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Lavender

Supplement botanical sleep
Aka: Lavandula angustifolia, Silexan
Brands seen in Singapore: NOW Foods, Cococare, artnaturals, Vitacost, Aura Cacia
Not medical advice. Check with your doctor or pharmacist before you start, stop or change the timing of anything you take.
How to use
What it’s for
Anxiety symptoms; the sleep evidence is unclear
When to take
Trials dosed 80 mg once daily
Studied for
The trials ran 10 weeks
Pros & cons
Pros
  • 80 mg/day silexan beat placebo for anxiety
  • Trial side effects were burping and mild gi upset
  • No dependence or withdrawal seen in trials
Cons
  • Benefit for sleep or insomnia stays unclear
  • Trials small, not independently funded
  • Oral capsule data does not carry over to oils
Sources
  1. NIH NCCIH — Lavender · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “It's unclear whether aromatherapy with lavender oil has benefits for anxiety, stress, symptoms of depression, some types of pain, sleep quality or insomnia … the research has several limitations, such as the small sample sizes”
  2. NIH NCCIH — Lavender, "What Do We Know About Safety?" · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “There are theoretical reasons to suspect that lavender might interact with some sedative drugs or herbs … Topical products containing lavender may cause allergic skin reactions in some people.”
  3. Silexan in anxiety, depression, and related disorders (Kasper et al., Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci 2025) · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “Silexan taken orally at a daily dose of 80 mg for 10 weeks was significantly superior to placebo in reducing psychic and somatic symptoms of anxiety and was as effective as 0.5 mg/d lorazepam”
  4. Silexan in anxiety, depression, and related disorders — tolerability (Kasper et al. 2025) · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “Adverse events associated with silexan in clinical trials were limited to eructation and mild, transient gastrointestinal complaints. The herbal product was not associated with drug interactions, sedation, sleep disturbance, dependence and abuse potential”
  5. HSA — Guidelines on Prohibited and Restricted Ingredients in Health Supplements and Traditional Medicines (Oct 2025, GL-CHPB-1-012) · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “The objective of this guideline is to highlight the substances of concern when used in HS and TM and is not meant to be an exhaustive list.”
  6. HSA — Health Supplements Guidelines (Jan 2026, GL-CHPB-3-001 Rev. 020), Tables 4–5 · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “HS for use by the general adult population should not contain vitamins and minerals exceeding the stipulated limits stated in Tables 4 and 5.”
  7. iHerb Singapore — category listing (default order) · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “Lavender Essential Oil: Pure Calming Diffuser Oil | iHerb”
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Updated 2026-08-29. Every line above traces to a numbered source. Kozen-X is not a medical device and does not give medical advice. It lists what published sources have written down — nothing more. A pair not listed is unrecorded, not cleared. Before you start, stop or re-time anything, talk to your doctor or pharmacist.