Evaluating the effect of Glycyrrhiza glabra, Matricaria chamomilla, and Achillea millefolium on the symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome: Clinical trial

BACKGROUND: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a functional disorder of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract that causes multiple and occasionally debilitating symptoms in patients. Given the high prevalence and wide effects of IBS in our society, finding cheap, safe, and effective drugs has a great importance for helping the patients with IBS and helping the community's health economy. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of yarrow, licorice, and chamomile (as a cheap and safe cocktail) on the symptoms of patients with IBS. METHODS: In this double-blinded clinical trial study, 102 patients (referred to Toohid Hospital in Sanandaj City, Kurdistan, Iran, from February 25, 2017 to August 21, 2019) were included in the trial. The diagnosis of IBS was based on clinical findings and Rome-III criteria. Subjects were randomly assigned to intervention and control groups. The intervention group was given a combination of three plants [Glycyrrhiza glabra (G. glabra), Matricaria chamomilla (M. chamomilla), and Achillea millefolium (A. millefolium)] for a month. The control group received a placebo. Outcomes were assessed 2 and 4 weeks later. Data were analyzed using SPSS software. RESULTS: The mean age of the subjects was 41.2 ± 11.6 years (age range: 21-60 years). 42 patients (41.17%) were men, and 60 patients (58.8%) were women. The mean duration of the symptoms was 27.4 [standard deviation (SD) = 24.6] months. Two weeks after the intervention, there was a statistically significant difference between the two groups in terms of some symptoms, including constipation, diarrhea, and mucus excretion. Four weeks after the intervention, there was a statistically significant difference between the two groups in terms of abdominal pain, bloating, constipation, diarrhea, and feeling of incomplete excretion (P = 0.001). CONCLUSION: Based on the results of this study, combination of the three plants (G. glabra, M. chamomilla, and A. millefolium) was effective in reducing the symptoms of IBS.