1. Root to Health and Performance-Ginseng
Zubaida Qamar

2. 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

3. 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

5. 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

6. 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

7. 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).

9. Animal Studies

10. 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

11. 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)

12. 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

13. Questions??