What is the differenciation between Panax ginseng and Ginsengs,How to use Panax Ginseng,Chemistry and Pharmacology,Substitutes?

Article Content:

Overview and tells of Panax ginseng.

Panax Ginseng Extract INCI Name Panax Ginseng Extract CAS 84650-12-4 EINECS ELINCS No 283-493-7 Radix Ginseng Extract Asian Ginseng Extract Ginsenosides Fructus Panax Ginseng Folium Panax Ginseng Radix Panax Ginseng photo picture image Ginseng is a slow-growing perennial herb native to the mountain forests of northeastern China, Korea, and the far eastern regions of the Russian Federation. In China, the natural range for ginseng extends from Hebei Province to the three northeastern provinces of Liaoning, Jilin, and Heilongjiang. It is cultivated extensively in China, Korea, and Russia. The Changbai mountain range is reportedly the only area in China where wild ginseng still occurs naturally . It usually starts flowering at its fourth year and the roots take four to six years to reach maturity. "White" ginseng root (unprocessed) is sometimes bleached and then dried and "red" ginseng is prepared from white ginseng by various processing methods, such as steaming the fresh root before drying. There are many types and grades of ginseng, depending on the origin, root maturity, parts of the root used, and methods of raw material preparation or processing. In Russia, Panax ginseng comes mostly from cultivation and partly from permitted or illegal harvest in the wild. Wild ginseng is listed under protected status in the Russian Red Data Book and, therefore, its harvest and trade is prohibited under Russian law. Under China's nationally protected species schedule, ginseng is subject to the Protection Category 1, comparable to its status in the Russian Federation. In China, North and South Korea, P. ginseng comes from cultivated sources.

Ginseng's genus name Panax is derived from the Greek pan (all) akos (cure), meaning cure-all. The transliteration of the word gin (man) seng (essence) is derived from the Chinese ideogram for "crystallization of the essence of the earth in the form of a man". Ginseng's therapeutic uses were recorded in the oldest comprehensive materia medica, Shen Nong Ben Cao Jing, written around two thousand years ago. In Asian medicine, dried ginseng is used as a tonic to revitalize and replenish vital energy (qi). The usual effect of replenishing qi is not to give an energy boost like that of caffeine or amphetamine. It is traditionally used as an aid during convalescence and as a prophylactic to build resistance, reduce susceptibility to illness, and promote health and longevity. Its activity appears to be based on whole body effects, rather than particular organs or systems, which lends support to the traditional view that ginseng is a tonic that can revitalize the functioning of the organism as a whole.

There is no equivalent concept or treatment in Western conventional medicine. However, multivitamins are used in a similar manner. In traditional Chinese medicine it is usually prescribed in combination with other herbs and taken in an aqueous decoction dosage form . Today, ginseng is official in the national pharmacopeias of Austria, China, France, Germany,Switzerland, and Russia . The Pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China indicates its use for prostration with impending collapse marked by cold limbs and faint pulse; diminished function of the spleen with loss of appetite; diabetes caused by "internal heat"; general weakness with irritability and insomnia in chronic diseases; impotence or frigidity; and heart failure and cardiogenic shock. [It should be noted that in traditional Chinese medicine, the term "spleen" does not correlate to the western anatomical definition of spleen but rather to the entire digestive system, with regard to its functions of digestion, transport and distribution of nutrients, blood flow, and reinforcement of vital energy (qi). "Diabetes caused by internal heat" is a specific condition with symptoms including excessive thirst and urination, and sometimes accompanied by excessive eating.
Panax Ginseng Extract INCI Name Panax Ginseng Extract CAS 84650-12-4 EINECS ELINCS No 283-493-7 Radix Ginseng Extract Asian Ginseng Extract Ginsenosides Fructus Panax Ginseng Folium Panax Ginseng Radix Panax Ginseng photo picture image

In Germany, ginseng is one of a few economically important herbal drugs listed separately in the Foreign Trade Statistics. In 1992, Germany imported 174.6 tons, mainly from China and Hong Kong. A considerable amount of the roots are value-added in Germany and then exported mostly to France, Italy, and Argentina . Ginseng is official in the German Pharmacopoeia, approved in the Commission E monographs, and used in geriatric remedies, roborants, and tonic preparations. The Commission E specifies powdered root or tea infusions. In the United States, it is used by itself and as a main ingredient in a wide range of tonic, energy, and immunostimulant dietary supplements. It is also used extensively in traditional Chinese medicine herbal teas and other fluid or solid forms prescribed to patients by licensed acupuncturists and naturopathic physicians.

During the past fifty years, numerous scientific studies of varying quality have been published on ginseng . Modern human studies have investigated its preventive effect on several kinds of cancer, its effect on newly diagnosed non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus patients, its long-term immunological effect on HIV patients, its ability to treat "qi-deficiency" and blood-stasis syndrome of coronary heart disease and angina pectoris, its ability to treat hepatotoxin-induced liver disease in the elderly, its effect on cell-mediated immune functions in healthy volunteers, its ability to induce a higher immune response in vaccination against influenza , its effect on blood pressure in patients with hypertension, its effect on alveolar macrophages from patients suffering with chronic bronchitis, its ability to treat severe chronic respiratory diseases, its use in the treatment of functional fatigue, its ability to improve quality-of-life in persons subjected to high stress, its effect on psychomotor performance in healthy volunteers, its effect on physical performance during exercise, its ability to treat erectile dysfunction, and its ability to treat male infertility.
Panax Ginseng Extract INCI Name Panax Ginseng Extract CAS 84650-12-4 EINECS ELINCS No 283-493-7 Radix Ginseng Extract Asian Ginseng Extract Ginsenosides Fructus Panax Ginseng Folium Panax Ginseng Radix Panax Ginseng photo picture image

Some clinical trials have suggested the use of ginseng for fatigue and the improvement of physical and mental performance. Ginseng has been studied for treatment of cerebrovascular insufficiency, psychophysical asthenia and depressive symptoms, immunomodulation. Trials have also reported favorable results in treating post-menopausal symptoms and improving athletic performance. A review in a popular newsletter has raised questions regarding the design and results of some of these studies. Several recent trials have reported negative results for improvement of performance during aerobic exercise and in the secondary treatment of geriatric patients.

Many of the clinical studies published in the scientific literature have been conducted on a proprietary extract of P. ginseng standardized to 4% total ginsensenosides. There have been four studies conducted on G115 to measure the effect of ginseng on endurance and vitality. Three studies have been conducted on psychoasthenia. Ten clinical trials have attempted to determine if ginseng affects physical stress and psychomotor functions . Two clinical trials have investigated cerebral blood flow deficits. Two studies on pharmacodynamics measured the immunomodulatory effects, oxygen uptake , doping substances in urine, and serum glucose, serum cholesterol, and serum triglyceride levels.

One double-blind placebo-controlled study investigated the effect of ginseng on newly diagnosed non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) patients. Thirty-six NIDDM patients (20 women and 16 men) were recruited in five health centers and were treated for eight weeks. Patients were randomized to ingest one tablet daily containing 0 , 100, or 200 mg ginseng, presumably an extract, but the authors did not state the type of preparation used in the study. Effects on psychophysical tests, measurements of glucose balance, serum lipids, aminoterminalpropeptide (PIINP) concentration, and body weight were tested. Ginseng therapy elevated mood, improved psychophysical performance, and reduced fasting blood glucose (FBG) and body weight. The 200 mg dose of ginseng improved glycated hemoglobin, serum PIINP, and physical activity. The authors concluded that ginseng may be a useful therapeutic adjunct in the management of NIDDM, but because the active material was not adequately identified, it is difficult to draw meaningful conclusions from this study.
Panax Ginseng Extract INCI Name Panax Ginseng Extract CAS 84650-12-4 EINECS ELINCS No 283-493-7 Radix Ginseng Extract Asian Ginseng Extract Ginsenosides Fructus Panax Ginseng Folium Panax Ginseng Radix Panax Ginseng photo picture image

To test for possible anticancer effects, one case-controlled study, conducted at the Laboratory of Experimental Pathology at the Korea Cancer Center Hospital with 1,987 pairs of subjects, investigated the preventive effect of ginseng intake against various human cancers. In this study, those participants ingesting ginseng had a decreased risk for cancer compared with non-users. A decrease in risk with increased frequency and duration of ginseng ingestion was reported, showing a dose-response relationship. The preventive effect was reported with the ingestion of fresh undried root extract, white dried root extract, powdered white dried root, and red steamed root. Other ginseng dosage forms tested in this study did not show a decrease in cancer risk including fresh sliced root, fresh root juice, and white root tea. The authors concluded that their findings support the view that patients who take ginseng have a decreased risk for most cancers compared with those who do not.

In a subsequent prospective study the non-organ specific cancer preventive effects of ginseng were investigated in 4,634 people over 40 years old, residing in ginseng production areas, from August, 1987 to December, 1992. Among ginseng preparations, fresh ginseng extract consumers were associated with a significantly decreased risk of gastric cancer. The authors concluded that their results strongly suggest that ginseng has a non-organ specific preventive effect against cancer, providing support for the previous case-control studies.
Panax Ginseng Extract INCI Name Panax Ginseng Extract CAS 84650-12-4 EINECS ELINCS No 283-493-7 Radix Ginseng Extract Asian Ginseng Extract Ginsenosides Fructus Panax Ginseng Folium Panax Ginseng Radix Panax Ginseng photo picture image

The approved modern therapeutic applications for ginseng appear to be generally supportable based on its history of use in well established systems of traditional medicine, extensive phytochemical investigations, pharmacological studies in animals, and human clinical studies. However, recent studies do not support results from earlier research. The World Health Organization (WHO) has issued a monograph reviewing standards and therapeutics of Asian ginseng, concluding that some general uses are warranted by clinical data .

Chinese pharmacopeial grade ginseng must be composed of the dried mature root, collected in autumn, from which the rootlets have been removed. Botanical identity must be confirmed by thin-layer chromatography (TLC) as well as by macroscopic and microscopic examinations and organoleptic evaluation. It must contain not less than 14% dilute ethanol-soluble extractive, among other quantitative purity standards (JP XII, 1993; Tu, 1992). The British Herbal Pharmacopoeia requirements are comparable to the Asian monographs with some exceptions, including not less than 20% ethanol-soluble extractive (70%), calculated with reference to the oven-dried material (BHP, 1996). The German Pharmacopoeia requires not less than 1.5% total ginsenosides calculated as ginsenoside Rg1, botanical identification by TLC, macroscopic and microscopic examination, organoleptic evaluation, and some quantitative purity standards (DAB 10, 1994). The Swiss Pharmacopoeia requires not less than 2% total ginsenosides calculated as ginsenoside Rg1.