< previous page | page_9 | next page >
Page 9
| of ashwagandha, once a day. The participants had not responded to a vitamin and mineral supplement each of them had taken for at least two months, and they had no recognizable disease. After one month of taking the ashwagandha, mixture, the patients reported an average 45 percent improvement in their moods. Their blood plasma protein levels and hemoglobin, two factors used to measure overall health, also increased significantly, providing a statistical measurement of the tonic's effect. |
| A 1994 study in India compared the adaptogenic and anabolic (ability to promote growth of lean body mass) effects of P. ginseng and ashwagandha in mice and rats. Groups of six mice were fed 100 mg/kg water extract of either ginseng, ashwagandha, or saline for seven days. On the eighth day, the animals' endurance levels were tested by swimming. Their average swimming times in minutes were 62.55, ginseng; 82.14, ashwagandha; and 35.34, saline. |
| Ashwagandha is often blended with other adaptogenic herbs, such as Siberian ginseng. A typical dose is one to two teaspoons of the extract two to three times a day or one 500-mg capsule three times daily. Ashwagandha may cause gastrointestinal upset in some people. |
| Schisandra |
| Schisandra fruit is from a hardy, perennial vine sometimes referred to as magnolia vine or Chinese magnolia vine. Schisandra, is in the family of plants known as the schisandraceae, although some botanists place it in the magnolia family, magnoliaceae. The vine is native to the eastern portions of Siberia and the Sakhalin peninsula, as well as northeastern China, Korea and Japan. |
| There is growing scientific evidence of the general health benefits of schisandra. Some scientists classify schisandra as an adaptogen, a term that is usually reserved for only the highest quality herbs like ginseng. |
| Schisandra is also considered adaptogenic based on reviews of its traditional use and the recent scientific literature. Interestingly, animal and human studies indicate schisandra produces the effects of a stimulantwhen only one dose of a substance increases metabolism and working capacity; the ef- |
< previous page | page_9 | next page >

If you like this book, buy it!