Rhodiola Rosea Products

History of Rhodiola

Rhodiola rosea is a legendary adaptogenic tonifier that comes from the polar Arctic regions of Eastern Siberia.  Also known as Golden root or Rosea , Rhodiola was highly valued by traditional Arctic tribes as a strengthening tonic to increase physical and mental stamina.  Widely used by Russian athletes especially, Rhodiola supports the nervous system and helps to boost mental function by increasing blood-supply to the brain.

Rhodiola - A Powerful Adaptogen

Rhodiola is an adaptogen, it increases energy, is cardio-protective, and helps to normalize heart rate after intense exertion.  Rhodiola rosea has been categorized as an adaptogen by Russian researchers due to its observed ability to increase resistance to a variety of chemical, biological, and physical stressors.  Its claimed benefits include mood enhancing, maintain healthy cardiovascular function, enhance memory and maintain healthy brain function.  Research also indicates Rhodiola as useful in improving work performance, improve sleep, improve appetite, reduce irritability, reduce occasional headaches and fatigue.

In research study, rhodiola resea extract was examined for its effects on the pattern of stress-induced cardiac damage, as measured by an accumulation of certain enzymes in the heart.  Rhodiola rosea helped to prevent stress-induced cardiac damage.  Specifically, the extract helped to prevent stress-induced release of proteins, and inhibited higher enzyme levels, both of which can damage heart tissue.  These findings demonstrate stress-inhibiting and cardioprotective benefits of Rhodiola rosea.

Rhodiola Improve Mental Performance and Reduce Stress

In a human clinical research conducted at the Department of Neurology, Armenian State Medical University, Yerevan, the effect of repeated low-dose treatment of Rhodiola extract on fatigue during night duty among a group of 56 young, healthy physicians was studied.  Total mental performance was evaluated measuring overall level of mental fatigue, complex perceptive and cognitive cerebral functions, such as associative thinking, short-term memory, calculation and ability of concentration, and speed of audio-visual perception.  During a period of three weeks, volunteers taking Rhodiola extract is showing significant improvement in these test compared to placebo group.  These results suggest that Rhodiola can reduce general fatigue under certain stressful conditions.  

Rhodiola and Weight Loss

As you may know, body fat gets stored in adipose tissue.  Once fat is stored in this tissue, it is hard to get rid of.  That's why some people just can't seem to get rid of certain fatty spots, including "love handles" or a fatty "tire" around the abdomen.  The body does possess and enzyme called hormone-sensitive lipase that is capable of breaking down fat stored in adipose tissue.  But this enzyme is not especially active.  This is where rhodiola rosea comes in.  Extracts of rhodiola rosea have the capacity to activate hormone-sensitive lipase, thus increasing the breakdown of fat stored in adipole tissue.  Rosavin specifically contributes to fat breakdown by activating hormone-sensitive lipase, thus increasing the breakdown of fat stored in adipose tissue.

Rhodiola Improves Sport Performance

According to a double blind placebo-controlled randomized study conducted in Belgium involving 24 volunteers, published on Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab, patients were administered with either Rhodiola rosea intake 200-mg Rhodiola rosea extract containing 3% rosavin + 1% salidroside plus 500 mg starch or placebo (700 mg starch).  Over a 4 week period, volunteers taking Rhodiola is showing improvement in physical capacity, muscle strength, speed of limb movement, reaction time, and attention, compared to placebo group.

In human clinical studies, administration of rhodiola rosea extract, in combination with moderate exercise, produced significant weight loss.

Articles

Power Herbs of Siberia, Chris Kilham, www.medicinehunter.com.

Research

Acta Physiol Pharmacol Bulg. 1986;12(1):3-16

Effects of alcohol aqueous extract from Rhodiola rosea L. roots on learning and memory.

Petkov VD, Yonkov D, Mosharoff A, Kambourova T, Alova L, Petkov VV, Todorov I.

The effect of alcohol-aqueous extract (1:1) from Rhodiola rosea L. roots on the processes of learning and memory is studied on rats.  several methods of active avoidance with negative and positive reinforcements are used, as well as of passive avoidance.  Using the maze-method with negative (punitive) reinforcement, it has been found that Rhodiola extract in a single dose of 0.10 ml per rat essentially improves learning and retention after 24 hours.  Significant improvement of the long-term memory is also established in memory tests after 10-day treatment with the same dose of the extract.  In the other two doses tested (0.02 and 1.0 ml per rat) the extract has no substantial effect on learning and memory.  In a dose of 0.10 ml per rat the Rhodiola extract had a favorable effect on the training process using the "staircase" method with positive (food) reinforcement as well.  With the other methods used (active avoidance method with negative reinforcement "shuttle-box" and passive avoidance methods "step down" and "step through") Thodiola extract in the dose used (0.10 ml per rat) had no substantial effect on learning and memory (a certain deterioration of the training process was even observed using the "shuttle-box" method, while the "step-down" method resulted in deterioration of the memory).  The great significance of the method used for studying the effects of the pharmacological agents on learning and memory for the results obtained is evident.

Altern Med Rev. 2001 Jun;6(3):293-302

Rhodiola rosea: a possible plant adaptogen.

Kelly GS.

Rhodiola rosea is a popular plant in traditional medical systems in Eastern Europe and Asia with a reputation for stimulating the nervous system, decreasing depression, enhancing work performance, elimination fatigue, and preventing high altitude sickness.  Rhodiola rosea has been categorized as an adaptogen by Russian researchers due to its observed ability to increase resistance to a variety of chemical, biological, and physical stressors.  Its claimed benefits include antidepressant, anticancer, cardio protective, and central nervous system enhancement.  Research also indicates great utility in aesthetic conditions (decline in work performance, sleep difficulties, poor appetite, irritability, hypertension, headaches, and fatigue) developing subsequent to intense physical or intellectual strain.  The adaptogenic, cardiopulmonary protective, and central nervous system activities of Rhodiola rosea have bee attributed primarily to its ability to influence levels and activity of monoamines and opioid peptides such as betaendorphins.

Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab. 2004 Jun;14(3):298-307

Acute Rhodiola rosea intake can improve endurance exercise performance.

De Bock K, Eijnde BO, Ramaekers M, Hespel P.

Faculty of Physical Education and Physiotherapy in the exercise Physiology and Biomechanics Laboratory at the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Tervuursevest 101, B-3001 Leuven, Belgium.

PURPOSE:  The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of acuter and 4-week Rhodiola rosea intake on physical capacity, muscle strength, speed of limb movement, reaction time, and attention.  METHODS: PHASE I: A double blind placebo-controlled randomized study (n=24) was performed, consisting of 2 sessions (2 days per session).  Day 1:  One hour after acute Rhodiola rosea intake (R 200-mg Rhodiola rosea extract containing 3% rosavin + 1% salidroside plus 500mg starch) or placebo (P, 700 mg starch) speed of limb movement (plate tapping test), aural and visual reaction time, and the ability to sustain attention (Fepsy Vigilance test) were assessed.  Day 2:  Following the same intake procedure as on day 1, maximal isometric knee-extension torque and endurance exercise capacity were tested.  Following a 5-day washout period, the experimental procedure was repeated, with the treatment regimens being switched between groups (session 2).  PHASE II: A double blind placebo-controlled study (n=12) was performed.  Subjects underwent sessions 3 and 4, identical to Phase I, separated by a 4-week R/P intake, during which subjects ingested 200 mg R/P per day.  RESULTS: PHASE I:  Compared with P, acute R intake in Phase I increased (p<.05) time to exhaustion from 16.8 +/- 0.7 min to 17.2 +/- 0.8 min.  Accordingly, VO2peak (p<.05) and VCO2peak (p<.05) increased during R compared to P from 50.9 +/- 1.8 ml x min(-1) x kg(-)1 to 52.9 +/- 2.7 ml x min(-10) x kg(-1) (VO2peak) and from 60.0 +/- 2.3 ml x min(-1) x kg(-)1 to 63.5 +/- 2.7 ml x min(-1) x kg(-1)(VCO2peak). Pulmonary ventilation (p=.07) tended to increase more during R than during P (P: 115.9+/- 7.7 L/min; R:  124.8 +/- 7.7 L/min).  All other parameters remained unchanged.  PHASE II: Four -week R intake did not alter any of the variables measured.  CONCLUSION: Acute Rhodiola rosea intake can improve endurance exercise capacity in young healthy volunteers.  This response was not altered by prior daily 4-week Rhodiola intake.

Acute Rhodiola rosea intake can improve endurance exercise performance. De Bock K, Eijnde BO, Ramaekers M, Hespel P. Faculty of Physical Education and Physiotherapy in the Exercise Physiology and Biomechanics Laboratory at the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Tervuursevest 101, B-3001 Leuven, Belgium, Jun 2004.

Preventive and treatment effect of composite Rhodiolae on acute lung injury in patients with severe pulmonary hypertension during extracorporeal circulation Xu KJ, Zhang SF, Li QX. Department of Cardio-thoracic Surgery, General Hospital of Lanzhou Military Region of PLA, Lanzhou, Sep 2003.

The effect of rhodiola and acetazolamide on the sleep architecture and blood oxygen saturation in men living at high altitude, Ha Z, Zhu Y, Zhang X, Cui J, Zhang S, Ma Y, Wang W, Jian X. The 18th Hospital of PLA, Yecheng, China, Sep2002.

Rhodiola rosea: a possible plant adaptogen. Kelly GS. Alternative Medicine Review, Jun 2001.