Root to Health and Performance-Ginseng Zubaida Qamar

Ginseng Root of Araliaceous plant Panax ginseng-most famous of all species The term “ginseng” usually applies to the dried root of the plant Active component=Ginsenoside

Potential Benefits of Ginseng Ginseng is “believed” to have many beneficial effects relieving pain and headaches stimulating appetite improving mental function and physical stamina boosting immune system counteracting fatigue ergogenic agent to optimize exercise performance

Animal Studies Grandhi et al. compared aqueous suspensions of roots of P. ginseng (100 mg/kg administered orally for 7 days) significant increases in swimming time compared with a control group Bodyweight gain was significantly higher following treatment and increase in weight of the levator ani muscle was significant These studies demonstrate that administration of ginseng may prolong endurance performance in mice and rats along with gains in muscle mass

Animal Studies Wang and Lee reported significantly prolonged aerobic endurance(18 minutes at 70% of maximal oxygen (VO2 max) in a placebo controlled study with non-trained rats Study done for 4 days with 10 and 20 mg/kg/day ginseng intraperitoneally Possible Mechanism: Ginseng enhances exercise endurance by altering fuel homeostasis during exercise by increasing free fatty acid utilization preference over glucose for cellular energy demands

Human Studies Physically active 13 male college students were divided into two groups (AG or placebo) and received supplementation for 4 weeks, before the exhaustive running exercise Treadmill speed was increased to a pace equivalent to 80% VO2max of the subject. A 4- wk washout period followed before the subjects crossed over and received the alternate supplement for the next 4 wk. They then completed a second exhaustive running exercise The plasma creatine kinase (CK) and lactate were measured prior to exercise and after exercise at different time intervals Supplementation with AG for 4 wk prior to an exhaustive aerobic treadmill running reduced the leakage of CK during exercise, but did not enhance aerobic work capacity The reduction of plasma CK may be due to the fact that AG is effective for the decrease of skeletal muscle cell membrane damage, induced by exercise during the high- intensity treadmill run CK catalyses the conversion of creatine and consumes adenosine triphosphate (ATP) to create phosphocreatine (PCr) and adenosine diphosphate (ADP).

Animal Studies

Contradictions Methodological flaws lack of double blind, control and placebo paradigms small sample size varied treatment duration compliance issues lack of “sourcing” data combination of ginseng with other items e.g. fenugreek differences in administration of ginseng dosage type of ginseng used

Recommendation The recommended daily dose for dry ginseng root is generally 0.5 to 2.0g There are no reports of acute toxicity of high-dose ginseng in humans NOT a banned substance-the International Olympic Committee (IOC)and the US Olympic Committee (USOC)

Conclusion The success of ginseng in animal studies could have been attributed to the higher dosage of ginseng .Hence, inferences from animal models must be carefully applied to humans Very few human studies have shown positive benefits on ginseng Be careful of the misleading claims on supplemental products Try to follow the natural and scientifically proven “food first” approach for overall health and better performance

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