Rhodiola rosea L. · herb
Evidence tier: weak
Combats mental and physical fatigue and improves stress resilience
Not established. Salidroside and the rosavins are proposed to modulate the HPA axis stress response and to affect monoamine signalling, and salidroside is proposed to support mitochondrial ATP production. This is preclinical pharmacology. The EMA did not require a mechanism to register the herb, because traditional use registration does not need one, and no human study has demonstrated that these pathways are what produce any clinical effect.
Weak. Start with the authority: NCCIH states that 'there isn't enough reliable evidence to determine whether rhodiola or its components are useful for any health related purpose', and that most rhodiola research has quality limitations that prevent conclusions about fatigue, stress or depression. The one systematic review that tried to settle it (Ishaque et al., 2012, BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine, PMID 22643043) found eleven trials and reported that all of them showed either a high risk of bias or reporting flaws that made their true validity unassessable. Two of six trials in physical fatigue and three of five in mental fatigue were positive, and two of the positive mental performance trials did not use validated fatigue measures. No two trials reported the same outcome, so the data could not even be pooled. Europe's regulator registers Rhodiola rosea as a TRADITIONAL herbal medicinal product for the temporary relief of symptoms of stress such as fatigue and sensation of weakness, a status that rests exclusively upon long standing use, not on trial evidence, and it caps use at two weeks without medical advice. The trials that founded the reputation, Spasov 2000 in Russian medical students and Olsson 2009 in burnout patients, are small, single centre, and in several cases run by or with the extract manufacturer. The adaptogen framing does a great deal of work that the data does not.
EMA traditional use: dry extract, single dose 144 to 200 mg, daily dose 144 to 400 mg, adults over 18 only, and if symptoms persist beyond 2 weeks a healthcare professional should be consulted. Supplement practice runs higher, 200 to 600 mg of extract standardised to about 3 percent rosavins and 1 percent salidroside.
Take in the morning, activating effect may disrupt sleep if taken late. Effects build over 2 to 4 weeks. Cycle with 4 week breaks between courses.
Onset: ~14 days
Well tolerated in trials up to 12 weeks. Mild side effects: dry mouth, dizziness, vivid dreams. Activating effect may worsen bipolar disorder, avoid in bipolar mania/hypomania. Theoretical interaction with MAOIs via monoamine pathway modulation. Not recommended in pregnancy, insufficient data.
Pregnancy: unknown
Breastfeeding: unknown
Used for centuries in Scandinavian and Russian folk medicine as a tonic for physical endurance in harsh cold climates. Referenced by Viking explorers. Used by Soviet athletes and cosmonauts in the 20th century. One of the most researched adaptogens globally.
Active compounds: salidroside, rosavins (rosavin, rosarin, rosin), tyrosol
Remedies using Rhodiola · Browse by body system · Check it against what you take
*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.