WONDER DRUGS - HOPS

HOPS

Plant with heartshaped leaves with serrated edges, and pendant-like whitish flowers.

Contain: Hops are high in bitter substances, known as humulone and lupulone, which stimulate the appetite.

What's new: German researchers found that time spent in total sleep and deep sleep was 10 per cent greater in people taking a mix of hops and the herb valerian. It is thought that the relaxing effects are down to a compound in hops called dimethylvinyl carbinol.

A study at Howard University in America showed that hops also have an antiviral effect, while research at the Chinese Academy of Sciences showed that compounds in hops may work against HIV-1 infection.

At home: Put some hops in a pillow to combat insomnia.