WSK Stories of the Month - Benefits of Red Ginseng

Autumn is here now in full swing. As the saying goes, you can see “the sky getting higher and horses getting plump.”

In these crisp, pleasant days, are you one of those people who feel always sleepy and somewhat lethargic, dozing in the bus and missing your stop?

If you are, then I’d like to introduce you to a certain health food: Red ginseng.
   

(photo courtesy of Hankuk Ilbo)

Red Ginseng Prevents Swine Flu

When the H1N1 swine flu virus swept the nation last year, the sales of ginseng and red ginseng skyrocketed as well. People believed there is nothing more effective than Korean ginseng in increasing immunity against flus. Not totally ungrounded, but still there hadn’t been sufficient scientific study to back up such an argument. 
  

Now, more about ginseng has been unveiled at the 10th International Symposium on Ginseng held on September 15. The results of a research on the effectiveness of ginseng in preventing H1N1 were announced. According to the study, the group who took ginseng along with vaccination had a 40% higher survival rate than the group who took only vaccination. Red ginseng, in particular, was found to boost up defense against not only H1N1 but seasonal flus as well.  

An experiment was conducted with 227 participants at three medical offices in Milan, Italy. Half of them were given ginseng at a dosage of 100mg daily, the other half placebo. The results showed a significant decline in the frequency of colds and flus in the treated group compared to the placebo group (15 versus 42 cases).

Red Ginseng Also Reduces Fatigue and Prevents Cancer

Other benefits of red ginseng include reducing fatigue, improving blood circulation, and getting rid of fat and cholesterol.

    

<2010 Punggi Ginseng Festival held from Oct. 1 through 6 in Yeongju>

Red ginseng also helps quench thirst, especially for diabetics who urinate a lot to get rid of the extra sugar in their blood. Also, red ginseng is good for enhancing your stamina in general. Those who often catch cold and never have enough energy might as well give it a try!

The size of the domestic red ginseng market, currently, is about KRW 1 trillion. And with the increasing consumer demand, it is expected to further grow, as much as six-folds within a few years. In addition, as an increasing number of foreigners are taking interest in the benefits of red ginseng, there is to be a lot more export and branching out into global markets.

Well, it seems like red ginseng is all that is good! Why not brace up ourselves against the vicious seasonal flus with some help from red ginseng? :)

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                                                                                                                   ⓒ코리아브랜드

PS: This article is taken from the WSK Newsletter #28. As one of the members of WSK, I have been given task to share this article through my blog.