Eleuthero root extract benefits, also called Siberian ginseng or Eleuthero, has been used in China and Russia for centuries with a variety of uses and benefits which it provides to our bodies. It’s not just the Chinese healers who recognize eleuthero’s healing potential. Recent evidence reveals that it’s a powerful adaptogen that can help you cope with stress, enhance your energy, and even improve your brain function.
Eleuthero root extract is a small, woody shrub native to southeastern Russia, northern China, Korea, and Japan. Although Eleutherococcus senticosus is not related to true ginseng (Panax ginseng), the name Eleuthero root extract became popular because the two plants shared some similar properties.
Eeuthero root extract benefits comes in its ability to be an adaptogen, which means that when it is ingested, it helps the body to increase its resistance to stress. Guess what that means? If you eat Eleuthero root extract, your stress resistance can increase too. Before science took its modern form, healers knew from experience how eleuthero supported health and healing.
Eleuthero root extract benefits contains powerful phytochemicals like sterols, coumarins, flavonoids, and polysaccharides. Each of these compounds have unique healing potential, and when combined, they increase oxygen availability at the cellular level, encouraging blood flow, immune response, and antioxidant effects that protect your DNA.
Eleuthero Root Extract Benefits
1. Eleuthero Improves Mental Performance and Memory
For those looking to boost their mental capacity and get a temporary boost of intelligence, eleuthero is a strong contender. It has been proven to increase blood flow to the brain and small capillaries, thereby helping cognition, improving memory, and keeping your wits a bit sharper than normal. While cognitive effects can vary, there is a significant improvement in academic performance of test-takers in research settings, making this useful for students of any age.
2. Prevents Fatigue
Many people who supplement with eleuthero do so for its energy-boosting effects. Eleuthero root extract benefits activate AMPK, which speeds up the metabolism and breaks down fats to produce energy. Eleuthero may also activate BDNF, which increases the brain’s ability to grow and adapt to change
3. Cancer Fighting
Eleuthero root extract root has been suggested as part of a holistic approach to the treatment of prostate cancer. Preliminary evidence suggests that a combination therapy that includes Eleuthero root extract may increase survival time in patients with advanced cancer. Additional research is needed in this area.
4. Boosts Immunity
Studies into the health effects of eleuthero root extract benefits revealed that it can significantly boost the immune system when taken in combination with various other immune-improving herbs. It can reduce the severity and duration of colds when taken early on in the illness. This can be achieved through a supplemental form or by regularly drinking eleuthero tea.
5. Improves Exercise
Eleuthero demonstrates an ability to improve physical stamina and mental sharpness similar to caffeine but without an impending crash. Studies to date have had mixed results but some point towards the ability of Eleutherococcus senticosus to boost cardiorespiratory fitness, fat metabolism and overall endurance performance.
6. Healing Wounds
By boosting the immune system, eleuthero root extract benefits may improve or speed up the healing process. Compounds in eleuthero have also been shown to prevent the formation of ulcers, including diabetic foot ulcers.
7. Reduces Herpes Outbreaks
Eleuthero root extract benefits is its ability to reduce the number of herpes (herpes simplex virus) outbreaks. That means less cold sores. One study, for example, found that taking eleuthero reduced the number of herpes outbreaks, the severity of the outbreaks, and outbreak duration.
8. Improved Mental Health
Although there needs to be more research on the topic, eleuthero has been found to improve mental health and social functioning. Both of which are strong influencers of what determines a “quality life.
9. Hangover Assistance
Alcohol hangover puts a lot of stress on the body and causes symptoms like exhaustion, dizziness, and nausea. Eleuthero extract may help the body return to normal function and reduce symptoms during a hangover, based on data from one intriguing human stud
10. Improves Symptoms of Diabetes
Eleuthero root extract benefits may improve blood sugar levels, insulin sensitivity, and fatty acid levels—all of which help prevent diabetes. In diabetic mice, eleutheroside E promoted the function of the pancreatic cells that make insulin, reduced blood glucose levels, and reduced insulin resistance. Eleutheroside B also normalized blood sugar, insulin, and other disease markers in diabetic rats.
11. Reduces Inflammation
Cyclooxygenase 2, or COX-2, is an enzyme that increases inflammation and pain. Commonly used NSAIDs mainly work by blocking it. The extract of eleuthero fruit activates an enzyme called heme oxygenase 1 (HO-1), which blocks COX-2 and thereby reduces inflammation. Within four hours of taking eleuthero, healthy women had reduced swelling in their lower legs. Eleutheroside E appears to activate a receptor called Tie2, which stabilizes lymph vessels and improves the function of the lymphatic system.
Eleuthero root extract benefits are worth exploring, but don’t use them to make up for a crappy diet and lifestyle. Making sure to eat good food, get outside, and sleep well, and generally take care of yourself will do more for your stress, energy, and longevity than any one herb will do.