Rhodiola Rosea
by Elise
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Welcome to Rhodiola Rosea, a site dedicated to a thorough and hype-free approach to exploring the research and benefits of rhodiola rosea extract, whether you’re interested in using it to improve your endurance or you plan on taking rhodiola rosea for depression or to alleviate mild anxiety. Even with the exciting potential of these broad benefits and uses, I will try to provide a rational and hype-free approach to Rhodiola rosea discussion. Despite the excitement for rhodiola in the alternative health industry, R. rosea is not a magical solution to all your problems. However, it is a promising, safe and natural supplement worth researching and considering.
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This home page guide will teach you the key points you need to know about Rhodiola Rosea and Adaptogens. Of course, I’ll add more and more detailed content in the future, so keep an eye on the sidebar as well. For example, I’ve recently added Dr. Zakir Ramazanov’s excellent phytomedicinal research in the form of downloadable PDFs. I hope you learn something with your visit to my site and I wish you the best in health and in life.
Use these index questions to navigate this Rhodiola Rosea essay:
- Why A Website On Rhodiola Rosea Extract?
- What Is Rhodiola Rosea?
- What Are Adaptogens?
- How Does Rhodiola Rosea Work?
- Why Take Rhodiola Rosea Or Any Adaptogen?
- Rhodiola Dosage
Why A Website On Rhodiola Rosea Extract?
Rhodiola rosea — sometimes referred to as Golden Root, Roseroot, Arctic Root or Aaron’s Rod — is an adaptogen with increasing clinical evidence suggesting a wide range of benefits with very few rhodiola side effects and rhodiola dangers. I’ve chosen to implement this website because I want people to realize that unlike many herbal remedies, which have questionable or at least debatable evidence for their usefulness (here’s looking at you, ginseng), rhodiola rosea appears to be a legitimate supplement for a range of practical purposes, from greater mental performance to greater physical endurance to decreased fatigue in strenuous circumstances. So whether you choose a rhodiola capsule or a rhodiola rosea extract, you’re using one of the few herbal remedies where case studies indicate genuine effectiveness despite minimal rhodiola side effects.
What Is Rhodiola Rosea?
Rhodiola rosea, a perennial plant of the Rhodiola genus in the Crassulaceae family, grows in cold, harsh alpine regions of the Northern Hemisphere (thus it is a Holarctic ecozone species of Rhodiola). These regions include the Arctic, the Rocky Mountains, mountainous areas of central Asia, the Alps, the Carpathian Mountains, the Pyrenees, Scandinavia, Iceland and northern Russia (Siberia). It is a pretty little plant with yellow flowers, but it exhibits its hardiness by easily thriving in harsh, craggy environments. Because rhodiola rosea features both distinctly male and female plants, it is a dioecious plant, and because of its tendency to grow among rocks and stones, it is sometimes referred to as a stonecrop.
We’re most interested in Rhodiola rosea’s rugged, pale root. It contains a dark, aromatic sap. When the root is cut, you enjoy a potent rose-like aroma. This rhodiola species name is rosea, and that strong rose aroma is the origin of its name. Multiple strong stems grow from the root, growing from 10 to 30 inches in height. From each stem blossoms its distinct yellow flower.
Traditionally, rhodiola rosea was used by Russians, Siberians and Scandinavians to improve vitality in harsh conditions presented by bitter cold climates and high altitude areas. This golden root later developed a rather mysterious reputation as Soviet KGB agents relied on rhodiola rosea to improve physical and mental endurance while persevering stressful conditions and situations.
After being used for centuries in China and Russia and being studied for decades by the Soviet Union, rhodiola rosea’s western research was spearheaded by Dr. Zakir Ramazanov when he left the Soviet Union in 1989 to conduct research at the University of Umea in Sweden. He later joined Louisiana State University and the National Science Foundation in the United States. His scientific work and his efforts to promote the research of Siberian phytomedicines laid the foundation for modern research on adaptogens such as rhodiola rosea.
Rhodiola Root, Dried
Rhodiola rosea has been referred to with many different names and labels, which collectively can make following rhodiola research and discussion a little confusing. The following terms refer to rhodiola rosea: R rosea, sedum rosea, Golden Root, Roseroot (or Rose Root), Arctic Root, Aaron’s Rod, Rhodiola arctica, and Rhodiola iremelica, or broadly as Siberian Rhodiola Rosea. In Europe and Latin America you may see it spelled rodiola and rodiola rosea (without the ‘h’). In traditional Chinese medicine, where it has been used extensively, it is referred to as hóng j?ng ti?n.
The prominent constituents believed to enact rhodiola’s benefits include rosarin, rosavin, rosin (collectively called rosavins in many studies) and salidroside. Most rhodiola supplements are created from the rhodiola root. When you examine a rhodiola extract or any kind of rhodiola supplement, make sure it contains rhodiola rosea with a minimum 3% rosavins and 1% salidroside.
Rhodiola crenulata is a common adulterant or substitute, but rhodiola crenulata does not provide the necessary rosavins that provide most of rhodiola’s benefits (although it does contain salidroside). Rhodiola rhodantha and rhodiola alsia are also common rhodiola species, but these are better known for their beauty as plants and flowers than for their medicinal uses. So make sure you get the right rhodiola when you select your rhodiola supplement, whether you intend to take it for herbal stress relief or you intend to use it for improving your stamina.
What Are Adaptogens?
Rhodiola Rosea extract is an adaptogen, a family of natural supplements which exhibits an ability to improve the human response to physical and/or mental stress and trauma. Theoretically, adaptogens help humans maintain optimal homeostasis by balancing their immune systems and endocrine hormones. The term adaptogen quite clearly derives from the substance’s capacity to assist an organism to adapt to strenuous circumstances.
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Adaptogens don’t produce the immediate physiological effects produced by stimulants like caffeine, and thus are widely considered more safe and mild than chemical stimulants.
In the past decade, the most commonly sold adaptogen has been ginseng. However, rhodiola rosea and rhodiola rosea extracts exhibit more tangible, distinct and immediate stimulating effects. And unlike ginseng, which is the subject of much heated debate between the medical community and the natural health community, rhodiola rosea is collecting mounting clinical evidence that it just plain really works.
Other relatively popular and natural adaptogens I may discuss on this site include Ashwagandha, Eleuthero, Holy basil, Licorice, Maca and Noni.
How Does Rhodiola Rosea Work?
Rhodiola works by inhibiting subtype A and subtype B of an enzyme called monoamine oxidase and by affecting opioid peptides (chained amino acids) like beta-endorphin (a neurotransmitter in both the central and peripheral nervous systems).
Subtype A of monoamine oxidase (MAO-A) metabolizes caffeine and serotonin (among many other things it metabolizes). Subtype B of monamine oxidase (MAO-B) metabolizes dopamine (among other things).
Thus by increasing serotoneric activity rhodiola rosea lifts your mood, and by increasing dopaminergic activity rhodiola lifts your mood, sharpens your focus and increases your energy. By inhibiting caffeine metabolism it may both increase and extend its effects.
In addition, rhodiola modulates cortisol production during times of physical or emotional duress. Cortisol is a steroid hormone and it is often called the stress hormone. Our adrenal glands produce cortisol to help us cope with stressful situations. Unfortunately, sometimes our body produces too much cortisol, or if we experience chronic stress our body produces cortisol too often, even in times when we don’t really need it.
Since cortisol suppresses our immune system, counteracts insulin and metabolizes proteins, fats and carbohydrates, too much cortisol may amplify these basic functions and produce detrimental problems. Rhodiola rosea acts as a mild cortisol modulator, helping our bodies reduce the repercussions of excessive cortisol release by our adrenal glands.
Please see Rhodiola Rosea Pharmacology, Phytochemistry and Standardization and Rhodiola Supplements for Muscle Development and Athletic Performance for more extensive coverage of how rhodiola works.
Why Take Rhodiola Rosea Extract or Any Adaptogen?
Rhodiola rosea crashed the growing natural health party when a rigorous Swedish case study suggested rhodiola’s ability to quicken memory, improve attention span, sharpen mental performance, alleviate depression, soothe mental and physical fatigue and improve human focus in difficult circumstances. You can read Newsweek’s 2003 coverage of this research, which includes comments from RhodiolaRosea.Org‘s founder Dr. Ramazanov, in our recently reformatted release of this article: Herbal Stress Relief.
(The exact extract used in that study was SHR-5, a proprietary rhodiola rosea extract manufactured and distributed by the Swedish Herbal Institute.)
However, a broad collection of research comes from Russian and Scandinavian sources dating back decades. For specific references to some of these studies, please see Dr. Zakir Ramazanov’s essay on Rhodiola For Muscle Development.
Rigorous case studies suggest genuine neurochemical mechanisms produce these positive rhodiola benefits. The most well-known case studies were conducted by Dr. Richard P. Brown, an associate clinical professor of psychiatry at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, and Dr. Patricia L. Gerbarg, an assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at New York Medical College, Dr. Philip R. Muskin, the Chief of Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry at the Columbia University Medical Center and a Professor of Clinical Psychiatry at Columbia University, and reported in their books The Rhodiola Revolution and How to Use Herbs and Nutrients in Mental Health Care (those are links to these books on Amazon.com, where you can buy them and then read them for yourself!).
Despite these broad benefits, rhodiola rosea features a remarkably low toxicity level. In standard clinical toxicity studies performed with rats, the lethal dose at which 50 percent of animals perish was determined to be 28.6 ml/kg, which is approximately 3,360 mg/kg. This is extremely low even compared to many common, safe herbs or frequently consumed over-the-counter pain medications.
Rhodiola Dosage
Defining the “right” rhodiola dosage depends on both the potency of the specific supplement and brand you’re taking as well as your purpose for taking rhodiola rosea. Most rhodiola rosea supplements in North America come in either capsule or tablet form, with the tablet form often being more potent. In Russia, people take rhodiola rosea extract in a liquid tincture composed of a liquid base with a small amount of alcohol. Some rhodiola rosea tinctures are now appearing in North America as well.
To start, you want your rhodiola supplement to contain a 3 to 1 ratio of rosavins to salidroside because this is very close to the natural ratio of these important compounds in rhodiola root. It is also the ratio most used in rhodiola rosea research. Thus the most common standardized concentration of rosavins and salidroside is 3% rosavins and around 1% salidroside. I’ve seen some over-hyped supplements promoting a higher concentration of rosavins, but no research or evidence supports higher dosage concentrations.
Dr. Richard P. Brown and Dr. Patricia Gerbarg recommend 100 mg capsules if possible. This allows you to vary or customize your dosage depending on your sensitivity to rhodiola rosea or your particular purpose for taking R. rosea. For people who find themselves experiencing nervousness or the jitters after taking lower doses, the rhodiola rosea capsule can be opened and even smaller portions can be taken or mixed into teas or juices.
The most recent comprehensive clinical trial, conducted in Armenia in 2007, suggested effective daily dosage of rhodiola rosea was in the 340 to 680 milligram range. This dosage provided significant rhodiola benefits for treating moderate depression without causing any of the minor rhodiola side effects.
However, because rhodiola rosea provides energy, most researchers and herbal remedy practitioners recommend taking it during the first half of the day to prevent it from disrupting your sleep. I recommend taking it about 30 minutes before breakfast and then again 30 minutes before lunch. When you first start taking rhodiola rosea, I suggest avoiding caffeine for about two hours before and after taking it.
Because different people react to it in different ways, I suggest starting with just a single 100 mg dose per day, then moving to two 100 mg doses each day if your body responds well to it. You can then increase your dosage as necessary to treat your particular condition. I rarely recommend a daily dose as high as 1000 mg, but let your doctor or natural health practitioner determine the right maximum rhodiola rosea dosage for you.
I am researching and composing an article on how to customize your rhodiola rosea dosage depending on your desired result, be it for treating anxiety, moderate depression, improving physical endurance or another possible rhodiola treatment.
Read more on benefits and side-effects in these respective articles: Rhodiola Benefits and Rhodiola Side Effects.
Thank you for visiting Rhodiola Rosea and I hope you find my research and guides beneficial to your overall health and well-being!