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Gideon Koren, MD, ABMT, FRCPC; Samuel Randor, MD, ND; Sheelagh Martin, RN; Denis Danneman, MB, BCh, FRCPC
The Motherisk Program Hospital for Sick Children Toronto, Ontario

JAMA. 1990;264(22):2866.

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

To the Editor.—

The term ginseng refers to any of 22 different plants, usually of the genus Panax, used as a tonic and restorative. It is estimated that 5 million people in North America consume ginseng regularly¹ because of its purported antifatigue, immunologic, and hormonal qualities. No reproductive studies are available to address its safety during pregnancy. We report apparent androgenic effects in a male infant whose mother consumed large amounts of pure ginseng throughout pregnancy and early lactation.

Report of a Case.—

A 30-year-old white nurse, gravida 3, para 2 (one miscarriage), contacted the Motherisk Program in Toronto, Ontario, to inquire whether her self-medication with pure Siberian ginseng (650-mg tablets twice daily, Jamieson Natural Sources, Toronto) was safe while breast-feeding her 2-week-old neonate. She had been taking the ginseng, purchased from a health store, for irritability and mood swings for 1 1/2 years, including the 9 months of . . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]

Footnotes
Edited by Drummond Rennie, MD, Deputy Editor (West), and Don Riesenberg, MD, Senior Editor.

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