Ho is a middle-aged diabetic male of Asian descent. He moved to the United States about three years ago and continues to practice his traditional Asian cultural traditions

Question

During his clinic visit the nurse reviewed his current medications, and was not too surprised when he told her that he also uses ginseng to help control blood sugar. It is important for the nurse to: 1. Advise Ho to only take the amount prescribed by his traditional healer.
2. Review possible interactions with his current medications.
3. Inform him that ginseng has been shown to be effective in clinical trials.
4. Ginseng can't hurt you because it is a natural plant-based remedy.

Answer 1

2
Rationale: Ginseng, like other traditional remedies has not been studied extensively in controlled clinical trials and so the effects and appropriate dosing are not clearly understood even by traditional healers. Ginseng is known to interact with several prescription medications. Reports show that ginseng has not been effective in controlling blood sugar more effectively than placebo. Plant-based remedies can have both positive and negative effects on the client and are not well understood.