ginkgo

For years, practitioners of alternative medicine have been touting the benefits of ginkgo, but a new study finds it does little to slow the cognitive decline of aging

CHICAGO (AP) -- At least 2 million older Americans are taking a combination of drugs or supplements that can be a risky mix - from blood thinners and cholesterol pills to aspirin and ginkgo capsules - a new study warns....

CHICAGO -- At least 2 million older Americans are taking a combination of drugs or supplements that can be a risky mix -- from blood thinners and cholesterol pills to aspirin and ginkgo capsules -- a new study warns.

In a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, 240 milligrams per day of the dietary supplement Ginkgo biloba was found to be ineffective in reducing the development of dementia and Alzheimer's disease in older people.

Researchers led by Steven T. DeKosky, M.D., conducted the trial known as the Ginkgo Evaluation of Memory (GEM) study at four clinical sites over the course of 8 years.

GEM is the largest clinical trial ever to evaluate ginkgo's effect on the occurrence of dementia.

CHICAGO (AP) -- The dietary supplement ginkgo, long promoted as an aid to memory, didn't help prevent dementia and Alzheimer's disease in the longest and largest test of the extract in older Americans.

"We don't think it has a future as a powerful anti-dementia drug," said Dr. Steven DeKosky of the University of Virginia School of Medicine, who led the federally funded study....

Overall, in a pilot study of a ginkgo biloba extract for delaying the onset of dementia in the elderly, researchers did not find a reduction in progression to dementia in those using ginkgo versus those using placebo.

However, when the researchers took into account participants' adherence to taking the compound, the group that took ginkgo did appear to have a reduced risk of progression and a smaller decline in memory.