Acupuncture stimulates brain metabolism in dementia patients

CM NEWS – Needling specific acupoints may help patients with dementia, a recently published study shows. The acupoint combo seems to increase cerebral glucose metabolism in the brain, as indicated by cerebral functional imaging.

The study has been published in the January 2007 issue of the Journal of Acupuncture and Tuina Science. Chinese researchers observed the effects of needling three acupoints – Baihui (百會, Hundred Convergences; GV 20), Shuigou (水溝, Water Trough; GV 26) and Shenmen (神門, Spirit Gate; HT 7) – and their effects on cerebral glucose metabolism in patients with vascular dementia.

25 patients with vascular dementia were divided into 5 groups (Group A, B, C, D and E) randomly. Patients in the Group A were treated by needling routine acupoints for hemiplegia (paralysis in the vertical half of a patient’s body), which are acupoints of the three “yang meridians” of the hand and foot.

In addition to the “routine acupoints”, Group B patients received acupuncture to Baihui (GV 20); Group C to Shuigou (GV 26), Group D to Shenmen (HT 7), and Group E to Baihui (GV 20), Shuigou (GV 26), and Shenmen (HT 7).

All the patients were examined by Positron Emission Tomography (PET) to detect cerebral glucose metabolism in the bilateral frontal lobes (orbital gyri), parietal lobes, temporal lobes (hippocampus and hippocampal gyrus), occipital lobes, thalamus, lentiform nucleus, caudate nuclei, cingulate gyms and cerebellum before treatments and after treatments.

Why checking on cerebral glucose metabolism? Studies have linked dementia with the slowing of glucose metabolism in certain parts of the brain. One study indicated that patients with frontotemporal dementia not only showed significant metabolic deficits primarily in frontal cortical areas, but also in the caudate nuclei and the thalami. These findings demonstrate that the clinical progression in patients with frontotemporal dementia is accompanied by a region-specific decline in cerebral glucose metabolism.

Another study found that patients with multi-infarct dementia (MID) had significantly lower glucose metabolism in all the grey matter regions measured and were also characterized by more individuality in metabolic pattern.

The present study shows that after needling the routine acupoints for hemiplegia, glucose metabolism increased in lentiform nucleus and temporal lobe; and:

* patients with Baihui (GV 20) needled showed increased glucose metabolism in the frontal lobe, temporal lobe and lentiform nucleus.
* patients with Shuigou (GV 26) needled showed increased glucose metabolism in the frontal lobe, thalamus and lentiform nucleus;
* patients with Shenmen (HT 7) needled got more glucose metabolism in the parietal lobe and lentiform nucleus;
* patients who recieved needling to all these three acupoints has higher glucose metabolism in the frontal lobe, temporal lobe, thalamus and lentiform nucleus.

The results suggest that needling Baihui (GV 20), Shuigou (GV 26) and Shenmen (HT 7) affect glucose metabolism in different functional regions of the brain. In other words, the three acupoints are closely correlated to different functional regions of the brain.

Placebo effect may be at play in acupuncture studies: analysis

Reuters Health – Acupuncture can bring some relief to people with knee arthritis, but the benefits may be at least partly from a placebo effect, a new research review suggests.

In an analysis of 9 clinical trials from the past 15 years, researchers found that acupuncture generally seemed to improve knee arthritis sufferers’ pain and stiffness in the short term. The patients had osteoarthritis, a degenerative joint disease associated with age, as opposed to arthritis associated with an autoimmune disorder.

However, a closer look showed that the benefits were limited to trials that compared acupuncture with doing nothing or with “usual care,” such as anti-inflammatory medication.

In trials that compared acupuncture with “sham” acupuncture, on the other hand, there was no clear evidence that the real therapy was more effective.

Sham acupuncture is accomplished by using non-penetrating needles, or inserting needles only into the superficial layer of skin, at random sites rather than the specific points used in real acupuncture. In studies that evaluated electro-acupuncture, the sham version involved phony electrodes and “mock” electrical stimulation of acupuncture points.

The point is to keep study participants from knowing whether they were receiving the real or the placebo treatment. This helps separate the specific effects of a therapy from any placebo effects — where people feel better simply because they believe they’ve been treated.

The new findings suggest that the benefits of acupuncture for knee arthritis are at least partly due to patients’ expectations, the study authors report in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

However, that doesn’t mean acupuncture is not worthwhile, according to the researchers, led by Eric Manheimer of the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore.

Research does suggest that acupuncture has a “genuine biological effect,” and there was evidence in some studies that the real therapy resulted in somewhat better short-term effects than sham acupuncture, the researchers note.

For their study, Manheimer and his colleagues combined the results of nine clinical trials conducted in Europe, the U.S. and Thailand. The trials included a total of more than 3,500 subjects.

Each trial included a patient group that received acupuncture for knee arthritis, as well as a “control” group. In some studies, control patients were placed on a waiting list for acupuncture, while in others they received some standard therapy that acupuncture patients did not. Control patients in other studies received sham acupuncture.

In general, the Manheimer’s team found, only studies that pitted acupuncture against doing nothing, or against standard care, showed clear benefits. The results of the sham-controlled trials were too mixed to show any benefits, according to the researchers.

The investigators do not, however, dismiss the potential benefits of acupuncture for knee arthritis. Indeed, they note, a possible explanation for the mixed results is that sham acupuncture had some actual biological effects.

Given the overall safety of acupuncture, the researchers conclude, patients can still consider it as one option in a “multidisciplinary approach” to treating knee arthritis.

World’s largest conference on acupuncture to convene in China

Xinhua – More than 1,500 acupuncturists from nearly 30 countries and regions will gather in Beijing this October, to discuss the future of traditional Chinese medicine.

From Oct. 20 to 22, the acupuncturists will attend an academic forum for the 20th anniversary of the World Association of Acupuncture. The forum, with the theme of “acupuncture: looking back and looking forward”, will have eight sub-forums on topics like education, the evolution of acupuncture and needle therapy practise and assessment.

An exhibition of new methods and technologies in the field will also be held.

Deng Liangyue, chairman of the World Association of Acupuncture, said the association had successfully held six forums on acupuncture in China, Japan, the United States, France and the Republic of Korea over the past 20 years. With efforts from acupuncturists worldwide, needle therapy has spread to the four corners of the earth.

So far, more than 140 countries and regions have adopted acupuncture treatment. Traditional Chinese medicine represented by needle therapy is accepted and welcomed by mainstream society in many countries.

Statistics from the World Association of Acupuncture show there are about 100,000 people engaged in acupuncture services in Japan. 29 percent of Tokyo’s residents have received acupuncture treatment at least once. More than five million European patients choose needle therapy every year.

Acupuncture, one of the oldest traditional Chinese therapies, can not only help people give up smoking, but also cure sterility and even drug addiction. For poor people, it is a low-cost and easily accessible medical resource.

Acupuncture offers long lasting relief to migraines

CM NEWS – Acupuncture has been proved to provide effective and persistent relief of migraine headaches, according to a new study in Italy.

To check the effectiveness of a true acupuncture treatment according to traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) in migraine without aura, researchers of the Department of Medico-Surgical Specialities of University of Padua in Italy compared true acunpuncture to a standard mock acupuncture protocol, an accurate mock acupuncture healing ritual, and untreated controls.

“Migraine prevalence is high and affects a relevant rate of adults in the productive phase of their life,” says the study to be published in the journal Headache.

“Acupuncture has been increasingly advocated and used in Western countries for migraine treatment, but the evidence of its effectiveness still remains weak. A large variability of treatments is present in published studies and no acupoint selection according to TCM has been investigated so far; therefore, the low level of evidence of acupuncture effectiveness might partly depend on inappropriate treatment.”

In the study, the patients were divided into the following 4 groups:
(1) group TA, treated with true acupuncture (according to TCM) plus Rizatriptan; (N=32)
(2) group RMA, treated with ritualized mock acupuncture plus Rizatriptan; (N=30)
(3) group SMA, treated with standard mock acupuncture plus Rizatriptan; (N=31)
(4) group R, without prophylactic treatment with relief therapy only (Rizatriptan); (N=39)

What is Rizatriptan? Rizatriptan is used to treat the symptoms of migraine headaches (severe, throbbing headaches that sometimes are accompanied by nausea and sensitivity to sound and light). Rizatriptan is in a class of medications called selective serotonin receptor agonists. It works by narrowing blood vessels in the brain, stopping pain signals from being sent to the brain, and stopping the release of certain natural substances that cause pain, nausea, and other symptoms of migraine. Rizatriptan does not prevent migraine attacks.

The MIDAS Questionnaire was administered before treatment, at 3 and 6 months from the beginning of treatment, and the MIDAS Index (MI) was calculated. Rizatriptan intake was also checked in all groups of patients at all three time intervals. All patients had moderate to severe with no significant intergroup differences before treatment.

What is MIDAS Questionnaire? MIDAS is a questionnaire that measures headache-related disability simply and easily by counting the number of days of lost and limited activity due to migraine. Activities are classed into three areas:

* Paid work and education (school / college)
* Household work (unpaid work such as housework, shopping and caring for children and others)
* Family, social and leisure activities

Migraine sufferers count the number of days on which they missed out on these activities because of their migraine in the previous 3 months. Also, they count the number of days where their productivity was at most half as normal in paid and household work. The overall MIDAS score is reached by summing the answers to these five questions, and is scored in the number of days.

Group TA and RMA were evaluated according to TCM as well; then, the former was submitted to true acupuncture and the latter to mock acupuncture treatment resembling the same as TA. The statistical analysis was conducted with factorial ANOVA and multiple tests with a Bonferroni adjustment.

Results show that the migraines improved in all patients after 3 months and 6 months of treatment. However, those treated with true acupuncture plus Rizatriptan showed a significant improvement at both 3-month and 6-month treatments than with Rizatriptan only.

The researchers thus conclude that true acupuncture was the only treatment able to provide a steady outcome improvement in comparison to the use of only Rizatriptan, while Rizatriptan plus mock acunpuncture showed a transient placebo effect after 3 months into treatment.

Acunpuncture needles out low back pain

Science Daily – Six months of acupuncture treatment appears to be more effective than conventional therapy in treating low back pain, according to a study in the Sept. 24 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals, although the study suggests that both sham acupuncture and traditional Chinese verum acupuncture appear to be effective in treating low back pain.

“Low back pain is a common, impairing and disabling condition, often long-term, with an estimated lifetime prevalence of 70 percent to 85 percent,” the authors write as background information in the article. “It is the second most common pain for which physician treatment is sought and a major reason for absenteeism and disability.” Acupuncture is increasingly used as an alternative therapy, but its value as a treatment for low back pain is still controversial.

Michael Haake, Ph.D., M.D., of the University of Regensburg, Bad Abbach, Germany, and colleagues conducted a randomized clinical trial involving 1,162 patients (average age 50) who had experienced chronic low back pain for an average of eight years.

Patients underwent ten 30-minute sessions (approximately two sessions per week) of verum acupuncture (387 patients), sham acupuncture (387 patients) or conventional therapy (388 patients). Verum acupunture consisted of needling fixed points and additional points to a depth of 5 millimeters to 40 millimeters based on traditional Chinese medicine, while sham acupuncture consisted of inserting needles superficially (1 millimeter to 3 millimeters) into the lower back avoiding all known verum points or meridians.

Conventional therapy consisted of a combination of medication, physical therapy and exercise. Five additional sessions were offered to those who had a partial response to treatment (10% to 50% pain reduction).

“A total of 13,475 treatment sessions were conducted (verum acupuncture, 4,821; sham acupuncture, 4,590; conventional therapy, 4,064),” the authors write. Patients receiving the additional five sessions were 232 (59.9%) in the verum group, 209 (54.3%) in the sham group and 192 (52.5%) in the conventional group.

Response rate was defined as a 33% improvement in pain or a 12 percent improvement in functional ability. “At six months, response rate was 47.6% in the verum acupuncture group, 44.2% in the sham acupuncture group and 27.4% in the conventional therapy group,” the authors note. “Differences among groups were as follows: verum vs. sham, 3.4%; verum vs. conventional therapy, 20.2%; and sham vs. conventional therapy, 16.8%.”

“The superiority of both forms of acupuncture suggests a common underlying mechanism that may act on pain generation, transmission of pain signals or processing of pain signals by the central nervous system and that is stronger than the action mechanism of conventional therapy,” the authors conclude. “Acupuncture gives physicians a promising and effective treatment option for chronic low back pain, with few adverse effects or contraindications. The improvements in all primary and secondary outcome measures were significant and lasted long after completion of treatment.”

Asthma gets help from injection-acupuncture

CM NEWS – Injection of a traditional Chinese medicine herbal extract into a widely used acupuncture point may have an anti-inflammatory and immune-regulatory effect on bronchial allergic asthma, according to a new South Korean study.

The herb used in the study was perilla seed (Perillae fructus; or 紫蘇, Zisu in Chinese; or Shiso in Japanese). Injection of the herbal extract into an acupuncture point (herbal acupuncture) is a therapeutic technique combining both acupuncture and herbal treatment.

The study was led by researchers at the Department of Acupuncture, College of Oriental Medicine, Daejeon University, South Korea.

In Chinese medicine, perilla has been shown to stimulate interferon activity and thus, the body’s immune system.

The Japanese often eat perilla with sashimi (sliced raw fish) or cut into thin strips in salads, spaghetti, and meat and fish dishes. It is also used as a flavourful herb in a variety of dishes, even as a pizza topping (initially it was used in place of basil).

Perilla seed has been used to treat respiratory diseases in Chinese medicine. According to TCM theory, perilla seeds enters the lung meridian, arrests coughing and wheezing with copious phlegm, and treats exhalation difficulties and stiffness in the chest. The leaves of perilla (Perilla frutescens) have shown a suppressive effect on type 1 allergies. However, perilla seed has not yet been investigated for use on allergic diseases.
Recent studies have shown that perilla seed polyphenols regulate allergic diseases due to 5-lipoxygenase inhibitory activity and suppression of histamine release from mast cells.

The functional compounds of perilla seed extract are flavonoid aglycons such as luteolin, apigenin, chrysoeriol, and resemarinic acid. It is known that the antioxidative activity and lipoxygenase inhibitory activity of flavonoid aglycons are stronger than that of corresponding glycosides.

Studies have shown that perilla seed extract inhibits the growth of cariogenic and periodontopathogenic microorganisms which in turn reduces plaque formation and acid production, helping to prevent dental carries.

Acupuncture and herbs are widely used to treat bronchial asthma – and according to TCM theory – by clearing the pathogenic factors and reinforcing the body’s resistance.

An important acupoint, zusanli (足三里), was investigated by the researchers in the current study. Zusanli is one of the most widely used acupuncture points, particularly for immune system regulation.

Zusanli is on the foot Yangming stomach meridian. This acupoint is known to strengthen the vital energy (qi). The ‘vital energy’ here means not only stomach qi, even though this acupoint belongs to the stomach meridian, but also the general qi in the whole body.

For this reason, zusanli is used to treat various diseases in different parts of the body or general symptoms in the whole body, including deficiency and weakness.

According to the book Chinese Acupuncture and Moxibustion, zusanli is listed to treat: gastric pain, vomiting, hiccup, abdominal distention, borborygmus, diarrhea, dysentery, constipation, mastitis, enteritis, aching of the knee joint and leg, beriberi, edema, cough, asthma, emaciation due to general deficiency, indigestion, apoplexy, hemiplegia, dizziness, insomnia, mania. (for a detailed explanation of zusanli, check here.)

Asthmatic mice were divided into 6 groups – both experimental and control. The experimental group was treated with perilla seed extract plus the acupuncture while the controlled ones received saline injection or just acupuncture. The treatments went on for 8 weeks.

According to the researchers:

Asthma is generally regarded as a T-cell mediated disease. Allergens cause the differentiation of naive T- cells into Th2 cells, which then secrete cytokines such as IL-4, IL-5 and IL-13 (3).

IL-4, which is pivotal in the pathogenesis of allergic disorders, acts on B cells to facilitate IgE production. Increased IgE production in response to common environmental antigens is the hallmark of atopic diseases such as bronchial asthma.

IL-4 also induces the rolling and adhesion of circulating eosinophils to endothelial cells. Therefore, inhibitors of the IL-4 signaling pathway have been suggested as therapeutic targets.

The results showed that perilla seed extracts + acupuncture at zusanli significantly decreased cytokins IL-4. It is inferred that the treatment may have an anti-allergic effect on allergic bronchial asthma by suppressing IL-4 secretion; and thus reduce eosinophil inflitration into the lungs by reducing the adhesion of circulating esoinophils to endothelial cells, the researchers wrote.

The researchers also found that even by applying acupuncture at zusanli ONLY may suppress asthma, though not as effective as the injection-acupuncture treatment. This result suggests that the mechanical stimulation of zusanli has a beneficial effect on bronchial allergic asthma.

“In summary, we hypothesize that PF-HA may be applicable to bronchial allergic asthma to reduce airway obstruction by inhibiting cellular infiltration and collagen accumulation in the lung, and to relieve airway hyper-responsiveness by reducing IL-4, IL-5, IL-13 and IgE,” the researchers conclude.

“Our data further suggest that PF-HA has a therapeutic effect on bronchial allergic asthma by regulating the immune system (suppressing excess Th2 activity and rebalancing Th1/Th2 in the immune system) and controlling eosinophilic inflammation in the airway. The anti-inflammatory effect of PF-HA may result from its immuno-regulatory effect on Th1 and Th2 activity.”

Electric acupuncture helps insomnia

CM NEWS – Using electric acupuncture to needle 4 “extraordinary” acupoints on the top of the head might have impressive effect on treating insomnia, a recent study indicates.

Researchers at the Shandong Provincial Hospital in China evaluated the clinical therapeutic effect of electric acupuncture at a set of 4 acupoints Sishencong (EX-HN 1, “Four Brightening Spirits”, 四神聰) on insomnia.

What is electric acupuncture? Electric acupuncture, the application of a pulsating electrical current to acupuncture needles as a means of stimulating the acupoints, was developed in China as an extension of hand manipulation of acupuncture needles around 1934.

The procedure for electric acupuncture is to insert the acupuncture needle as would normally be done, attain the qi reaction by hand manipulation, and then attach an electrode to the needle to provide continued stimulation. The benefits of using electrical stimulation are:

1. It substitutes for prolonged hand maneuvering. This helps assure that the patient gets the amount of stimulation needed, because the practitioner may otherwise pause due to fatigue. Electric acupuncture may also help reduce total treatment time by providing the continued stimulus. During electric acupuncture, the practitioner can attend to other patients.
2. It can produce a stronger stimulation, if desired, without causing tissue damage associated with twirling and lifting and thrusting the needle. Strong stimulation may be needed for difficult cases of neuralgia or paralysis.
3. It is easier to control the frequency of the stimulus and the amount of stimulus than with hand manipulation of the needles.

electric acupuncture penIn this study, 276 patients were randomly assigned to 2 groups, 138 in each group. The treatment group received electric acupuncture at Sishencong, and the control group with oral administration of Tianmeng Capsule (甜夢膠囊, or “Sweet Dream Capsule”, which is a all herb product for treating mild insomnia).

The treatment course for both groups was 3 weeks. The quality and related parameters of sleep before and after treatment were evaluated with a multi-channel sleep detector. The results showed that quality of sleep was improved in both groups after treatment.

What are Sishencong acupoints? Sishencong are the four points located one inch respectively lateral, anterior and posterior to Baihui (GV 20). Sishencong belongs to extraordinary acupoints (經外奇穴) located at the central crossing points of the vertex, the front and the back points are located on the track of Dumai (Du meridian, 督脈) and the left and right points are near the track of Bladder Meridian.

Literature shows that mild acupuncture stimulation of Sishencong has been used to treat tension insomnia.

Traditionally, Sishencong was used to treat headache, dizziness, insomnia, forgetfulness and other anxiety related conditions. In modern applications, Sishencong is related to treatments of vascular headaches, cerebrovascular diseases, hypertension, hyperactivity, vascular dementia etc.

However, the improvement in the electric acupuncture group was superior to that in the control group. The researchers suggest that needling Sishencong with electric acupuncture has obvious effect on insomnia.

Possible explanations

One study on the effect of needling Sishencong on mice shows that the acupuncture significantly increase nitric oxide synthase (NOS) activity and nitric oxide (NO) content in the brain. A growing body of evidence suggests that nitric oxide (NO) may play a role in the circadian and homeostatic processes of sleep regulation

In another study by a group of Taiwanese researchers revealed that the sensitivity of spontaneous barorecepor reflex was improved by acupuncture at Sishencong points.

What is baroreflex? In cardiovascular physiology, the baroreflex or baroreceptor reflex is one of the body’s homeostatic mechanisms for maintaining blood pressure. It provides a negative feedback loop in which an elevated blood pressure reflexively causes blood pressure to decrease; similarly, decreased blood pressure depresses the baroreflex, causing blood pressure to rise.

Sishencong acupuncture might be able to simultaneously enhance cardiac vagal activity and suppress cardiac and vascular sympathetic activities in humans. It also augments the sensitivity of baroreflex. The result can explain the therapeutic mechanism on tension insomnia by acupuncture at Sishencong points.

Red yeast rice may lower blood lipid levels

CM NEWS – Replacing daily intake of white rice with red yeast rice may have a positive lipid-lowering effects in patients with primary hyperlipidemia, a meta-analysis of 93 randomized trials concludes.

The study was released in Chinese Medicine journal and was a joint study by alternative medicine experts in Norway and traditional Chinese medicine researchers in Shanghai and Beijing.

The meta study analyzed data from 93 randomized trials which include a total of 9625 participants. Researchers find that hyperlipidemia patients who have consumed red rice show significant reduction of serum total cholesterol levels (weighted mean difference -0.91 mmol/L, 95% confidence interval -1.12 to -0.71), triglycerides levels (-0.41 mmol/L, -0.6 to -0.22), and LDL-cholesterol levels (-0.73 mmol/L, -1.02 to -0.043), and increase of HDL-cholesterol levels (0.15 mmol/L, 0.09 to 0.22), compared to placebo groups.

Researchers emphasize that the positive effect on lipid levels by red rice shown by these studies indicates short term benefits. Whether red rice should be recommended as an alternative treatments for primary hyperlipidemia requires further studies.

According to Medline, red yeast rice contains several compounds collectively known as Monacolins, substances known to inhibit cholesterol synthesis. One of these, “Monacolin K” is a potent inhibitor of HMG-CoA reductase, and is also known as Mevinolin or Lovastatin (Mevacor®, a drug produced by Merck & Co., Inc).

Medline also says:

There is limited evidence about the side effects of red yeast. Mild headache and abdominal discomfort can occur. Side effects may be similar to those for the prescription druglovastatin (Mevacor®). Heartburn, gas, bloating, muscle pain or damage, dizziness, asthma, and kidney problems are possible. People with liver disease should not use red yeast products.

In theory, red yeast may increase the risk of bleeding. Caution is advised in patients with bleeding disorders or taking drugs that may increase the risk of bleeding. Dosing adjustments may be necessary. A metabolite of Monascus called mycotoxin citrinin (CTN) in fermentation may be harmful.

Avoid red yeast rice products promoted as treatments for high cholesterol, FDA warns

Medicine News Today – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is warning consumers not to buy or eat three red yeast rice products promoted and sold on web sites. The products may contain an unauthorized drug that could be harmful to health. The products are promoted as dietary supplements for treating high cholesterol.

The potentially harmful products are: Red Yeast Rice and Red Yeast Rice/Policosonal Complex, sold by Swanson Healthcare Products, Inc. and manufactured by Nature’s Value Inc. and Kabco Inc., respectively; and Cholestrix, sold by Sunburst Biorganics. FDA testing revealed the products contain lovastatin, the active pharmaceutical ingredient in Mevacor, a prescription drug approved for marketing in the United States as a treatment for high cholesterol.

“This risk is even more serious because consumers may not know the side effects associated with lovastatin and the fact that it can adversely interact with other medications,” said Steven Galson, M.D., M.P.H., director of FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research.

These red yeast rice products are a threat to health because the possibility exists that lovastatin can cause severe muscle problems leading to kidney impairment. This risk is greater in patients who take higher doses of lovastatin or who take lovastatin and other medicines that increase the risk of muscle adverse reactions. These medicines include the antidepressant nefazodone, certain antibiotics, drugs used to treat fungal infections and HIV infections, and other cholesterol-lowering medications.

FDA has issued warning letters advising Swanson and Sunburst Biorganics to stop promoting and selling the products. Companies that do not resolve violations in FDA warning letters risk enforcement actions, such as an injunction against continuing violations and a seizure of illegal products.

The FDA warning letters state that the products Red Yeast Rice, Red Yeast Rice/Policosonal Complex, and Cholestrix, sold on the firm’s websites, are unapproved new drugs that are marketed in violation of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. The warning letters are available on FDA’s web site.

FDA advises consumers who use any red yeast rice product to consult their health care provider if they experience problems that may be due to the product.

Asparagus root lowers cholesterol, nurtures heart

CM NEWS – Asparagus roots, or tian dong (天冬 or 天門冬) can lower cholesterol and blood lipid, thus help prevent atherosclerosis and other cardiovascular diseases, a new study says.
Hyperlipidemia and hypercholesteremia are major risk factors for atherosclerosis and cardiovascular diseases. Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease is rapidly becoming a major cause of death in many societies throughout the world due to changed dietary habits and occupational stress. In recent years, natural compounds found in plants are gaining scientific attention for their potential therapeutic value in fighting multifactorial atherosclerotic disorders.

A study done at the Department of Biosciences, Sardar Patel University in India investigated the hypocholesteremic and antioxidant potential of the asparagus root root in both normal and hypercholesteremic animals. The results are published in medical journal Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine.

What is atherosclerosis? The hallmark of atherosclerosis is the accumulation of cells containing excessive lipids (i.e. foam cells) within the arterial wall. The major risk factors for the development ofatherosclerosis are hypercholesteremia and elevated low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) concentration. Persistent hypercholesteremia results from prolonged circulation of lipid-rich lipoproteins that increase oxidative stress leading to oxidative modification of LDL to oxy-LDL.

In the present study, normal and hypercholesteremic male albino rats were administered with root powder of asparagus (5 and 10 g% dose levels) along with normal and hypercholesteremic diets, respectively, for a duration of 4 weeks.

Plasma and hepatic lipid profiles, fecal sterol, bile acid excretion and hepatic antioxidant activity were assessed.

What is asparagus root? A perennial with a woody root stock, asparagus grows from 1 to 5 feet high. The female Asparagus plant is slimmer than the male, which is shorter and stockier.

The dried root of asparagus is used in Chinese and Indian medicines as a tonic, galactogogue, aphrodisiac, rejuvenator, antispasmodic, antiulcerous and antiinflammatory. The medicinal/pharmacological value ofasparagus root is attributed to the presence of steroidal saponins and sapogenins. The root of asaparagus is also used in the treatment of nervous disorders, dyspepsia, diarrhea, dysentery, tumours, hyperdipsia, neuropathy and hepatopathy. This plant is reported to have immunostimulant, antihepatotoxic and antioxytocic activities. Recent reports on asparagus indicate that the root extracts haveantioxidant and antidiarrheal activities in laboratory animals.

Asparagus has also been used in its wild form in Ancient Greece and Rome as a natural diuretic that flushes out the kidneys and helps prevent the formation of kidney stones. It is because that the asparagus acts to increase cellular activity in the kidneys and thus increases the rate of urine production.

Asparagus roots also encourages evacuation of the bowels by increasing fecal bulk with undigested fiber. The roots are considered diuretic and laxative and are said to induce sweating, an they are recommended for gout, dropsy and rheumatism.

Chinese medicine says the asparagus root can increase feelings of compassion and love. In India, Asparagus is used to promote fertility, reduce menstrual cramping and increase milk production in nursing mothers.

In the Eastern and Western world, it has been touted as an aphrodisiac. These customs and beliefs are not mere superstition – the root contains compounds called steroidal glycosides (asparagoside) that directly affect hormone production and may very well influence emotions.

Chinese studies report that the roots may also lower blood pressure. The powdered seeds have antibiotic properties and help to relieve nausea while calming the stomach. Japanese studies report that green Asparagus aids protein conversion into amino acids.

Asparagus is also high in folic acid, which is essential for production of new red blood cells. Other primary chemical constituents of Asparagus include essential oil, asparagine, arginine, tyrosine, flavonoids (kaempferol, quercitin, rutin), resin and tannin.

The researchers found that rats that took diet with asparagus root powder have a reduction in their plasma and hepatic lipid profiles. Other observations include: increased fecal excretion of cholesterol, neutral sterol and bile acid, and increases in hepatic HMG-CoA reductase activity and bile acid content in hypercholesteremic rats.

Further, the asparagus root diet also improved the hepatic antioxidant status (catalase, SOD and ascorbic acid levels). However, there were no significant changes in lipid and antioxidant profiles occurred in rats with normal cholesterol levels.

The researchers explain that the lipid-lowering effects of the asparagus root in hypercholesteremic rats are related primarily to an increased excretion of cholesterol, neutral sterols, bile acid and an increase in hepatic bile acid content. In this context, the phytosterol and saponin contents of asparagus root could be responsible.

On one hand phytosterols are reported to compete and displace cholesterol from the intestinal bile acid micelles and decrease the cholesterol circulation, the researchers say. On the other hand, saponins precipitate cholesterol from micelles and interfere with enterohepatic circulation of bile acids making it unavailable for intestinal absorption of cholesterol leading to a reduction in plasma cholesterol levels.

Although the main component of the Asparagus root is a steroidal saponin, the root also contains alkaloids, flavonoids, sterols, terpenes, tannins, phenolics and mucilage.

In all, the results of the present study indicate that the potent therapeutic phyto-components present in the asparagus root i.e. phytosterols, saponins, polyphenols, flavonoids and ascorbic acid, could be responsible for increased bile acid production, elimination of excess cholesterol and elevation of hepatic antioxidant status in hypercholesteremic conditions.

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