Kan, Juntao, Cheng, Junrui, Hu, Chun et al. · Frontiers in nutrition · 2021 · DOI
Researchers tested whether a supplement containing two plant extracts (cistanche and ginkgo) could help adults with ME/CFS. Over 60 days, people taking the supplement reported improvements in fatigue, memory, sleep quality, and ability to exercise compared to those taking a placebo. The treatment also lowered certain chemicals in the blood (ammonia and lactic acid) that may be linked to fatigue.
ME/CFS lacks proven pharmacological treatments, making exploration of botanical interventions potentially valuable. The finding of reduced blood ammonia and lactic acid coupled with symptom improvement suggests a possible mechanistic link to metabolic dysfunction, which could inform future research into disease pathophysiology.
This study does not prove cistanche and ginkgo are a reliable or clinically meaningful treatment for ME/CFS—the authors themselves noted trivial effect sizes that may lack real clinical relevance. The mechanism linking reduced blood ammonia/lactic acid to symptom improvement remains speculative and requires validation. The results cannot be generalized beyond the study population (non-obese, ages 35-60).
About the PEM badge: “PEM required” means post-exertional malaise was an explicit required diagnostic criterion for participant inclusion in this study — not that PEM was studied, observed, or discussed. Studies using criteria that do not require PEM (e.g. Fukuda, Oxford) are tagged “PEM not required”. How the atlas works →
The first block is for the primary paper and is the citation you should use in research work. The atlas-snapshot line only applies if you are specifically referring to this atlas’s reading of the paper on the date shown.
Primary citation
Kan, Juntao, Cheng, Junrui, Hu, Chun, Chen, Liang, Liu, Siyu, Venzon, Dawna, et al. (2021). A Botanical Product Containing Cistanche and Ginkgo Extracts Potentially Improves Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Symptoms in Adults: A Randomized, Double-Blind, and Placebo-Controlled Study.. Frontiers in nutrition. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnut.2021.658630
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-kan-2021-botanical-product,
author = {Kan, Juntao and Cheng, Junrui and Hu, Chun and Chen, Liang and Liu, Siyu and Venzon, Dawna and Murray, Mary and Li, Shuguang and Du, Jun},
title = {A Botanical Product Containing Cistanche and Ginkgo Extracts Potentially Improves Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Symptoms in Adults: A Randomized, Double-Blind, and Placebo-Controlled Study.},
journal = {Frontiers in nutrition},
year = {2021},
doi = {10.3389/fnut.2021.658630},
note = {PubMed: 34901100},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/kan-2021-botanical-product},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-30. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/kan-2021-botanical-product
Contribute
Private, reviewed by a human. Not a public comment thread.