Ginseng can help boost energy

Q. My doctor has suggested a Wisconsin ginseng supplement for energy.

I am a cancer patient and would like to know if you are aware of any negative effects.

Any information you have would be very appreciated.

A. A small study (30 patients) conducted at MD Anderson Cancer Center found that a high-dose ginseng supplement was effective in reducing cancer-related fatigue (Integrative Cancer Therapies online, April 14, 2015).

A previous double-blind trial had found that Wisconsin ginseng also can ease fatigue due to cancer (Journal of the National Cancer Institute, Aug. 21, 2013).

Ginseng appears to have protective effects in most cancer studies, and its safety record is impressive.

In rare cases, people become sensitive to this plant product and break out in a rash. If that happens to you, stop taking the supplement immediately.

The other caution we offer is that ginseng may be incompatible with warfarin (Expert Opinion on Drug Metabolism and Toxicology, March 2014).

Q. I was diagnosed with menopause-onset rosacea. For more than a year, the area around my nose, mouth and chin looked like I had been in a fire. It was raw and inflamed, with welts, peeling and crusting.

Nothing seemed to help.

Finally I tried an elimination diet and discovered that canola oil and, oddly enough, Greek yogurt were the culprits.

I avoid these items now, and for the most part the rosacea is under control.

Please suggest your readers try an elimination diet, starting with overly processed oils.

A. Thanks for the suggestion. We have heard from others that diet can sometimes make a difference.

One reader reported: “I suffered from rosacea for five years. The Metrogel I used didn’t do much. In 2007, I was diagnosed with celiac disease and switched to a gluten-free diet. My rosacea cleared up within six months and stayed away. I haven’t needed the Metrogel since. Not everyone with rosacea will benefit from a gluten-free diet, but it is worth mentioning, as gluten causes an inflammatory response in susceptible individuals.”

We also heard from a holistic physician who cited decades-old studies showing that many rosacea patients have inadequate stomach acid.

He has had success advising patients to take pepsin and betaine hydrochloride with meals.

Q. I told my doctor that almonds lowered my blood sugar and cholesterol.

He saw the excellent lab results but doubted it could be due to almonds.

Do you have any actual science I could show him?

A. A study of 20 people with Type 2 diabetes compared a standard cholesterol-lowering diet to the same diet with 2 ounces of almonds added to each daily portion (Metabolism, April 2011).

After a month, the people eating almonds had lower cholesterol and LDL cholesterol, as well as lower levels of fasting insulin and blood sugar.

2015 King Features Syndicate Inc.