Back to nature is a kind of charm that a lot of people are considering choosing for healthy lifestyle. Ginkgo biloba is one of the plants with a lot of health benefits for human and when you google it the list of health benefits of ginkgo biloba extract could be endless.

What Is Ginkgo Biloba?

Before you decided to consume or add food supplement made from ginkgo biloba, finding out more about this plant is probably a good idea. Do you know that ginkgo biloba is actually one of the species of plant which came from ancient time that could survive through all-natural phenomenon? That is why ginkgo biloba is also well known as ‘a living fossil’. Initially, this plant was well known as part of Chinese traditional medicine but right now, ginkgo biloba has been the subject of modern research studies to find out more about its health benefits.

Nutritional Values of Ginkgo Biloba

One of the significant values you could get from ginkgo biloba is its antioxidant content. Not only that, ginkgo biloba is also well known as plant that could help treating specific mental conditions due to its anti-inflammatory properties that could affect the neurotransmitter in the brain. To find out more information about ginkgo biloba, the list of health benefits of ginkgo biloba below will tell you what you really want to know about ginkgo biloba.

1. Excellent Source of Antioxidants

It is a common knowledge that ginkgo biloba is rich of antioxidants. Antioxidant is essential for human body. It has prominent function to fight free radicals and improve immunity system. Unfortunately, body cannot produce antioxidant by itself, so getting it from foods, supplements are the only thing you could do to fulfill the daily intake.

2. Contains Anti-Inflammatory Properties

Aside from being high of antioxidants, ginkgo biloba is also the excellent source of anti-inflammatory. There are a lot of people out there who are not really aware of the fact that the root of several chronic diseases such as certain types of diabetes, cardiovascular health even cancer are caused by inflammation.

3. Improves Blood Circulation

According to some scientific studies, gingko biloba has significant ability in improving the blood circulation. That is why in Chinese traditional medication, ginkgo biloba is used to open the ‘channels’ toward several organs such as heart, kidneys, liver and brain.

4. Good for Heart Health

As mentioned in previous point, ginkgo biloba is also excellent source of some essential minerals such as potassium. You should know that the main health benefits of potassium is to eliminate the excessive sodium to promote healthy hearth and reduce the symptoms of high blood pressure.

5. Reduces the Symptoms of Depression

Through some animal studies, ginkgo biloba have been proven to be effective in reducing the symptoms of depression due to its anti-inflammatory properties. However, you should know that depression is a complex condition so depending on ginkgo biloba to treat it is not recommended.

6. Possible Treatment for Dementia

Due to its antioxidant contents, ginkgo biloba has been proven to be possible treatment for patients with dementia or all kinds of conditions associated with cognitive decline or aging.

7. May Increase Functional Ability for Patients with Mild Alzheimer

There are some stages of Alzheimer and ginkgo biloba has been proven to have ability in increasing the functional ability of patients with Alzheimer. However, there is one important thing to note, it is only working in patients who are still in mild stage of Alzheimer.

8. Improves Brain Function

Are you looking for natural solution to improve your brain function like having better memory or longer attention span? Well, ginkgo biloba is the supplement you need in this matter.

9. Reduces Anxiety

There are a lot of factors that could cause anxiety but aside from that, scientific studies have shown how effective ginkgo biloba in reducing the symptoms of anxiety. The same studies stated that it happens due to its high antioxidants contents.

10. Support Eye Health

Though further researches or scientific studies are strongly required but some early studies about ginkgo biloba to support eye health revealed some promising result. Those studies have proven the improvement of vision after consuming ginkgo biloba.

11. Treats Headache and Migraine

Though it is easy to find medicine to treat headache or migraine but still if you have a more natural option like ginkgo biloba, surely it is recommended for you to choose it though of course there are some cautions of ginkgo biloba you should aware as well.

12. Remedy to Respiratory Diseases

One of the common respiratory diseases which are not easy to treat is asthma. Though ginkgo biloba is not magically curing asthma but it has proven to be effective in reducing the symptoms of asthma.

13. Reduces PMS Symptoms

PMS symptoms could be caused by physical and psychological factors. As mentioned in some previous points, ginkgo biloba could treat both physical and psychological conditions. A study conducted among college students, consuming ginkgo biloba to reduce the symptoms of PMS reached 23% reduction, compared to place which is only 8-9%.

14. Treats Sexual Dysfunction

Low libido or erectile dysfunction are types of sexual dysfunction that could be treated using ginkgo biloba. Based on studies, the ability of ginkgo biloba to improve blood circulation is the reason why this herbal plant is great to treat sexual dysfunction.

Cautions of Ginkgo Biloba

Speaking of health benefits of ginkgo biloba, you should aware of its health risk as well. Though this kind of plant has been using since ancient time, but modern time has its own perks to help you avoiding all the side effects or cautions as listed below.

• Those who are allergic to poison ivy, sumac and poison oak should avoid consuming or taking ginkgo biloba because the effect will be the same or similar.
• Due to its ability to improve blood circulation, in high dosage ginkgo biloba could cause serious bleeding disorders, especially to those who have bleeding history. That is why, consuming ginkgo biloba is forbidden for those who are about undergoing surgery.
• Consuming ginkgo biloba along with some NSAIDS could cause serious side effect. So, you must be careful when taking ginkgo biloba. If you are a regular consumer of ibuprofen, considering avoiding ginkgo biloba is highly recommended.
• Though there are a lot of studies have proven the benefits of ginkgo biloba but consuming it raw, this plant could be toxic.
• As mentioned above, since ginkgo biloba could cause serious bleeding, pregnant mother should avoid consuming it at all cost.

Speaking of ginkgo biloba, the list of benefits could be endless, but the list mentioned above are the top ones that become the reasons why people are decided to add ginkgo biloba to their daily diet. However, for the cautions is better for you to consult it with your doctors before especially discussing about the dosage.