Quote:The difference in breast cancer rates is indeed striking. In the United States, it is more than 10 times (141.1) that of the Chang Mai Province in Thailand (13.7), where PM is widely consumed. It's been used for more than 700 years and still very few outside of Asia have ever heard of it.

Quote:Passwater: Does PM have any effect on breast Size or tone?

Gordon: I assume you're talking about the craze that swept the Internet, promising larger breasts in just two days. This was taken From the true story about PM enlarging breasts by a full cup size in Japan. More than a decade ago, Japanese cosmetic companies flocked to Thailand to purchase "PM" to mix in creams and to be taken orally. After some time, they sought lower
and lower prices. The end result was that the wildcrafters simply mixed in less expensive species. Some Thai wildcrafters are eighth generation. They know the market value of real PM. The original breast enhancement study was done in Tokyo by Japanese Prof. Kuramoshi and Thai Assoc. Prof. Yuthana Smitasiri. They showed that 72% of women taking PM exhibited significant increases in breast size. Younger women had a markedly higher rate of success than older women, who lowered the overall success rate. Some years ago, a company in California launched ISIS, a system using real PM. They guaranteed success or your money back and had 96% satisfied customers, not asking for their money back.

Quote:Clearly, PM was meant here for men as welt as women. The dosage for men is half that of women, so 1 mg/kg body weight. This dosage was first calculated from the dosing of "peppers" as used in Thai traditional medicine. Smith Naturals worked with Dr. Schauss for six months, collecting samples and analyzing the miroestrol levels, to convert the traditional pepper dose into milligram dosing.

Quote:Passwater: Does PM affect male breasts?

Gordon: I had to think about this, as the male breast lots the same estrogen receptors as women. Since men don't have the same amount of mammary tissue, the answer has to be no, or at least not in the same way as PM has been shown to increase breast size and breast firmness in women.

Passwater: Does PM have a positive longevity effect or does it just make people look younger ?

Gordon: The old men and women who've taken it regularly, in the north of Thailand, have natural black hair well into their 80s. Old women enjoy chasing after their young grandchildren and men still hike in to the mountains, running up hills much like a jackrabbit. These women still have firm breasts and young skin. Men pursue active sex lives. They have great memories and don't remember ever being sick. We interviewed Sam, a man in his 80s, who sleeps through the night and didn't understand why we would ask if he woke to urinate. He said, "no one here wakes up to do that."

Quote:Pueraria mirifica Airy Shaw et Suvatabandhu is a medicinal plant endemic to Thailand. It has been used in Thai folklore medicine for its rejuvenating qualities in aged women and men for nearly one hundred years. Indeed, it has been claimed that P. mirifica contains active phytoestrogens (plant substances with estrogen-like activity). Using high performance liquid chromatography, at least 17 phytoestrogens, mainly isoflavones, have been isolated. Thus, fairly considerable scientific researches, both in vitro in cell lines and in vivo in various species of animals including humans, have been conducted to date to address its estrogenic activity on the reproductive organs, bones, cardiovascular diseases and other climacteric related symptoms. The antioxidative capacity and antiproliferative effect on tumor cell lines have also been assessed. In general, P. mirifica could be applicable for preventing, or as a therapeutic for, the symptoms related to estrogen deficiency in menopausal women as well as in andropausal men. However, the optimal doses for each desirable effect and the balance to avoid undesired side effects need to be calculated before use.

Quote:Based on the toxicity tests in various species of animals, it is likely that P. mirifica does not exhibit significant toxicity effects. Acute toxicity studies in mice fed with P. mirifica powdered tubers revealed an orally administered LD 50 value of greater than 2–16 g/kg BW [39,40]. These doses are far higher (> 400-fold) than the equivalent of those consumed by Thai people (250 mg/(50 kg BW$d) or 5 mg/(kg BW$d)), and is likely to be higher than that accounted for by the differences in metabolism between mice and humans.

Quote:The effect of Pueraria plant extracts on the prevention of bone loss was first reported in P. lobata
[84,85]. Subsequent research revealed that P. mirifica crude powder could prevent bone loss, both in terms of the BMD
and BMC, in trabecular and cortical bones of the 4th lumbar vertebra, tibia and femur in ovariectomized female and
orchidectomized male rats (Fig. 5) in a dose-dependent manner [58,67].
. . .
taking the above into consideration, P. mirifica tubers seem to have some potential for the treatment of osteoporosis in menopausal women and andropausal men.

Quote:P. mirifica might be applicable for the treatment of dyslipidemia, atherosclerosis or cardiovascular disease, which are very common in the aging population. Indeed, there is some evidence to support that P. mirifica consumption contributes to lower risks of cardiovascular disease.

Quote:The loss of sex steroid hormones accompanying the menopause and andropause has emerged as a significant
risk factor for neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer and Parkinson diseases. Numerous studies have revealed the
beneficial effects of estrogen on improving memory function.
. . .
P. mirifica may have potential for use in neurodegeneration protection.

Quote:pretreatment of a high dose (1 000 mg/(kg$d)) of P. mirifica to female rats for four weeks before the induction of a breast tumor by a single injection of the 7,12-DMBA carcinogen actually resulted in decreased levels of tumor development and multiplicity.
. . .
It is generally believed that antioxidants can aid in cancer prevention or have an anticancer property.
. . .
compared to other medicinal plants found in Thailand, such as Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni, Curcuma longa Linn., Andrographis paniculata (Burm.f.) Nees. and Cassia alata Linn., the P. mirifica extract showed the lowest antioxidant activity.
. . .
Based on the ranking of antioxidant activity of these 28 P. mirifica cultivars, the tuberous root extract that showed the lowest estrogenic activity, as determined by the vaginal cytology assay, i.e. Petchaburi and Nong Bua Lam Phu cultivars, in contrast, showed the highest antioxidant activity, and vice versa