Herbal treatments may soon overtake conventional medication altogether,
for a new study revealed ginkgo may help treat multiple sclerosis
(MS) patients.
Ginkgo has been used for thousands of years by the Chinese as an
herbal remedy for a variety of health conditions. It contains flavoglycosides,
which are potent antioxidants that have been shown to have neuroprotective
effects in animal models of spinal cord injury.
Further, ginkgo has terpene-lactones that block a substance known
as platelet activitating factor -- important in regulating blood
vessel function as well as mediating inflammation and the sticking
of inflammatory cells to blood vessels.
Gingko's Benefits on MS Patients
MS patients have long suspected that ginkgo improves disease symptoms.
And thanks to the results of a 39-patient trial including:
- Twenty patients who received ginkgo.
- Nineteen who received a placebo.
... researchers discovered that ginkgo improved the attention
spans of MS patients who suffer from cognitive impairment, and with
minimal side effects.
While there were no differences on baseline performances in a string
of neuropsychological tests among the two groups, researchers did
find the ginkgo group was four seconds, or about 13 percent, faster
than the placebo group in a "Stroop" test -- a color/word
test that measures attention as well as planning, decision making
and controlling goal-directed behaviors.
During the Stroop test, MS patients were shown colored boxes and
asked to identify the names of the colors they saw. They were then
shown the names of colors printed with different-colored inks (i.e.
the word blue would be printed in yellow) and asked to read the
word. Last, patients were instructed to describe the ink used for
each word. According to researchers, the
differences in results from the Stroop would be comparable to variances
in scores between healthy people ages 30-39 and those 20 years older.
Based on these findings, ginkgo will remain as one of the many
weapons in the arsenal for fighting MS.
Oregon
Health & Science University April 27, 2005
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