Ginkgo biloba special extract EGb 761® lowers the progression of memory problems. This is shown by new analyses of a long-term study with 3,777 persons in southern France. Over 20 years, the deterioration in mental performance of study participants who took EGb 761® was significantly lower than of those who took no active agents to protect against memory loss. The study author, Professor Hélène Amieva from Bordeaux, explains that EGb 761® acts simultaneously on several processes in the brain.
In the 20-year assessment of the so-called "Personnes Agées Quid (PAQUID)" Study1, a publicly-funded long-term study on brain ageing in 3,777 healthy people ? 65 years old in southern France, the mental performance of Ginkgo biloba special extract EGb 761® users deteriorated significantly more slowly2. Study participants who took EGb 761® because of memory problems deteriorated to a significantly lower extent in the "Mini-Mental-State-Test" (MMSE), a test for mental performance, than participants who took no preparations to protect against memory loss. The performance of participants who had taken a different preparation because of memory disorders even deteriorated to a significantly higher degree, as is shown in the study published in the recent issue of the international journal PlosOne. The study author, Professor Hélène Amieva, concludes from this that the more favourable course on taking EGb 761® is not a nonspecific consequence of higher motivation to maintain cognitive performance by taking some sort of preparation but is a specific effect of EGb 761®. EGb 761® can slow down the progression of memory disorders. Several effects of the plant extract contribute to this: it stabilises the energy production in the nerve cells, promotes the formation of new nerve cells, improves the blood supply and reduces the harmfulness of the beta-amyloid protein responsible for Alzheimer´s disease.
The 20-year analysis of the PAQUID study thus confirms the previous suggestions of the GuidAge study, which was published last year: if possible, Ginkgo extract EGb 761® should be taken early on and act for a long enough period in order to protect against further memory loss. In the GuidAge study, the risk of Alzheimer´s was only reduced in those participants who took 240 mg of the active agent per day for at least four years. No effect was found over a shorter treatment period. The GuidAge study investigated the protective effect of EGb761® against Alzheimer´s compared to a preparation without any active substance (placebo) in 2,820 elderly people with memory disorders.
About the PAQUID study
In 1988, more than 3,770 healthy people over 65 years old in southwest France were recruited for the PAQUID study. The primary objective of the study was to investigate the ageing process of the brain. The main focus is directed towards the development of dementia, such as Alzheimer´s disease. For this purpose, 36 protective and risk factors were investigated. The participants were randomly selected from the inhabitants of 75 communities and interviewed every 2 to 3 years by trained psychologists. If dementia was suspected, the diagnosis was made by a specialist according to internationally recognised scientific criteria. During the observation period of over 20 years, more than 800 people developed dementia.
PAQUID is the only study on brain ageing and dementia development that has extended over such a long observation period. As dementia usually arises through gradual deterioration in the brain over decades, the findings of the PAQUID study are particularly relevant.
1PAQUID (Personnes Agées Quid = "What about the elderly?")
2Source: Amieva H, Meillon C, Helmer C, Barberger-Gateau P, Dartigues JF (2013) Ginkgo Biloba Extract and Long-Term Cognitive Decline: A 20-Year Follow-Up Population-Based Study. PLoS ONE 8(1): e52755. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0052755
About EGb 761®
EGb 761® (Ginkgo biloba special extract) is approved in Germany for the treatment of mild to moderate mental losses due to organic brain syndrome within the framework of a general therapeutic concept for the impairment of mental performance (dementia syndrome) with the major symptoms: loss of memory, retentiveness, concentration and emotional balance, dizziness, tinnitus. Prior to starting treatment with Ginkgo extract, clarification should be obtained as to whether the pathological symptoms encountered are not due to an underlying disease requiring specific treatment.
The Gingko biloba special extract EGb 761® is the active ingredient, standardised by means of an additional patented extraction stage during manufacture to 22.0 "´ 27.0 % Ginkgo flavone glycosides and 5.0 "´ 7.0 % terpene lactones. For more than 20 years, the action, efficacy, safety and tolerability of EGb 761® has been systematically investigated, so that today EGb 761® is the best researched and documented plant extract worldwide.
About Dr. Willmar Schwabe
Dr. Willmar Schwabe GmbH & Co. KG is a global leader in the development and manufacture of phytopharmaceuticals (plant-based medicinal preparations). The company group employs approximately 3,700 staff on all 5 continents; the head office is in Karlsruhe, Germany.
