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Mike Mitka

JAMA. 2004;292:674.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

Ginseng, a popular herbal supplement that proponents tout as a tonic for improved energy and vitality, reduces the effects of the anticlotting medication warfarin, according to a study by University of Chicago researchers.

The discovery was surprising, said the researchers, because ginseng taken alone also can promote bleeding and delay clot formation. These new findings mean that when physicians prescribe warfarin, they need to ask the patient about their ginseng use, said study author Chun-Su Yuan, MD, PhD, a professor of anesthesia and critical care at the University of Chicago.

The study appears in the July 6 Annals of Internal Medicine (Ann Intern Med. 2004;141:23-27).

"Warfarin has a narrow therapeutic index, which means precise dosing is crucial," said Yuan, who is also the director of the university's Tang Center for Herbal Medicine Research. "With too small a dose, the risk of clots increases, but too much can . . . [Full Text of this Article]