Indonesian Medicine Plants for Mental Health Disorders: Anxiety and Depression

Abstract

Mental health disorders are widely discussed, specifically anxiety and depression. The number of people living with these disorders in 2020 increased significantly due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Mental health disorders are quite serious and need to be addressed. Indonesian people have used medicinal plants in everyday life to treat symptoms of mental health disorders such as increasing mood and motivation, calming, overcoming depression, stress, anxiety, and sleep disorders. However, there has been no comprehensive review on the ethnopharmacology of medicinal plants. Therefore, this review aimed to analyze Indonesian medicinal plants used to treat mental health disorders and reviews the associated scientific evidence. Literature studies of scientific articles, research journals, and books were carried out at national and international levels. The search results identified 39 Indonesian medicinal plants used to treat symptoms of mental health disorders. The results showed that Fabaceae family had types of medicinal plants widely used and possess the potential to treat depression and anxiety. Several plants were proven in preclinical research, but many were not studied. Therefore, further analyses must be conducted to provide knowledge and develop drugs for mental health disorders.