RenShen - Korean Red Ginseng Extract - 60g

• Premium adaptogen that modulates the stress response
• Nourishes the 5 primary organ systems (lungs, liver, kidneys, spleen & heart)
• Restores spent vitality
• Increases endurance, stamina and enhances athletic performance
• Natural antidepressant
• Increases endurance, stamina and enhances athletic performance
• Strengthens and harmonizes immune function
• Improves post-exercise recovery
• Promotes faster recovery from illness and injury

Nyishar RenShen Korean Red Ginseng is verifiably the best quality red Ginseng extract available anywhere. Quite literally, this is the most comprehensively tested Ginseng product that exists - no other commercially available product comes remotely close. We have subjected this extract to rigorous testing in order to show what is possible when Ginseng is cultivated properly and traditional preparation methods are stringently adhered to.

Premium Korean Red Ginseng should contain many bio-active constituents, but at the forefront of this medicinal arsenal should be ten primary ginsenosides that provide the majority of its therapeutic power. There should also be a trace presence of the medically important Compound K (a secondary metabolite of ginsenosides), in order to verify that this is true Korean Red Ginseng at maximum potency and bioavailability. This is why our extract contains a significant presence of all of these compounds, transparently proving that this product is genuinely the real deal and beyond comparison to any other product of this kind.

The Traditional Understanding of Korean Red Ginseng

Asian Ginseng is a herbal medicine with a legendary status - it can boost physical and mental energy levels and enhance overall cognitive function, improving our ability to concentrate and learn, strengthening our memory and elevating overall mood. It restores spent vitality and helps to regulate the stress response, supporting cardiovascular health, modulating the immune system and protecting the function of neurons within the brain. Red Ginseng in particular, can substantially improve energy metabolism within cells. Red Ginseng can increase physical endurance and it is also well known for strengthening sexual vitality and fertility in both men and women.

Traditionally, Ginseng has been regarded as the ultimate tonic medicine for many, many centuries. It is the ultimate adaptogen that modulates various metabolic pathways and dramatically improves our response to stress, which is perhaps more important nowadays than at any time in history. Traditional Chinese medicine categorizes Ginseng as a 'three treasure tonic' which harmonizes the three primordial energies (Jing, Qi and Shen) and regulates all five primary organ systems as well as the five accompanying vessel organs. Red Ginseng possesses all of these same attributes, except it has a stronger ‘yang' energy that is more warming and stimulating than its white counterpart. It is known to restore spent vitality, enhance both physical and mental performance and augment the body’s ability to recover from illness and injury. These far-reaching, comprehensive benefits are exactly why Ginseng has been such a legendary medicine since time immemorial. Wars have been fought over land that wild Ginseng grows upon, and the cultivation and trade of Ginseng has played a key role in human evolution throughout the passing centuries.

Red and white Ginseng are exactly the same species (Panax Ginseng) - the only difference is that after harvesting, red Ginseng is processed in a special way and is subsequently transformed into a different type of medicine. Both forms of Ginseng possess similar attributes, share similar active compounds and health benefits, yet there are significant differences that cause each one to be very unique. As already mentioned, red roots are more warming, stimulating and invigorating than their unprocessed form. These contrasting properties cause each variety to suit different people and to address different pathologies. Put simply, those with a hot and fiery temperament will often find the cooling and stable nature of aged white Ginseng to be more appropriate, while people with a colder and heavier constitution, with slow metabolism and sluggish digestion will often find red Ginseng to be more therapeutic. Ginseng in all of its forms has long been used as a performance enhancer; from athletes to chess players. Red Ginseng has been the herb of choice since antiquity for increasing physical strength and stamina, for sharpening reaction time and upgrading willpower. For these reasons it is frequently used today in competitive sports, but equally for activities like intensive studying and enhancing the acquisition of languages.

Unfortunately, Ginseng is also one of the most counterfeited herbal medicines in existence, and the marketplace is rife with low grade imitations that do not deliver on their promises. Premium quality should therefore be a non-negotiable factor when choosing the right Ginseng as medicine. Most Ginseng products do not provide any quality assurance at all, such as the guaranteed presence of bio-active compounds. The products that are tested however, generally provide an overall percentage of ‘ginsenosides’ - the primary active compounds found in Ginseng. While this is a step in the right direction, it is still completely insufficient in determining the calibre of a Ginseng product.

Ginseng contains hundreds of important nutrients and medicinal constituents, but ginsenosides are understood to be the chemical benchmark for therapeutic efficacy. These constituents are either steroid glycosides or triterpenoid saponins, and they are found in all parts of the plant - especially the root. In young plants, the range of different ginsenosides is very basic and rather limited, only becoming more complex and diverse as the plant ages into maturity. A broader and more complete presence of different ginsenosides is one way of measuring the medical utility of a Ginseng product, therefore, merely providing an overall percentage of total ginsenosides proves nothing at all about the age of the plant or the quality of the medicine.

For example, a product with 20% total ginsenosides might consist of only a small number of different compounds, whereas a quality product should be able to boast a much greater variety. The process of creating red Ginseng also causes many ginsenosides the transform into a more complex form, meaning that the range of these compounds looks very different between white and red roots. Therefore, we can determine the grade and quality of Ginseng by taking a more detailed look at exactly which ginsenosides it contains, and the quantity of each of them.

Some premium products do now test for one or two of the main ginsenosides, providing some degree of transparency and quality assurance, but this still just offers very limited information. The best quality Ginseng will contain a lot of different ginsenosides - over 100 of them have been identified so far. However, premium Red Ginseng contains ten separate ginsenosides as its main therapeutic components (Rb1, Rb2, Rd, Re, Rg1, Rg2, Rg3, Rg5, Rh1 and Rh2). Therefore, testing for all ten of these compounds is the ultimate way to provide quality assurance and verify the medicinal potential of the product, as only mature roots that have been prepared correctly will contain this array of botanical potency. This is precisely why we have subjected our Korean Red Ginseng extract to rigorous testing to prove that it is indeed the highest possible quality and contains all of the primary active ginsenosides that are necessary to receive all of the benefits associated with these important compounds.

How is Red Ginseng Created?

As already stated, Ginseng in all its forms must be aged before being utilized as a medicine. The plant does not mature and develop a complex profile of active compounds until after 6 years of age. Roots harvested prior to this are immature and lack the complexity that provides many of the health benefits Ginseng is renowned for. After 6 years however, the adaptogenic properties manifest and the medicine takes on an entirely different nature - intricate, subtle and balancing to all metabolic systems, as well as creating a greater sense of harmony between the physical body and the mind/emotions. As long as the growing environment is suitable, roots that are going to be transformed into red Ginseng are typically harvested between 6 and 7 years of age.

The most reputable source of Red Ginseng is from Korea (north and south) - a tradition that has been regulated by the Korean authorities for centuries. Therefore, it is unlawful to produce red Ginseng from plants that are younger than 6 years of age. After harvesting, the roots are selected and graded by size, then washed to remove dirt and impurities. The fresh Ginseng is then steamed just below boiling point for up to 3 hours, until the starch in the roots begins to gelatinize. This is what gives the roots their characteristic red color. The steamed roots are subsequently sun dried until the moisture content reaches about 15%. These dried roots are then sealed and will retain their therapeutic potency for up to 10 years.

Certain regional traditions include specific herbal formulas as part of the steaming process, further influencing the changing nature of the Ginseng and imbuing it with different medicinal properties. However, the steaming process alone does increase the warming nature of the medicine, causing it to become more energizing and stimulating, as well as significantly transforming the profile of active compounds. Extracts of Red Ginseng can be dual-extracted with hot water and alcohol, although the predominant phase of extraction is water-based. Extraction methods are repeated multiple times over a 12 hour period to ensure that everything of therapeutic value has been captured. Then alcohol precipitation and centrifugal separation are used to eliminate any remaining impurities. Finally, the resulting liquid extract is spray dried within a pressurized environment to yield a concentrated powder, which is ready for use as a pure medicine.

Transforming the Medicine

As already mentioned, the ginsenosides in this plant are widely understood to have the strongest pharmalogical activity and are known to possess adaptogenic properties that promote homeostasis through all organs and their related systems, not least the cardiovascular, neurological and immune systems. The steaming process that creates red Ginseng actually has a strong transformative influence on these active constituents and their resulting potency. For example, the fresh roots of Asian (white) Ginseng contain natural occurring ginsenosides such as Rg1, Re, Rb1 and Rd, however through the steaming process these primary ginsenosides begin to denature, and rather than being destroyed, they become reconstructed into a more complex group of ginsenosides that are not originally present in the raw Ginseng.

The Rg1 ginsenoside becomes transformed into a new compound called Rh1. The Re compound converts into a different ginsenoside called Rg2. Rb1 splits into three new compounds called Rd, Rg3 and Rg5. As the quantity of these newly formed ginsenosides increases, the amounts of the original ginsenosides that they have been created from, correspondingly decreases. This is ultimately how Korean Red Ginseng becomes a very different, powerful medicine, because it contains a different profile of ginsenosides to the original white roots, as well as possessing a warmer and more stimulating energetic signature.

A Closer Look at Ginsenosides

Let’s take a look at the ginsenosides that are commonly found in premium quality red Ginseng and see what their respective benefits are:

• Rb1: This ginsenoside is often the most abundant active compound of them all, and it is able to regulate and modulate various signaling pathways in the body including Nuclear-Factor-Kappa-B (NF-kB) and Tumor-Necrosis-Factor-alpha (TNF-a), which causes the Rb1 ginsenoside to possess significant anti-inflammatory properties. Due to its anti-inflammatory potential, current research has revealed that Rb1 offers benefits to a number of diseases that progress due to inflammation. Chronic immune disorders, viral infections, arthritis, osteoporosis and certain cancers of the blood including myeloma - all can respond positively to the Rb1 ginsenoside.
• Rb2: This constituent also offers anti-inflammatory benefits due to the regulation of signaling pathways in the body, with specific benefits to the nervous system and protecting neurons from inflammation-induced damage.
• Rd: Similarly, the Rd ginsenoside also offers protective benefits to the nervous system by reducing oxidative stress from activating antioxidant pathways and inhibiting the breakdown of mitochondria and DNA within nerve cells. In vivo studies have shown that Rd was useful in the treatment of cerebral ischemia by regulating free radical scavenging pathways early in the onset of the condition, and then suppressing inflammatory responses in the later stages of the disease.
• Re: The Re ginsenoside modulates immune function by regulating pro-inflammatory cytokines such as TNF-a and IL-1B. It also protects the integrity of the IRAK-1 gene which is responsible for regulating inflammation within immune cells such as macrophages and monocytes, which helps the body to eliminate pathogenic bacteria and viruses. Re is especially efficient in controlling the interactions between lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and different immune cells - most antibiotic-resistant bacteria have a membrane that consists largely of LPS, which binds to receptors on macrophages and other immune cells and causes the excessive production of inflammatory cytokines like TNF-a and inflammatory pathways like NF-kB. While this does help to fight the initial infection, it also promotes the transcription of inflammatory genes which are related to severe complications from infection, such as cytokine storms and sepsis. This LPS-induced inflammatory response is also closely associated with chronic inflammation within the body and to neurodegenerative conditions including Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease and multiple sclerosis. The Re ginsenoside has been shown to dramatically inhibit the LPS-induced inflammatory response, making it a promising potential treatment for bacterial infection and also to the management of neurodegenerative conditions.
• Rg1: Like Re, Rg1 also inhibits inflammatory pathways in response to LPS exposure, but it also strongly modulates microglial activation (immune cells to the central nervous system), which can have a positive effect on treating inflammation within the brain and CNS. In current research Rg1 has proven to enhance the activity of macrophages, inhibit apoptosis and reverse liver damage from alcohol poisoning and hepatitis, and control inflammatory processes within the brain and spinal cord, protecting neurons from hypoxia-induced damage from ischemia.
• Rg3: This ginsenoside is currently studied for its ability to suppress neurotoxicity and inflammation in a number of neurodegenerative conditions by significantly inhibiting the TNF-a and NF-kB inflammatory pathways In vivo studies have shown that daily administration for 21 days improves learning and memory by regulating inflammation within the hippocampus, which is an area of the brain that is critical to learning, memory formation and emotional regulation. Most recently, Rg3 has been studied for its properties in treating oxidative stress-related diseases, by modulating inflammasome activation within the body. Inflammasome is a protein complex that plays a critical role in the immune response, firstly by detecting foreign pathogens and secondly by responding to the infection by creating an inflammatory immune response. However, over-activation of inflammasomes can lead to autoimmune and auto-inflammatory diseases, and Rg3 is able to modulate the various stages of inflammasome activation and prevent conditions from becoming excessive and chronic.
• Rg5: Rg5 has been observed to significantly reduce inflammation within the lungs and the liver - it has a regulatory effect on pro-inflammatory genes as well as multiple immune pathways, and directly interferes with the binding of LPS to macrophages, which reduces the impact of bacterial respiratory infections. Rg5 also down regulates acetylcholinerase, - an enzyme that catalyzes acetylcholine and when elevated, is responsible for muscle weakness and fatigue, as well as impaired memory and overall cognitive function. In vivo studies have therefore shown that Rg5 can reduce amyloid plaque formation within the cerebral cortex and hippocampus, increasing neurotrophins like BDNF and growth hormones like IGF-1, reducing near-inflammation and improving memory and overall cognitive function. As a result, Rg5 is now being researched as a potential drug for Alzheimer’s disease.
• Rh1: Rh1 is particularly proficient at suppressing COX-2 and iNOS - two enzymes that are heavily involved in the inflammatory response. The anti-inflammatory effects of this are especially prevalent within microglial cells of the central nervous system, as well as in dermatitis and inflammatory skin conditions. Rh1 is currently being researched for its anti-cancer properties, its effect on modulating immune function as well as improving memory and cognitive performance.
• Rh2: Like many other gisnenosides, Rh2 regulates a number of signaling pathways that control inflammatory processes within the body, although the two main actions of this particular compound are focused on the nervous system and the respiratory system. Firstly, Rh2 exhibits an adaptogenic influence on inflammation within astroglial cells of the brain and spinal cord - cellular homeostasis is supported in a cell-specific manner, meaning that Rh2 can provide different effects to each cell, depending on the specific needs of the cell. Secondly, Rh2 has a strong influence over inflammatory pathways (MAPK and NF-kB) within the lungs, helping to control cytokine production, oxygen absorption/utilization, reversing airway restriction as well as modulating the antibody response in cases of allergic reactions. This has led Rh2 to be explored as a potential treatment for asthma, bronchitis and other inflammatory diseases of the lungs.
• Compound K: In recent years, an incredibly important medicinal compound has been identified in Ginseng, and it is called Compound K. It is present in small quantities within the Ginseng root but is also a secondary metabolite of ginsenoside Rb1, transformed in the gut by beneficial microflora. Studies throughout the last decade have illustrated remarkable properties that are fundamental to healing and wellness, including its ability to promote the regeneration of the liver, which also has a corresponding effect on atherosclerosis and the reversal of atherosclerotic plaque from accumulating within the blood vessels. Compound K has shown significant ability to improve insulin sensitivity and as a result, is being studied further as a potential medicine in the treatment of diabetes. Lab tests have also identified anti-cancer properties from compound K, with tumor-inhibiting and immune strengthening effects found in lung carcinoma, leukemia, breast cancer, colorectal cancer, prostate cancer, gastric carcinoma, nasopharyngeal carcinoma and pulmonary carcinoma. Compound K boasts neuro-protective benefits as well - in vivo trials have outlined specific antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-glutamate toxicity as primary mechanisms of action, as well as regulating blood sugars and lipids, which can collectively ameliorate cognitive and memory impairment, depression, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. This compound was noted to substantially inhibit inflammation within the hippocampus and prevent neuronal apoptosis, which directly improves memory disorders. Compound K is also now being researched as an antidepressant medicine because amongst various factors, it regulates the concentration of monoamine neurotransmitters and increases the expression of neuronal growth factors within the central nervous system. Compound K was even observed to reduce dependency on morphine and other opioids by decreasing cell receptor sensitivity in neurons of the frontal cortex. Other in vivo studies have discovered that compound K was able to mitigate epileptic seizures in test subjects by significantly stimulating the release of gamma amino-butyric acid (GABA), which is the main inhibitory neurotransmitter that can prevent the excessive neuronal activity that creates seizures.

Supplement Facts

Ingredients: Premium Korean Red Ginseng ‘Heaven-Grade’ roots (7 years of age)

Maintenance Dose: 0.5 of a gram (quarter of a teaspoon) twice daily (two months supply - 120 servings)

Therapeutic Dose: 1g (half a teaspoon) twice daily (one month supply - 60 servings)

Serving Suggestion: Mix with hot water to create an instant tea, or add to fruit juices, smoothies, meals or desserts.