Korean Ginseng Shows Benefits for Alzheimer’s Sufferers

Korean (panax) ginseng enhances cognitive performance in Alzheimer’s disease patients, according to a study coming out of South Korea. Intrigued by other studies showing Korean ginseng’s wide-ranging benefits, researchers initiated the new study stating: “Recent experimental evidences suggest protective and trophic effects of ginseng in the memory function of Alzheimer disease (AD). Thus, we investigated the clinical efficacy of panax ginseng in the cognitive performance of AD patients in an open-label study.”

The study was conducted at the Seoul National University Hospital in South Korea. Ninety-seven patients who met NINDS-ADRDA (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Strokes, and Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Disorders Association) criteria for probable AD were included (aged 47 to 83 years).

The patients were randomly assigned to the ginseng group (20 men and 38 women) or to the control group (15 men and 24 women). The ginseng group was treated with Korean ginseng powder (4.5 grams per day) for 12 weeks. According to the authors, the ginseng contained 8.19% ginsenosides. To evaluate possible dose-response effect, an additional nine patients were administered a higher dose of ginseng (nine grams per day). After the 12-week period of ginseng treatment, all patients were monitored for another 12 weeks.

To evaluate cognitive function, the researchers used scores on the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and Alzheimer’s Disease Assessment Scale (ADAS), including the ADAS cognitive subscale (ADAS-cog) and noncognitive subscale (ASDS-noncog).

At four weeks, the ginseng group showed an improvement in MMSE score by 1.0 plus or minus 2.4 points from baseline, whereas the control group changed by 0.58 plus or minus 2.4 points. At 12 weeks, the ginseng group improved by 1.8 plus or minus 2.8 points, whereas the control group changed by -0.03 plus or minus 3.1. However, after the 12-week period of ginseng was discontinued, no difference was observed between the two groups.

ADAS-cog scores were also improved in the ginseng group at four weeks and at 12 weeks after the ginseng treatment compared with the control group. And, again, after the ginseng had been discontinued for 12 weeks, the differences between the ginseng and control groups disappeared. In contrast, according to the researchers, the ADAS-noncog scores, which represent neuropsychiatric symptoms, showed no significant difference between the ginseng and control groups at four weeks, 12 weeks or 24 weeks.

The authors report that their results suggest Korean ginseng is clinically effective in the cognitive performance of patients with Alzheimer’s disease and that longer-term placebo-controlled, double-blind studies are warranted.

Alzheimer Disease and Associated Disorders 22(3):222-226, 2009

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