Flavonoids seem to work mechanistically similar to anti-anxiety drugs: They are able to pass the blood-brain barrier but without the side effects of medications.
Benzodiazepines like diazepam (Valium) are well-known drugs to help people feel calmer through their sedating, hypnotic, anti-anxiety, muscle-relaxant effects. These effects are thought to occur, at least in part, because of the drug’s ability to enhance the neurotransmitter gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) at a specific receptor site in the brain.
