Giving a Boost to the Healing System

Local herbs are the best for us. They have grown with us. They were put there by Nature for us. all over Nature, we see tonic type herbs that concentrate their power in the roots. The most famous is Chinese ginseng.

However, there are other ginseng-tpe herbs all over the world. Among these are American ginseng, Siberian ginseng and, to a lesser extent, Indian ginseng. Such ginseng type herbs are also ound in South America as well.

We have our own ginseng too - Eurycoma longifolia, which is commonly known in Malaysia as Tongkat Ali. Roughly translated, its Ali's walking stick. The name is an obvious reference to the plant's long tradition of use as an aphrodisiac and a tonic for men.

A member of the Simaroubaceae family, it is found throughout Malaysia , Borneo and Sumatra . Traditionally, Tongkat Ali's long woody tap root is used by decoction. It has an intensely bitter taste (a standard feature fo root-borne tonics) and has been used to treat fevers and, most surprisingly, malaria.

MALAYSIAN GINSENG

In order to understand Tongkat Ali as a Malaysian ginseng, let us look at how herbs are classified in Chinese traditional medicine. Chinese physicians tend to classify them into three major categories - superior, middle and inferior. Inferior drugs or herbs are those with specific effects in specific conditions. These are the so-called magic bullets, modern medicine's highest therapeutic ideal.

Middle drugs have broader prowers because they tend to strengthen body conditions. Superior drugs are tonics because they work for everything.

In the Chinese concept, superior drugs work by stimulating the defensive action of the body, making it more resistant to assaults of all kinds. These drugs are not toxic. They are not weapons against specific diseases. Yet, bu increasing the body's resistance, they can cure a wide range of maladies.

APHRODISIAC?

Mere mention of Tongkat Ali, though, usually provokes funny looks, cheeky smiles or very naughty laughs. Its reputation as an aphrodisiac seems to be very deeply entrenched in the Malaysian psyche. While this has indeed been proven to be true, Tongkat Ali is actually much more than that.

Ginseng also has the reputation of being an aphrodisiac in the early days. Chinese Emperors used to richly reward those who could provide them pure ginseng root that was reputed to enhance their sexual prowess.

However, veyr proper marketing and selective R&D efforts have made ginseng better known as the tonic that it is. A similar scenario could work for Tongkat Ali.

RESEARCH

Sadly, little research has been done on Tongkat Ali when compared to ginseng-type compounds from Korea , China , Siberia, or even the Americas . It has been the subject of some phytochemical research for the past 20 years however.

It has been found to contain quassinoids such as eurycomanol and eurycomanolactone, alkaloids, sterols, sapenins and terpenoids. Much of the research has been focused on the plant's quassinoid constituents. This together with several other related species, have been the focus of research for their anti-tumor and anti-cancer properties.

In Malaysia , research has confirmed that isolated constituents as well as whole plant extract show aphrodisiac, anti-malarial, febrifuge, antihistaminic, anti-tumor, anti-ulcer and antiviral activity. Tongkat Ali would thus help improve both physical and mental performance. It could also be used to treat fatigue and exhaustion. It would them make it a superior drug by traditional Chinese definition.

Tongkat Ali could be classified as a tonic. Tonics are natural products that increase the efficiency of the healing system and help it neutralize harmful influences. In fact, the word tonic is derived from the Greek word meaning stretch. Tonics stretch or tone the system in the same way physical exercise tones muscles.

Tongkat Ali could also be an adaptogen that enables the body to respond to stress as a whole. A smallpox vaccine would strengthen the body against that particular virus, or the anti-malarial medicine would protect against malaria.

However, an adaptogen would help the body respond to a wide spectrum of stressors - sleep deprivation, heat, cold, stress, trauma, infection, and even radiation!

As mentioned earlier, these results reflect characteristic adaptogenic properties that are also found in Chinese and Siberian Ginseng.

Its possible mechanism of action is similar to that of other classic tonic herbs that possess triterpenoid saponins (of which the quassinoids are a degradation product) through possible interaction with hormonal receptor sites. Taken in the right dose and frequency, there would be no side effects.

HOT AND COLD

All ginseng-like compounds are generally safe if used in moderate doses. However, certain types of ginseng are classified as hot or heaty. They could raise blood pressure in some individuals and also irritate and upset the hormonal balance.

This again goes back to the climate and environment that the ginseng is grown. As an adaptogenic, ginseng accordingly helps the individual cope with physical stresses caused by weather.

Thus, ginseng from cold climates tends to be hot. It was meant for people living there. In the cold climate, it serves to warm the person taking it. That is why certain Chinese and Korean ginsengs are considered heaty.

Ginseng that grows in more moderate climates would be cooler. Thus, our Tongkat Ali would be ideal for us who live and work in this climate. This is another powerful argument for local herbs being best for us.

PRECIOUS

Tongkat Ali is certainly highly priced by traditional kampung folk. It is especially valued by the elderly because it can improve appetite and digestion, tone skin and muscle, improve immune function, and restore depleted sexual energy. Folklore has it that men say it is not for women simply because they do not want to share its limited supply.

In one of my herbal excursions deep into the rain forest, one orang asli shaman advised me not to waste tongkat ali in my youth. Save it for your old age, he said, then you will see what it can do for you.

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