Ginkgo Biloba Essay, Research Paper

Ginkgo Biloba

Ginkgo Biloba is versatile herb that can be used to treat many conditions. Ginkgo Biloba shows to be very promising to people with Alzheimer’s disease. The disease that affects the brain by the degeneration of nerve endings.

Numerous studies have shown benefits of using ginkgo biloba extract to improve the mental sharpness of geriatric patients. For example, W.V. Weitbrecht and W. Jansen, of Nuremberg, Germany, conducted a double-blind study involving 40 patients, ages 60 to 80, who had been diagnosed with primary degenerative dementia(91). During the 3-month study, one group of 20 received either Ginkgo biloba extract(120 mg/day), while the other 20 was given a placebo(91).

The researchers reported that those receiving the ginkgo extract were more alert, scored higher on psychometric tests and had a more positive outlook than the controls(92). The ginkgo biloba extract group experienced a “significant improvement”, compared with no gain for the placebo group.

At the Whittington Hospital in London, researchers examined the benefits of ginkgo biloba extract on the 31 patients over the age of 50 with signs of memory impairment, reported Donald J. Brown, N.D., in the May 1992 issue of Let’s Live(62).

In the double-blind study, half the volunteers were given 40 milligrams of ginkgo biloba extract three times daily, while the other half remained on a placebo(62). Psychometric tests were evaluated at the beginning of the study and after 12 and 24 weeks of treatments(62).

The results were encouraging, Dr. Brown said:

The patients who received ginkgo biloba extract showed significantly

superior improvement compared to those given a placebo. Besides

demonstrating that the ginkgo extract has a beneficial effect on mild to

moderate memory loss of organic origin, the study revealed that

electroencephalogram measurements in the ginkgo biloba extract

indicated improved brain function. This supports other research that has

shown ginkgo extract increases the rate of information transmission by

nerve cells(63).

In 1975, French researchers studied the potential benefits of ginkgo biloba extract in a group of 60 patients(64). There was 55 females and 5 males in the group(64). The group who have all been diagnosed with cerebrovascular insufficiency(64). Thirty female patients served as controls an were given ergot

Alkaloid derivatives (64). Pretrial examinations determined the extent of dizziness, headaches, movability, sensory manifestations, etc., as well as typical psychometric tests(64).

Following the tests, the researchers determined that there was a 79 percent improvement in the ginkgo biloba group, compared with the 21 percent on the placebo(64). The trial group received 120 mg/day of ginkgo biloba extract for three months(64).

Patients with cerebrovascular insuffiency showed 92 percent improvement after being giving ginkgo, contrasted with 44 percent improvement in the placebo group, according to a 1982 study(Funfgeld 1247). During this one-month study, 50 patients(30 women an 20 men) were randomly assigned to the ginkgo group or a placebo group(1247). The volunteers ranged in age from 45 to 74(1247). The supplement group received 120mg/day of ginkgo(1247).

The treatment group began to show signs of improvement after 12 days, the researchers said(1248). In the controls, it took 30 days before an change was noticeable(1248).

Ginkgo Biloba extract has proven itself in various tests(1248). Its ability to increase oxygen carrying blood to parts of the brain it could not reach alone(1248). It has been proven to be a very promising treatment for Alzheimer’s disease by slowing down the progression of the disease(1248).

Weitbrecht, W.V., and Jansen, W.V., and Jansen, W. “Double-

Blind and Comparative(Ginkgo vs. Placebo) Therapeutic

Study in Geriatric Patients with Primary Degenerative

Dementia-a Preliminary Evaluation.” In “Effects of Ginkgo

Biloba Extract on Organic Cerebral Inpairment,” A. Agnoli,

Et al. London: Eurotext Ltd., 1985, p. 91-99.

Brown, Donald J.,N.D. “Ginkgo Biloba-Old and New:Part 2,”

Let’s Live, May 1992, pp.62-64

Funfgeld, E.W. “A Natural and Broad Spectrum Nootropic substance for

Treatment of SDAT- the Ginkgo Biloba Extract.” In “Alzheimer’s

Disease and Related Disorders,” Iqbak,K., et al. , editors. New

York: Alan Liss, 1989, pp.1247-1260.