No Heart, Stroke Benefit Found for Ginkgo

The herbal supplement Ginkgo biloba does not prevent heart attacks or stroke, a new study finds. But it might reduce the risk of peripheral artery disease, study results suggest. This condition causes clogged leg arteries. The study included 3,069 people, age 75 or older. They were randomly assigned to two groups. One group received ginkgo twice a day. The other received placebo (fake) pills. Researchers kept track of both groups for six years. In that time, there was no difference between groups in the rates of death, stroke or heart attack. But there was a difference in peripheral artery disease rates. People taking ginkgo were only half as likely to develop this disease as people taking placebos. The study was released online by the journal Circulation. HealthDay News wrote about it November 24.