Scientists at UCI will examine the effects of Rhodiola rosea in humans after a study showed the mountain plant prolongs life in some organisms, school officials announced Wednesday.
Fruit flies that ate large amounts of the herbal extract of the yellow-flowered plant found in the Arctic regions of Europe and Asia lived 10%, or more than 3 days, longer than those that didn’t, according to the study.
Scandinavians and Russians have been consuming the herbal extract, also known as the golden root, for centuries as a stress-reliever, officials said. A study earlier this year in the “Nordic Journal of Psychiatry” showed that people with mild to moderate depression who took Rhodiola rosea showed fewer symptoms than those who didn’t.
