ginseng (Panax ginseng)

ginseng root

Other common names: Asian ginseng; Chinese ginseng;
Korean ginseng, ren shen
Latin name: Panax ginseng C.A. Meyer [Araliaceae]
Latin synonyms: Panax schinseng T. Nees
Plant part: Root
American Ginseng
Other common name: xi yang shen
Latin name: Panax quinquefolius L. [Araliaceae]
Plant part: Root

Ginseng, or in Chinese, ren shen, has been translated roughly as
“man-root,” referring to the shape of the root. Only products of Panax
species are properly labeled ginseng. However, the name has been
used more loosely, and incorrectly, to include members of other genera,
such as Eleutherococcus senticosus (Rupr. et Maxim) Maxim.,
given the nickname “Siberian ginseng.” The genus Panax includes 11
species—the most commonly used is Panax ginseng C.A. Meyer,
also known as Asian ginseng (Awang, 2003; Wen, 2001).

The root of Asian ginseng has been used in traditional Asian medicine
for more than 2,000 years. Commercially supplied roots are
graded according to their source, age, part of the root, and method of
preparation (Bahrke and Morgan, 1994). The root can be used fresh,
or prepared as “white” ginseng (peeled and dried) or “red” ginseng
(steamed and dried). The fresh root is often sliced thinly and taken
with or without honey, or it can be boiled in soup. White or red ginseng
can be powdered, extracted, or made into a tea (Yun and Choi,
1998). The main active components of ginseng roots are glycosidal
saponins known as ginsenosides. There are eight commonly measured
ginsenosides, in addition to three malonylginsenosides. The
heating process in the production of red ginseng converts the malonylginsenosides
to their ginsenoside counterparts (Chuang et al.,
1995) and also results in other chemical transformations.
American ginseng, Panax quinquefolius L., is native to eastern
North America and cultivated both in North America and in Asia.
American ginseng root can be distinguished from Asian ginseng by
profiling the constituent ginsenosides (Dou, Hou, and Chen, 1998;
Chuang et al., 1995).

ginseng (Panax ginseng)

Ginsana® is manufactured by Pharmaton S.A. in Switzerland, and
is sold by Pharmaton Natural Health Products in the United States.
Ginsana contains the ginseng root extract G115®, which is characterized
as containing 4 percent ginsenosides. This standardized extract
is also sold in combination with vitamins and minerals as Ginsana®
Gold Blend in the United States and Gericomplex in Europe. Three
similar products also produced by Pharmaton (Geriatric Pharmaton®,
Gegorvit®, Pharmaton® Capsules) contained an additional ingredient,
deanol (dimethylaminoethanol bitartrate), and were used in three
of the reviewed clinical trials (Le Gal, Cathebras, and Struby, 1996;
Neri et al., 1995; Pieralisi, Ripari, and Vecchiet, 1991).

Gerimax Ginseng Extract is manufactured by Dansk Droge in
Denmark and is characterized as containing 4 percent ginsenosides.
This product is not sold in the United States.

Powdered American ginseng root is manufactured by Chai-Na-Ta
Corporation in British Columbia, Canada. However, this product has
not been developed commercially and is not available on the market.

Ginseng has been described as an “adaptogen,” a substance that
corrects dysfunction in sick individuals and protects healthy individuals
from stresses without producing unwanted side effects. The
adaptogen concept originated from Soviet scientists in the late 1950s.
The concept was translated recently intoWestern conventional medicine
as a medicinal agent with a pharmacological profile of antioxidant
and/or anticancer activity, immunomodulatory, and cholesterollowering
properties, as well as having hypoglycemic and choleretic
actions (Davydov and Krikorian, 2000). Adaptogens have also been
described as increasing nonspecific resistance to stress due to adverse
physical, chemical, and/or biological factors (Bahrke and Morgan,
1994).