So has anybody else tried one of the game's ingredients and found that they actually have some effect in real-life? (other than alcohol).

St. John's wort. I tried it for the first time this week, and absolutely love it. It's supposed to be an anti-depressant, which I'm unsure about, but it definely imparts energy to the imbiber. It's a weird feeling; kinda like a coffee, but without the jitters/acid stomach. In the game it lasts 30 seconds (I think it's Resist Poison) but in RL it lasts more like 4 hours.

This friend of mine years ago used to rave on and on about it, but for whatever reason I never tried it. And lately ( sorry if this is TMI ) my shrink has been pushing me to get on an antidepressant. Well I had to take all this time off from work just to go see this big, important doctor. Missed one appointment by 10 minutes and had to make another. Long story longer, I finally make the appoinment, and she prescribes this stuff which is WAAYY past my budget ( I didn't know this until I went to get it filled, of course)..

You're supposed to take St. John's wort 2 or 3 times a day, but I find that just once is plenty. With food. so I'm now all curious...there's tons of herbs & ingrdients at my local natural food store, anybody know of any that actually have effects?

I've tried Vampire dust before, but I was at a loss for words.

Mort Flesh...tastes like chicken.

OK! on a serious note, I've never tried the ingredients outside of normal food. I usually get health benefits from taking vitamins and minerals. For example: I take Vitamin C as an antihistamine to combat seasonal allergies. I take Niacin (vitamin B3) for anxiety/depression relief. I know there are many medicinal purposes for many of the plants in Oblivion in real life. I wouldn't be surprised if many of the effects were based on the real world.