'Ginkgo biloba'

Some time ago, a number of pharmaceutical companies promoted ginkgo biloba as being capable of enhancing memory capacity and concentration, especially for elderly people. One brochure said it could boost thinking capacity and alertness to symptoms of vertigo, tinitus, headache, forgetfulness, unstable emotions etc., which is particularly common among elderly patients.

However, on the contrary, the Foundation for the Empowerment of Indonesian Consumers of Health (YPKKI), represented by Dr. Marius Widjajakarta in his article published in Kompas on Dec. 12, 2000, said ginkgo biloba could cause headaches, digestive system disorders, skin allergies, blood clotting disorders, nose bleeding and bleeding under the skin. Dr. Marius quoted this statement from the WHO Pharmaceutical Newsletter No. 1, 2000, and the WHO Signal of August 2000 edition.

Contrary to the above, Dr. Ir. Ali Khomsan, a lecturer of Public Nutrition and Family Resources at the Bogor Institute of Agriculture's Faculty of Agriculture, wrote an article in Kompas of Feb. 11, 2001 edition, page 22, saying that the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology (1992) published the results of a 1991 study in Germany involving 99 elderly patients suffering from brain disorders for more than two years.

After consumption of ginkgo biloba for three months, 72 percent of the patients experienced some improvement. The effective daily dose in that study was 120 mg. According to Dr. Khomsan ginkgo biloba seemed to be effective for elderly patients already undergoing atrophy of the brain. In that study it was also reported that research in Italy indicated that the extract of ginkgo biloba can improve blood circulation in the brain by up 70 percent for elderly patients, but for younger patients (30 years and 50 years of age) the improvement was recorded at 20 percent.

The above assertions are contradictory to each other. My question to the Directorate General of Drug and Food Control is: which is right? Can consumption of ginkgo biloba endanger the health of elderly people? If the substance is safe for consumption, then what is the recommended daily intake?

I would appreciate clarification on this matter.

JOHN ISKANDAR

Surabaya