Anxiolytic and Antidepressant-like Effects of Foeniculum vulgare Essential Oil

Introduction: The aim of this research was to determine the anxiolytic and antidepressant-like effects of the essential oils from Foeniculum vulgare aerial parts and seeds. Methods: The oils were extracted by hydro-distillation using a modified Clevenger-type apparatus and chemical composition was performed by Gas chromatography with flame-ionization detection (GC-FID) and Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC–MS). Furthermore, an experimental trial was conducted, where 117 participants were divided into three groups, comprising a waiting list control group and two experimental groups treated with essential oils. The anxiety and depression indexes were evaluated by Zung Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) and Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS). Results: chemical analysis showed that trans- Anethole was the main component, both in the essential oil from aerial parts (35.5%) and seeds (79.2%). Anxiety and depression scores showed a decrease in posttest study phase in comparison with pretest in all experimental groups (p<0.05), except for depression scores in the group treated with essential oil from aerial parts (p>0.05). Small changes were found in the case of anxiety for group treated with essential oils from aerial parts (d = 0.41; Δ= 0.40) while moderate (d = 0.86; Δ = 0.85) and small (d = 0.38; Δ = 0.39) changes were found for anxiety and depression respectively, in the group treated with essential oil from seeds. Conclusion: The essential oil from Foeniculum vulgare seeds is more effective to relief anxiety than depression while the essential oil from Foeniculum vulgare aerial parts only exhibit small changes for anxiety.