Plant Oil-Based Dietary Supplement with Deer Antler Extract for Panic Attacks: A Clinical Study

Plant Oil-Based Dietary Supplement with Deer Antler Extract for Panic Attacks: A Clinical Study

Valery Petrovich Sergun¹, Daria Dmitrievna Ageenko², Valentina Nikolaevna Burkova¹, Valeriy Mikhailovich Poznyakovsky^2,3, Boisjoni Tokhiriyon⁴*, Valentina Lapina⁴

¹Research and Production Association «Biolit», Tomsk, Russia.

²Scientific and Educational Center for Applied Biotechnology and Nutrition, Kemerovo State Medical University, Kemerovo, Russia.

³Department of Technological Entrepreneurship, Kuzbass State Agricultural Academy, Kemerovo, Russia.

⁴Department of Management, Entrepreneurship and Engineering, Ural State University of Economics, Ekaterinburg, Russia.

ABSTRACT

Due to a recent increase in the number of people suffering from panic attacks, there is an acute need for a solution. Research data available suggests adopting a healthy diet to relieve or eliminate panic attacks. A plant oil-based dietary supplement with deer antler extract was tested for efficacy in treating panic attacks. Sixty participants, aged from 18 to 55, were involved in the clinical study. To assess the efficacy of the therapy, we monitored the autonomic nervous system dynamics, the hormonal changes, and the immune system and performed a comprehensive assessment of the autonomic nervous system and mental and emotional states. The study findings support the importance of nutrition and demonstrate the advantages of using dietary supplements for treating patients with PA.

It should be noted that the use of the developed supplement has a positive potentiated effect on the state of nervous, hormonal, immune regulation and bone tissue metabolism.

Keywords: Deer antler, Dietary supplement, Panic attack, Efficiency, Functional focus

INTRODUCTION

The fast pace of contemporary life impacts every human being and induces significant neurophysiological changes. The first of the most evident reasons for these changes is an imbalanced diet that lacks essential nutrients and fails to provide adequate energy balance. Common nutrient deficiencies become the cause of alimentary diseases. Second, the Industrial Revolution is, on the one hand, beneficial to society, with its artificial intelligence and advanced digital technologies, automation of many production processes; while, on the other hand, results in a notable worsening of the quality of life, with pollution and contamination, together with increased stress and anxiety. The third major reason is a viral attack that humankind experienced during the coronavirus outbreak, which affected the functioning of important regulatory systems such as the nervous and endocrine systems. As a consequence, the above-mentioned changes resulted in a massive increase in different autonomic nervous system (ANS) disorders, with a registered growth in the number of people suffering from regular panic attacks (PA).

Russian scientists define a panic attack as an extreme form of vegetative dystonia, with such symptoms as recurrent anxiety, breath shortness, pounding heart, and intense fear [1-5].

As for The International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, recurrent and severe depressive disorders with psychotic symptoms are listed under the F33.3 code. Currently, approximately 40% of patients, who seek initial medical advice from general practitioners, show symptoms of PA. It should be noted that these patients represent the working-age population, and, thus, the problem requires prompt attention and an acute solution.

Recent research studies found that a combination therapy approach, that uses both medications and adaptogens, is one of the best ways to treat panic attacks. Adaptogens, such as deer antlers, are known to increase the body’s nonspecific resistance to a wide range of harmful effects of a chemical, physical, and biological nature [6-11].

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A new plant oil-based dietary supplement that contains phospholipids and glycolipids extracted from the antlers of the Altai Maral was tested. Sixty participants, aged from 18 to 55, were selected and allocated into two groups (the main and control groups) of 30 people each. The participants of the main group were prescribed ten drops of the supplement to be taken sublingually before or with the morning meal daily for 4 weeks. The participants of the control group did not receive the dietary supplement. Upon the completion of the therapy, a clinical study was performed to assess the effectiveness of the new dietary supplement. A follow-up period of 2 weeks was set to record recurrent panic attacks.

The vegetative function was assessed using the Vane scale (a quantitative assessment developed by A.M. Vane, 2003). The assessment was carried out twice, four weeks before and four weeks after the treatment. The diagnosis of panic disorder was confirmed for the participants who demonstrated at least 4 of the symptoms.

The type of adaptive response was determined by calculating the percentage of lymphocytes in the leukocyte formula and segmented neutrophils, applying Goldberg's neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio [12].

A heart rate variability (HRV) examination was performed by registering short fragments of a standard record (cardiointervalogram). The following indicators were evaluated: index voltage; heartbeat frequency; variation range (to assess the effect of the parasympathetic nervous system on heart rate); heartbeat mode (to register hu-moral regulation of cardiac activity); the functioning of the cardiovascular center (heart rate and blood pressure via sympathetic and parasympathetic pathways); mode amplitude (to assess the effect of the sympathetic nervous system on heart rate).

The level of cytokines (Interferon-gamma (IFNγ), Interleukin 2 (IL2), Interleukin 4 (IL4), and Interleukin-1 beta (IL1β)) in supernatants was measured using a solid-phase enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (Procon (Russia) and CytImmune (USA) kits were used).

The study was performed at ‘ProfMed’ scientific and research center of the Chair of Obstetrics and Gynaecology of Siberian State Medical University (Tomsk, Russia) and supervised by L.S. Sotnikova, Doctor of Medical Sciences, Professor.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

During diagnostic testing, the quantitative assessment of the patients revealed disorders of the ANS, as all the participants scored 85.3±5.05 points, which was 8 times higher than normal (normal values are fewer than 10 points). The average number of clinical manifestations of PA for the participants of the main group equaled 10±2.

The data on the changes in the number of clinical manifestations of PA (before and after therapy) is presented in Table 1.

Upon the completion of the therapy, all participants of the main group demonstrated a decline (p<0.05) in the number of PA symptoms. It is important to note the complete relief of such manifestations as the fear of death and the feeling of losing control of the body.

No complaints or side effects related to the dietary supplement were recorded. The participants reported improvement in general well-being, mentioning (1) being better at managing emotional lability, (2) improved health and vitality, (3) and enhanced labor productivity. A comprehensive in-depth assessment of the functional state of the ANS was carried out (Table 2).

Activation of TH1 cells associated with the production of IL-1β, IL-2, and INF-γ cytokines enhances cellular immunity. The humoral immune response is induced by the dominance of TH2 cytokines. When analyzing the cytokine production by blood mononuclear cells, we registered changes in the ability of immunocompetent cells to secrete cytokines.

Having assessed the IL-1β levels in mononuclear cells of the patients with PAs before the therapy, we recorded a significantly increased spontaneous secretion. After a four-week therapy with the dietary supplement, spontaneous secretion of IL-1β approximated to that of the control group. Levels of the PHA-stimulated production of IL-1β and the stimulation index were at reasonably comparable levels.

At the starting point of the trial, both the spontaneous and PHA-stimulated pro-duction of IL-2 was inhibited in the patients with PAs. The testing revealed a nearly restored IL-2 production after a four-week diet therapy.

Before the therapy, basal and PHA-stimulated production of IL-4 was documented as significantly higher than the reference values. Although the results obtained after a four-week therapy demonstrated a positive trend in the cytokine secretion by immunocompetent cells, it remained significantly different from the reference values.

Before the therapy, the evaluation of spontaneous and induced production of IFN-γ by the mononuclear cells in patients with PAs revealed lower secretion. Since IFN-γ is important for protection from viral infections, the data indicates a low immune response in patients with PA. After a four-week therapy, the synthesis of IFN-γ by immunocompetent cells noticeably improved, although it remained lower than that of the control group.

The study findings indicate the importance of nutrition for spontaneous and PHA-stimulated production of IFN-γ, IL-2, IL-4, and IL-1β. These cytokines are necessary for the proper functioning of the nervous and immune systems, ensuring stress resistance and resilience.

The two-week follow-up period included dynamic monitoring to record any re-current PAs. During the follow-up period, twelve out of thirty participants experienced panic attacks. After the therapy, PAs were less frequent and less severe and lasted from 10 to 20 minutes, 10±5 minutes on average.

CONCLUSION

The study findings support the importance of nutrition and demonstrate the following advantages of using dietary supplements for treating patients with PA:

• Better stress resistance and resilience;
• reduced sympathetic tone and, therefore, the rebalanced ANS;
• Normalised stress hormones (reduced cortisol and stimulated insulin levels)
• stable cytokine balance (a steady production of key cytokines that affect the functions of the hormonal, nervous, and immune systems).

The combination of the ingredients used in the dietary supplement ensures the synergistic effect and helps to suppress the severity, frequency, and length of PAs. Analyzing the clinical study date, we can recommend the dietary supplement for effective prevention and therapy of panic attacks.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS: None

CONFLICT OF INTEREST: None

FINANCIAL SUPPORT: None

ETHICS STATEMENT: The study was conducted according to the guidelines of the Declaration of Helsinki.