Nature's Pharmacy: Ancient Knowledge, Modern Medicine
Ginkgo Biloba
(Ginkgo or Maidenhair Tree)
Name, Habitat and Appearance
Ginkgo is a Japanese word derived from the phonetic spelling of the Chinese ideogram yin-hsing which is pronounced guinnkyo. It is also called Maidenhair tree because the leaves look like the Adiantum or Maidenhair fern; Tree of Forty Gold Crowns because of the beautiful gold coloring in the fall; Yinzing which means "silver apricot;" and Grandfather and Grandson tree in China because a tree planted by a grandparent can be harvested by the grandchildren. Ginkgo, the oldest surviving species of tree on Earth was called a "living fossil" by Charles Darwin. The species name, Biloba, meaning two leaves, is probably based on the fan-shaped leaf with a notch in the middle.
The Ginkgo biloba is a deciduous tree with gray bark that can grow to 120 feet tall and up to four feet in diameter. As the tree ages, it grows into a canopy shape. The leaves are dark green. In the fall, the tree turns a golden color. Ginkgos are either male or female, with the male tree producing cones with pollen that fertilizes the yellow-brown cherry-like seeds of the female tree. The seeds of the female tree have earned a reputation of smelling like vomit or rancid butter and causing paint damage if they fall on a car's surface.
History
The Ginkgo tree evolved around 200 million years ago. It was prevalent during the Triassic Period of the Mesozoic era and common worldwide when dinosaurs walked Earth, but died out during the Ice Age to a pocket of survivors in Asia. Today's Ginkgo originally thrived along the shores of the Yangtze River in China. The ginkgo tree was able to survive because it is resistant to infection, parasites and pollution. Ginkgo's medicinal use can be traced back to ancient China. The Chinese emperor Shen Nung, an avid herbalist, called Ginkgo "good for the heart and lungs." As early as 2800 B.C.E., the Chinese used ginkgo seed to treat "wet and runny" conditions such as asthma, chronic diarrhea and tuberculosis; as an aid to digestion; and to expel intestinal worms. Extracts were developed to aid circulation and mental performance. The seed coats were used to make an insecticide. The tree was eventually carried to Japan, and from there, around the world. Ancient Japanese scholars protected valuable papers from insects by placing ginkgo leaves between pages or near scrolls. The Chinese continued to use the herb for medicinal purposes throughout the centuries before it was discovered by Englebert Kaempfer, a surgeon and naturalist who was the first European to encounter the ginkgo tree as he traveled to Japan with the Dutch East India Company in 1712. The tree was first introduced into America in 1784, shortly after the American Revolution.
Ginkgos are so hardy that a solitary ginkgo was the only tree to survive the atomic blast in Hiroshima. Today the domestic tree is found throughout the world. It is farmed extensively in Europe, Japan and Korea. Ginkgos are hardy to the Canadian Agriculture Zone 4 with a minimum temperature of -40 degrees Fahrenheit. The trees are used extensively as ornamental lawn trees throughout the United States and are found as far south as Texas, Florida and California.
From the early 18th Century, Europeans have used ginkgo to cope with mental deficiencies. Today, in France and Germany, Ginkgo biloba is among the most commonly prescribed drugs for fighting symptoms of aging, organic brain disorders, and conditions attributed to poor circulation such as impaired memory, dizziness, and ringing in the ears.
Historical Uses
- Poor circulation, memory loss and general mental deterioration
- To treat asthma and tuberculosis
- To aid digestion
- To treat chronic diarrhea
- To expel intestinal worms
- As an insecticide
Warnings
No serious side effects or drug interactions have been reported for Ginkgo. People taking Ginkgo rarely develop the following side effects: gastrointestinal disorders, headaches and allergic skin reactions. Ginkgo poses no danger to pregnant women or nursing mothers.
Modern Medicinal Uses
Research is currently being done to ascertain the benefits of Ginkgo in relieving the early stages of Alzheimer's disease and memory loss associated with aging. Other medical problems thought to be helped by Ginkgo are impotence due to arterial insufficiency, poor circulation, tinnitis (ringing in the ears), some types of hearing loss, depression in the elderly, and bronchial and asthmatic conditions.
The keys to Ginkgo's benefits are its ability to improve circulation to every area of the body, to fight damage to skin cells and to the retina of the eye caused by ultraviolet light, and to fight free radicals (highly active atoms and molecules that may be a factor in cancer formation). It is an Antioxidant that "scavenges" free-radicals, reacting with them to leave harmless molecules in their place. This action can help fight radiation damage from the sun, damage to cells from radiation exposure in the environment or nuclear disasters, septic shock and inflammation due to allergies by stopping the immune system from turning on itself. Its antioxidant activity may fight inflammation of the liver from hepatitis and counteract platelet-activating factor (PAF) that is involved in stroke and heart attacks, allergic reactions and asthma, shock, inflammatory conditions and bronchial constriction. PAF may also contribute to rejection of organ transplants, irregular heartbeat, kidney disease and chronic problems due to head injuries. Headaches, nervousness, anxiety, leg cramps and numbness due to poor circulation are treated with prescribed Ginkgo in Germany.
Modern science has proven that ginkgo trees contain 2-hexanal, a disinfectant that kills microbes. The acid on the leaves is poisonous to insects, to the Escherichia coli (E.coli) bacteria and to the viruses that affect tobacco and beans. Only in very recent years have the American pharmaceutical and medical establishments begun to study this herb.
The photograph of Ginkgo used in the exhibit.
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