[건강한 가족] Red ginseng and flu, etc. Studies on the prevention effect of respiratory diseases have also shown

immunity and red ginseng

The Korean Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has issued a flu outbreak alert for the first time in three years. The estimated number of outpatients with flu from 23 to 29 last month was 9.3 per 1,000, the highest this year, according to the Agency for Disease Control and Prevention. That’s close to double the seasonal fashion standard of 4.9 people.

Influenza is an acute respiratory disease caused by the influenza virus. It is highly contagious, and if the elderly, children or people suffering from other diseases are infected, the risk of developing various diseases by lowering immunity is high, so prevention is important.

Red ginseng, recognized by the Ministry of Food and Pharmaceutical Safety as being able to help with immune function, has been shown to be effective in defending against viruses such as influenza and respiratory cell fusion through various studies. Red ginseng shows antiviral effects by reducing the production of inflammatory cytokines and increasing the number of antiviral cytokines and immune cells.

Professor Kang Sang-mu’s team of Georgia State University Medical School found that red ginseng increases cell viability, limits viral replication, and regulates the secretion of numerous immune cells and cytokines that metastasize to the lungs upon RSV infection. resulting in antiviral effects. indicated that it is

As a result of analyzing the changes of immune cells after respiratory syncytial virus infection, the research team confirmed that the group prophylactically administered red ginseng had about 45% less virus than the infected group without administration of ginseng. red. As a result of immune cell analysis of bronchoalveolar lavage fluid, CD8+ T cells, the interferon-gamma (IFN-γ)-secreting immune cells known to be related to defense against respiratory syncytial virus, increased 9.24-fold and CD4 T cells by about 9.5-fold in the red ginseng group, doubled. In particular, following the comparison of the survival rate by infecting experimental mice with the H1N1 influenza virus, the survival rate was 100% in the group administered with the combination vaccine and red ginseng, 60% in the case of vaccination alone and by 40% % in the case of normal mice.

Meanwhile, at the 13th International Ginseng Symposium held last month, Professor Lee Dong-kwon of Sungkyunkwan University School of Pharmacy presented the results of a study on the adjuvant effect of red ginseng on pneumococcal vaccine and improving of pneumonia. Professor Lee’s team ingested red ginseng (100 mg/kg) for 15 days and vaccinated mice, only to infect pneumococcal strains 7 days later, an increase of about 25% compared to the case of inoculation alone. Also, when only the vaccine was given, only 30% survived, but when both red ginseng and the vaccine were given, the survival rate reached 80%. This is a result of enhancing the efficacy of the pneumococcal vaccine by suppressing the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) by pneumococcal bacteria, preventing cell death and reducing inflammation. Furthermore, red ginseng has been shown to promote phagocytosis by macrophages and attenuate pneumococcal colonization. Professor Lee said, “Red ginseng reduces inflammation by suppressing the secretion of inflammatory cytokines caused by pneumococci,” and “eventually, we can expect an effect to prevent pneumonia caused by sepsis.”