The longevity plant

Rhodiola rosea is known by the common name of “golden root”. Across the centuries and across cultures it has been used as a medicine for a variety of disorders. Now a new study has supported the effectiveness of this much-loved herb by showing that it can promote longevity and increase lifespan.

Golden root has a medicinal history dating back hundreds of years. In 77 CE the Greek physician Dioscorides documented the medical applications of the plant. The Vikings depended on the herb to enhance their physical strength and endurance, while Chinese emperors sent expeditions to Siberia to bring back the “golden root” for medicinal preparations. The people of central Asia considered a tea brewed from golden root to be an effective treatment for cold and flu.

In modern times golden root was part of the Soviet Union’s great push to compete with the West in military development, the arms race, space exploration, Olympic sports, science, medicine and industry. While it has many reported uses, golden root’s central action is an adaptogen. Adaptogens are substances that increase the body’s capacity to deal with stress and so promote energy, endurance, immunity, and general wellbeing. If golden root can do all this then it is no surprise that a new study has found it can also lengthen life.

The new study involved fruit flies and the researchers put the flies on a kilojoule restricted diet. This kilojoule-restriction is a proven way to extend lifespan, especially among fruit flies. It is assumed this may also be the case for humans but “proof” is still lacking. The theory goes that lowered consumption of kilojoules means less production of free radicals as a by-product of metabolism, in turn leading to less damage to cellular machinery and a longer life. The researchers had previously shown that golden root also acts to stop the production of free radicals, so they wanted to see how adding golden root extract to the diet of flies already on kilojoule restriction might impact lifespan.

The results showed that golden root increased lifespan by about 24 per cent. It also delayed the loss of physical performance in the flies as they aged. Additionally, the golden root worked even in the flies on kilojoule restriction and in flies who had the molecular pathways of dietary restriction genetically inactivated. So in some way beyond reducing free radical damage Rhodiola is acting to prolong life. It is a “golden root” indeed.