When it comes to herbal remedies I try to remain open-minded, yet skeptical enough to do some research before trying them.

These days I’m investigating what all the fuss is about regarding Rhodiola rosea for stress relief. A few trusted sources have recommended it; still, I am searching for more information on its effectiveness and possible side effects.

In the meantime, let’s look at some of the buzz it’s getting on the Internet and beyond:

Dr. Mehmet Oz of “The Dr. Oz Show” fame writes in the December 5, 2011, issue of Time magazine that Rhodiola rosea can be a good mood booster, “modulating resistance to stress and elevating natural opiates in the brain.” The herbal supplement is one of many anti-stress strategies Oz outlines, including exercise, cognitive-behavioral therapy and omega-3 fatty acids.

Oz quips that he puts a bit of Rhodiola root into cocktails he serves at parties.

Joining the celebrity-doctor endorsements is Dr. Andrew Weil, holistic health expert, whose website mentions Rhodiola rosea as a supplement that has enjoyed a number of uses for centuries.

The herb comes from high-altitude areas of Europe and Asia and has been touted in that part of the world as a tonic for fatigue, oxygen deprivation, depression, poor attention span and decreased memory, along with stress relief. Rhodiola root has been the subject of a few lab studies, including a 2007 European study that found Rhodiola extract helped patients with mild-to-moderate depression.

“I suspect we’ll be hearing more about rhodiola in the future,” Weil wrote in 2008 in a question-and-answer article at http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/QAA400399/Rhodiola-for-What-Ails-You.html

Better Nutrition magazine, in an online article titled “10 Simple Health Habits,” touts Rhodiola rosea when you’re working on Habit No. 9, to “stress less.” The article recommends buying the herb as an extract and taking it in the morning on an empty stomach.

An article on the www.WebMD.com site titled “Energy for Sale” lumped Rhodiola rosea in with energy drinks and bars and herbal supplements such as ginseng, guarana and yerba mate. The article concluded that medical researchers don’t know enough about most herbal supplements to say for certain that they offer benefits for various conditions.

By the way, Rhodiola rosea goes by other names, including arctic root, rose root, golden root, Aaron’s rod and Russian rhodiola.

Rhodiola rosea is typically sold as an extract in tablet form, but also as seeds or in dry root form. One piece of advice said to check the label to make sure it contains a compound called rosavins, the active ingredient of Rhodiola rosea.

I did come across warnings not to take the herb if you’re pregnant or nursing and to beware of insomnia if you take it at high dosages. As with any new herbal or nutritional supplement you might choose to try, run it by your healthcare practitioner first.