A ginseng allegory (pieces of knowledge)

It takes a lot of work to really know about something. Most of the time, we only know a piece.

The modern ginseng market includes various capsules, tablets, extracts, teas, energy drinks, and topicals. Loads of people who sell and use these products make claims about ginseng while only knowing a piece or two:

• Ginseng has been called the "King of the [medicinal] herbs" and the "Root of immortality."

• In Traditional Chinese Medicine ginseng strongly strengthens the innate Qi and the vital organs, expels evil Qi, calms the Spirit, improves mental function, generates fluids, and relieves thirst. An ancient Materia Medica says, "Consumed over a long time, it lightens the body and extends the years."

• In modern Biomedical research, ginseng has demonstrated effects that improve memory and learning, enhance immunity, provide a adaptogenic effect with various environmental stressors, improve physical performance by increasing the hormones ACH and ACTH, improve cardiovascular function, lower blood sugar, lower blood cholesterol, lower elevated levels of liver enzymes, and improve reproductive capacity.

• There are different types of ginseng including Chinese/Korean ginseng (Panax ginseng) and American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius) with different effects. Products vary in their ginseng selection, dosing, and added ingredients.

• There are concerns about side effects with longterm use of ginseng such as skin rashes, headaches, insomnia, nervousness, anxiety, confusion, depression, and blood pressure fluctuations (including hypertension).

• With further investigation, one discovers that concerns about hypertension come from a single case study from Nov. 2004 which reported that a 64-year-old male who had never suffered from hypertension taking 500 mg of the Panax ginseng preparation Ginseng Forte-Dietisa for 13 days experienced a transient ischemic attack secondary to a hypertensive crisis. His blood pressure returned to previous levels one week after quitting the ginseng product.

• Traditional Chinese Medicine physicians have understood for thousands of years that Panax ginseng is sweet and warm and must be used with caution in individuals with damp or hot constitutions/pathologies. In such individuals, it will almost certainly cause side effects similar to those listed above.

• Panax ginseng was traditionally prepared as a tea using a hot water extraction process or powdered and consumed in pill form. Other methods of processing and administration extract different constituents and cannot be expected to produce traditional effects (a lesson learned in the 1980s with Artemisia annua L. and malaria).

• I studied and prescribed ginseng in traditional ways for 5 years before discovering that modern Panax ginseng behaves a bit differently than the early Panax ginseng of record. It's more drying and doesn't have the traditional "fluid-generating" effects.

A working knowledge is attainable. But for most of us most of the time, pieces are missing.

[NDT says, "One of the great challenges in this world is knowing enough about a subject to think you're right but not enough about the subject to know you're wrong."]