Ginseng is the most famous Chinese herb, and it is the most widely recognized plant used in traditional medicine-with a legendary reputation as an overall body tonic, rejuvenator and anti-aging supplement.
If you have not used Ginseng then you should consider it as part of your overall health regime.
Types of Ginseng
The Chinese have used ginseng in medicine for more than 7000 years, and today it is one of the world's most popular supplements.
There are three main species of ginseng, Oriental, Siberian and American. All three forms share many common elements - there are however subtle differences between them:
Oriental Ginseng (Panax Ginseng)
Is grown in both China and Korea. Red panax, as grown by the Koreans is the most popular form of ginseng. It gets its name from the processing of the root, which turns it red.
White Oriental ginseng on the other hand is the ginseng root, which has been allowed to dry naturally.
American Ginseng (Panax Quinquefolium)
Used to be plentiful in the United States however, excessive harvesting in recent years has seen it become scarcer. Today, only licensed ginseng harvesters are allowed to harvest wild ginseng.
Siberian Ginseng (Eleutherococcus Senticocus)
In fact, Siberian ginseng is not actually ginseng at all, but is a derivative of the Oriental species.
It is a distant cousin to panax ginseng found in the Orient. While Siberian ginseng shares many of the same properties of the Oriental species, it is easier to cultivate and is generally cheaper
An Adaptogen
Ginseng is an adaptogen, in that it normalizes physical functioning depending on what the individual needs. For example, it lowers high blood pressure, but raises low blood pressure.
