Panax Ginseng with brewers' yeast (Gerivet) as a stimulant for geriatric dogs
Eighty dogs were given either Panax Ginseng with brewers' yeast (n = 41) or brewers' yeast alone as a non-placebo control (n = 39) for 8 weeks, with blinded owners scoring a questionnaire and three visual analogue scales weekly and at 12 and 16 weeks of follow-up. Ginseng plus yeast improved all variables within its group; four of seven primary mental measures were significantly better than the control group and six of seven better than an external group. Physical measures improved in both treated groups relative to the external group, attributed to the yeast, and no side effects or blood or urine changes were seen.
Record
| Design | randomized controlled trial |
|---|---|
| Status | completed |
| Setting | client owned |
| Intervention | Ginseng (Panax Ginseng) together with brewers' yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisae) |
| Intervention class | diet or supplement |
| Comparator | Brewers' yeast only (control group, but not a true placebo); an external group was also used for comparison |
| Duration | 8 weeks of treatment, with follow-up at 12 and 16 weeks |
| Dogs | 80 |
| Population note | Ginseng plus yeast n = 41; yeast-only control n = 39 |
| Primary outcome | Owner questionnaire and three visual analogue scales: seven primary (mental) outcome measures and secondary (physical) outcome measures, as change from baseline |
| Result (as reported) | Panax Ginseng plus yeast significantly improved all evaluated variables within the group. Four of the seven primary (mentally) outcome measures were significant when comparing the changes in the Ginseng group with the control group, and six of the seven were significant when compared to an external group. As the secondary (physical) outcome measures were significantly better in both the Ginseng and the control group compared to the external group, it indicates that brewers' yeast is the ingredient that has impact on physical performance. No significant changes in blood- or urine analyses and no side effects were seen. |
| Tags | cognition, nutraceutical, ginseng, geriatric, client-owned |
Notes: Kind is recorded as randomized_controlled_trial from the title (controlled-randomized blinded study) and PubMed publication type; the abstract describes blinded owners and a control group that was not a true placebo. The title describes the dogs as geriatric and names the product Gerivet; the abstract gives no ages or dose.
Sources and verbatim quotes
Panax Ginseng in combination with brewers' yeast (Gerivet) as a stimulant for geriatric dogs: a controlled-randomized blinded study. (2007) PMID 17610402 (results)
The study was performed on two groups of dogs, one (n = 41) given Ginseng (Panax Ginseng) together with brewers' yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisae) and the other (n = 39) given only brewers' yeast (control group, but not a true placebo), for 8 weeks.
Using a questionnaire and three visual analogue scales, the blinded owners evaluated the dogs before the trial, weekly for the 8 weeks of the trial and twice, at 12th and 16th weeks, after the trial (follow-up).
The changes from baseline to the end of the treatment period in the variable scores were calculated for each dog and used in statistics.
Panax Ginseng plus yeast significantly improved all evaluated variables within the group. Four of the seven primary (mentally) outcome measures were significant when comparing the changes in the Ginseng group with the control group, and six of the seven were significant when compared to an external group.
As the secondary (physical) outcome measures were significantly better in both the Ginseng and the control group compared to the external group, it indicates that brewers' yeast is the ingredient that has impact on physical performance. No significant changes in blood- or urine analyses and no side effects were seen.
Reproduce: canine_trial_search(trial_id="ginseng-brewers-yeast-gerivet-geriatric-dogs-2007") in dog-geroscience-mcp; dataset canine-trial-registry.