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Maca: Peru's Natural Viagra
Chris Kilham
The South American country
of Peru is home to numerous beneficial plants, including maca,
a legendary sex-enhancing root passed down from the Inca. I'd
heard about maca for years. It has been dubbed "Peruvian
ginseng," even though it bears no relation to ginseng. But
like ginseng, the plant is employed to increase strength,
energy, stamina, libido and sexual function, a winning
combination of health benefits if there ever was one.
To investigate maca's
health benefits and understand the role that maca plays in
Peruvian culture, my wife and I headed down to Peru to explore
the maca trail. In the process we met with maca traders,
growers and scientists, and came back tremendously impressed
by this plant, which is now available as a supplement in U.S.
health food stores.
What is Maca?
Maca, Lepidium meyenii, is an annual plant which produces a
radish-like root. The root of maca is typically dried and
stored, and will easily keep for seven years. The plant is
cultivated in the Junin plateau of Peru's Central Highlands,
and was highly revered by the Inca.
During the height of the
Incan empire, legend has it that Incan warriors would consume
maca before entering into battle. This would make them
fiercely strong. But after conquering a city the Incan
soldiers were prohibited from using maca, to protect the
conquered women from their powerful sexual impulses. Thus as
far back as 500 years ago, maca's reputation for enhancing
strength, libido and fertility was already well established in
Peru.
Today, maca's popularity is
very much on the increase, as people discover that the plant
really does boost libido, sexual function and overall energy.
Acreage in Peru dedicated to Maca cultivation is increasing
every year to meet demand, and a number of scientists have
turned their attention to the properties of the root. In Peru,
maca is used by men and by women who want to put more fire
into their sex lives. And in the U.S., Europe and Japan,
dietary supplements containing maca are gaining ardent
devotees.
Maca
Nutrition
What natural ingredients in maca promote its
reputed sex-enhancing effects? In-depth analysis of maca
conducted in 1998 by Dr. Qun Yi Zheng and his colleagues at
PureWorld Botanicals shows that maca contains about 10 percent
protein, almost 60 percent carbohydrate, and an assortment of
fatty acids. These ingredients are common and nothing special.
But the investigators also discovered two groups of novel
compounds, the macamides and the macaenes. These agents are
believed to be directly responsible for maca's sex-boosting
powers.
To test this idea,
researchers conducted a series of controlled animal
experiments, the results of which were published in the April
2000 issue of the medical journal Urology. Rodents fed
MacaPure extract, which contains a concentration of macamides
and macaenes, demonstrated greatly increased energy and
stamina. The animals also exhibited a striking increase in
sexual activity as compared with non-maca-fed animals, or
those fed lesser amounts of macamides and macaenes. So how
does this translate to humans? Individuals who consume maca
also get sexual results. Men and women with low libido feel a
boost in sexual desire, and men with erectile problems notice
marked improvement in sexual function.
Maca Use in
Peru
In Peru, maca is a food. At the Third Annual
Maca Festival in Churin, Peru, we sampled numerous products
made with the sex-enhancing root. Peruvians make cookies,
cakes, hot porridge, chips and blender drinks with maca root,
which has a pleasant flavor similar to graham flour.
At several booths, women
were making maca blender drinks. Maca roots soaked in jars of
water, and the tables were laden with all the ingredients for
a drink. The typical shake includes a couple of soaked maca
roots and a little bit of the soak water, a handful of fresh
papaya (trucked up from the warm lowlands), some condensed
milk, an egg, honey and vanilla, all put together with vigor
and smiles. I asked a number of people why they used maca, but
one woman stands out in my mind. She smiled at my question and
replied, "Well, for the sex, of course."
Doctors
Comment on Maca
Users aren't the only ones making comments
about maca. The root and its extracts are used in medical
practice in Peru. In the November 1988 Townsend Letter for
Doctors, physicians were quoted regarding the therapeutic
and salutary uses of maca. Doctor Hugo Malaspina, M.D., a
cardiologist practicing complementary medicine in Lima, Peru,
has been using maca in his practice for 10 years.
Malaspina first found out
about maca through a group of sexually active older men who
were taking the herb with good results. "One of this group
started taking maca and found he was able to perform
satisfactorily in a sexual relationship with a lady friend.
Soon everyone in the group began drinking the powdered maca as
a beverage and enjoying the boost that the root was giving
their hormonal functions. I have several of these men as
patients, and their improvement prompted me to find out more
about maca and begin recommending it to my other patients."
Another Peruvian physician,
Doctor Aguila Calderon, M.D., is the former dean of the
Faculty of Human Medicine at the National University of
Federico Villarreal in Lima. Doctor Calderon uses maca for
male impotence, erectile dysfunction, menopausal symptoms and
general fatigue, and claims good results.
Arizona physician Gary
Gordon, M.D., former president of the American College for
Advancement in Medicine, is also a maca supporter. "We all
hear rumors about various products like maca. But using this
Peruvian root myself, I personally experienced a significant
improvement in erectile tissue response. I call it nature's
answer to Viagra.
What I see in maca is a
means of normalizing our steroid hormones like testosterone,
progesterone and estrogen. Therefore it has the facility to
forestall the hormonal changes of aging. It acts on men to
restore them to a healthy functional status in which they
experience a more active libido."
How Much
Maca Should You Take?
Keep in mind that maca is a food, and is not
used in tiny quantities. Most supplement companies that are
selling maca are putting about 500 milligrams of ground, dried
maca in each capsule. Some recommend three capsules daily,
some six.
I believe that many people
think of herbs like drugs, and assume that small amounts will
do some good. In most cases, that's not true. As a rule,
consumers take too little of most herbs to derive the benefits
those herbs can impart. Rare is the herb that works in small
doses. And many herbal product labels offer dosage
recommendations based not on efficacy, but on price.
To be consistent with
Peruvian use you'd take a minimum of six to ten 500-milligram
capsules of powdered maca daily, equal to 3,000 to 5,000
milligrams of maca. You can certainly take more. You can also
obtain powdered maca root under some brands. With those
products, you can toss a tablespoon full into a blender drink
every day and enjoy maca the way the Peruvians do.
MacaPure, which is a
standardized, concentrated extract of maca, is a different
story. Companies selling MacaPure are recommending one
450-milligram capsule of MacaPure extract twice daily, equal
to 900 milligrams of MacaPure extract. I personally think that
four to five capsules (between 1,800 and 2,250 milligrams)
daily is the right range.
The more maca or maca
extract you consume, the more benefit you are likely to get.
In toxicity studies conducted in the U.S., maca showed
absolutely no toxicity and no adverse pharmacologic effects.
In animal studies, the more maca animals consume, the stronger
and more sexually active they become. You can be generous with
the amounts of maca products you take. With maca, you have a
safe, effective, nontoxic way to significantly boost your
sexual function, without the hazards of prescription drugs.
[Editor's note: While
natural herbs can have many positive effects on your health,
including restoring or improving your sex drive, you should
discuss the use of specific herbs with your doctor. Most herbs
are safe on their own but your doctor can help you know if
they can have potential adverse interactions with other
medications you may be taking or other health conditions you
have.]
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