Arctic Rose, Golden Root (Rhodiola rosea)

Related Species

Rhodiola imbricate, Rhodiola sachalinensis.

Indications

An adaptogen used to help the body adapt to physical, mental, and environmental stresses; increase energy, stamina, strength, and mental capacity; improve athletic performance and sexual function; and balance mood for depressive and anxious states.

Mechanism of Action

Rhodiola root contains phenylpropanoids and phenylethanol derivatives including salidroside (also known as rhodioloside and rhodosin), rosavin, rosin, rosarin, rhodiolin, and rosiridin. A range of antioxidant compounds have also been identified in Rhodiola rosea and related species, including flavonoids and phenolic acids such as p-tyrosol, gallic acid, caffeic acid, and chlorogenic acid; catechins; and proanthocyanidins. Salidroside is the most studied compound in Rhodiola, and along with p-tyrosol, rosin, rosavin, and rosarian, are thought to be critical for the plant’s observed adaptogenic effects.¹

Many of Rhodiola’s mood, stress, and cognition-enhancing effects are credited to effects on monoamines in the CNS. Animal investigation and molecular studies suggest Rhodiola to increase
5-hydroxytryptamine^2,3 and serotonin receptor expression and to act as µ-opioid receptor^4,5 and κ-opiate receptor⁶ agonists, promoting the release of β-endorphin and exerting an anxiolytic, antiarrhythmic, and hypotensive action.⁷ Molecular studies demonstrate R. rosea roots to have potent antidepressant activity by inhibiting monoamine oxidase (MAO) A and may also find application in the control of senile dementia by their inhibition of MAO B.⁸ Rhodiola may also reduce the stress-induced release of catecholamines,⁹ possibly through the up-regulation of opiate pathways.¹⁰

Salidroside is credited with antioxidant and vascular protective properties and an ability to increase mitochondrial mass and up-regulate mitochondrial biogenesis factors.¹¹ Cell culture studies have shown salidroside to protect human cortical neurons from oxidative stress. It also protects against intracellular calcium increases invoked by various free radicals and optimizes Ca²⁺ homeostasis.¹²

Evidence-Based Research

Research has suggested that Rhodiola is effective in asthenic conditions (decline in work performance, sleep difficulties, poor appetite, irritability, hypertension, headaches, and fatigue) developing subsequent to intense physical or intellectual strain.¹³

Much of the animal and human research has suggested Rhodiola to be helpful in situations of acute and chronic stress. Animal models of stress often use forced swimming to assess physical and biochemical parameters and the effects of pretreatment with medications. Several animal studies have compared pretreatment with Rhodiola salidroside to placebo on a forced swimming model of stress and reported that the serum improved some indices of free radical control and energy metabolism, increasing liver superoxide dismutase and glutathione peroxidase activity of antioxidant enzymes, stabilizing blood sugar, increasing liver glycogen and muscle glycogen reserves, and increasing the metabolism of fat. Human investigations have also shown Rhodiola to improve cardiovascular and respiratory efficiency in situations of extreme physical exertion.¹⁴

One literature review assessed the effects of rhodiola on enhancing exercise performance in humans. The analysis, which included 16 human studies, found that men and women who took rhodiola (approximately 200 mg) 60 minutes before exercising prolonged time-to-exhaustion and improved time trial performance. Investigators also assessed other recent trials of participants taking higher doses of rhodiola (approximately 1500 to 2400 mg per day administered for 4 to 30 days), and found that it enhanced physical performance, stamina, and recovery during sprints on bicycle and resistance training in both trained and untrained adults.^14a   Another review of 10 studies examined the effect of rhodiola on athletic performance. Study investigators concluded that most of the studies found that participants supplementing with rhodiola had reduced pain and muscle damage after exercise training, reduced skeletal muscle damage, enhanced antioxidant capacity, reduced rating of perceived exertion scores, and improved athletic explosive power.^14b  In a randomized controlled trial, physically active college aged females were given 1,500 mg per day of rhodiola. After 3 days of supplementation, rhodiola was shown to enhance anaerobic exercise performance (as measured through repeated Wingate Anaerobic Tests). Study investigators concluded that rhodiola may possess ergogenic benefits and can boost anaerobic performance in repeated anaerobic bouts of exercise.^14c

Rhodiola has shown positive effects on concentration, cognition, and mood. Rhodiola rosea may improve attention, cognitive function, and mental performance in fatigue and in chronic fatigue syndrome.¹⁵ Single acute doses of R. rosea extract exerted significant antidepressant and anxiolytic effects in mice at doses of 10, 15 and 20 mg/kg.¹⁶ Animal models of nicotine addiction show Rhodiola to increase and lessen the anxiety symptoms of nicotine withdrawal compared with control.¹⁷ In one uncontrolled, open-label multicenter human clinical trial, study investigators examined the use of 200 mg of rhodiola twice daily in those with prolonged or chronic fatigue symptoms. After 8 weeks, study participants showed significant clinical improvements in fatigue symptoms.^17a One randomized double-blind placebo-controlled clinical trial examined the effect of rhodiola on major depressive disorder. In the study, participants were given sertraline along with rhodiola capsules (0.3 or 0.6 g each day). Those taking either of the dosages showed significant antidepressant potency after 12 weeks (measured by Hamilton Depression Rating, Beck Depression Inventory, and Clinical Global Impression Change scores). Study authors found that the higher dosage (0.6 g per day) showed a greater clinical effect.^17b

A multicenter study investigated the effects of 200 mg of Rhodiola twice a day compared with placebo on stress symptoms and reported that improvements could be seen as early as 3 days, with continued improvements over each week of the study.¹⁸ One randomized controlled trial on nursing students doing shift work showed 364 mg/day of Rhodiola to reduce fatigue compared with placebo.¹⁹ A similar study showed Rhodiola to improve fatigue during night duty in young, healthy physicians compared with placebo.²⁰ A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group clinical study investigated the effect of a single dose of standardized R. rosea extract on capacity for mental work against a background of fatigue and stress, in a population of young healthy cadets aged 19–21 years. There was a significant antifatigue effect demonstrated by Rhodiola compared with placebo.²¹ Similarly, in one review examining human studies, investigators found that rhodiola improved symptoms of cognitive dysfunction, mental performance, fatigue, burnout, and life-stress. The authors concluded that current research has clearly established that rhodiola demonstrates adaptogenic effects, which is able to enhance the body’s non-specific resilience to physical and mental stresses and normalize its functions.^21a

A phase III randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study with parallel groups investigated the effects of Rhodiola in the treatment of stress-related fatigue. Participants received either 576 mg of Rhodiola extract per day or placebo and were evaluated with both symptoms questionnaires and with a.m. salivary cortisol testing on days 1 and 28 of the study. Rhodiola was shown to exert an antifatigue effect, with increased mental performance and ability to concentrate and decreased waking cortisol compared with placebo in patients with fatigue syndrome.²² Researchers have proposed that Rhodiola could be an alternative medication to improve energy for thyroid cancer patients unable to use thyroid hormone medications.²³

Safety in Pregnancy and Breastfeeding

There are no published studies or investigations focusing on the use of Rhodiola in pregnancy or lactation at this time.

General Safety

Toxicity studies dosing rats with 100, 250 or 500 mg/kg of Rhodiola imbricata have not revealed toxicity. There were no significant changes in the organ/body weight ratio or in the histological, hematological, and biochemical variables studied, except for an increase in plasma glucose and protein levels at both the higher doses, which were restored to normal after a 2-week withdrawal of treatment.²⁴ Toxicity investigations of R. imbricata has shown similar tolerability and safety profile.²⁵ Meta-analyses of clinical trials have not identified significant side effects, and Rhodiola is generally well tolerated.²⁶ Adverse events were mostly of mild intensity, and no serious adverse events were reported.

Salidroside has shown no genotoxicity under the conditions of the reverse mutation assay, chromosomal aberrations assay, and mouse micronucleus assay conditions.²⁷

There is an anecdotal case of Rhodiola interacting with an antidepressant medication.²⁸ Rhodiola was found not to interfere with either warfarin or theophylline.²⁹

Dosage

Rhodiola is often dosed at 200–800 mg daily of an encapsulated root powder (standardized to 1%–2% rosavin). This herb is generally considered safe, even at doses up to 2 g/day; however, smaller doses are typical when Rhodiola is combined with other herbs in a formula or in a more concentrated extract.

Traditional Uses

Rhodiola rosea, the Arctic rose, grows at high altitudes of the Northern Hemisphere. It has been used as a remedy for altitude sickness; to treat fatigue, both mental and physical; and to improve energy and stamina. The roots are used as mild nerve stimulants in cases of depression and lethargy. Rhodiola has also been used traditionally in traditional Chinese medicine, and it continues to be used for ischemic heart disease and angina pectoris in China. In the modern era, Arctic rose has become established as an adaptogenic herb–an agent capable of increasing resistance to a variety of chemical, biological, and physical stressors.