Can Help Fight Inflammation

Inflammation is a normal response of the body to damage or invasion by a foreign substance. During the inflammatory response, several immune system components are recruited to attack the foreign invader or repair the wounded region. Even when there is no illness or damage, certain chronic conditions cause an inflammatory response. Excessive inflammation can cause lasting harm to the body's tissues and DNA over time. Years of animal and laboratory studies have shown that ginkgo extract can lower inflammatory markers in both human and animal cells in a number of disease situations.

Some specific conditions in which ginkgo extract has been shown to reduce inflammation include:

• Arthritis
• Irritable bowel disease (IBD)
• Cancer
• Heart disease
• Stroke

While this data is encouraging, human studies are needed before drawing concrete conclusions about ginkgo’s role in treating these complex diseases.