ABSTRACT
This chapter describes the achievements which are cornerstones for bringing the whole aspect of the validity of traditional medicines into perspective, taking as an example the most important of crude drugs in Oriental medicine — the traditional medicine best known to the modern world. Ginseng is one the two exceptions utilized singularly to treat illness in Oriental medicine. Fresh ginseng roots are air-dried to obtain white ginseng, steamed for a few hours and dried yielding red ginseng. In the Occident, people's interest in ginseng has been increasing, and it is now imported, from the Orient and also employed as a drag primarily in countries where ginseng is authorized. Behavioral pharmacological experiments using rats and mice indicated that ginseng saponins elicited a stimulating effect at lower doses and a sedative effect at higher doses. The effects of ginseng and its saponins on ethanol-induced intoxication have been frequently investigated.
