and blood pressure, causing excitement, arousal and irritability, as compared to children without ADHD symptoms, said Peter Rohdewald, Ph.D., of the Institute of Pharmaceutical Chemistry at Germanys University of Munster and one of the authors of the study. The findings of this study demonstrate a significant stress hormone lowering effect for a nutritional supplement for the first time.

For more information, visit www.Pycnogenol.com or the U.S. distributor, Natural Health Science, at Booth #19042 at SupplySide West.