Passionflower (Passion Fruit Flower)

The leaves of the passion fruit plant, which is passionflower, were used by American Indians for sedative and analgesic infusions, and also in compresses to accelerate wound healing; from the fruits they prepared tonics intended to relieve coughs and treat sexual dysfunctions, in the 16th century passionflower tea was Europe's favourite calming infusion and during the First World War, it was a solution in the treatment of anguish caused by the war; passionflower is native to the tropical and subtropical regions of the Americas, especially Mexico where it was valued by the Aztecs; it grows spontaneously on some Atlantic islands, and is also cultivated in the Mediterranean basin and some areas of Europe, to obtain the edible fruit; passion fruit, whose primary chemical constituents, alkaloids and flavonoids, seem to be responsible for the plant's relaxing action.

Benefits of passionflower:

• It is an antidepressant with no side effects.
• It also has analgesic properties and prevents insomnia.
• It is used for natural relaxation without causing habit formation or dependence, acting at the level of the spinal cord, probably through interaction with endomorphin receptors, reducing the intensity of external stimuli that reach the central nervous system.
• When there are difficulties concentrating, it can be an important source of support.
• Passionflower is also recommended for premenstrual syndromes and gastrointestinal spasms of nervous origin.
• It is even used to combat coronary diseases, insufficient blood circulation, and alcohol and narcotic dependencies.
• Some studies also indicate some anti-inflammatory activity, which is why compresses with the fruit's juice are applied topically to care for skin and eye irritations; or even to disinfect wounds. 
• The dried seeds have anthelmintic (antiparasitic) properties;
• And of course we cannot overlook the fact that trials recently carried out on animals confirm the traditional aphrodisiac properties attributed to passion fruit.