Maca | vital.ly

Maca

Scientific names: Lepidium meyenii, Lepidium peruvianum

Family: Brassicaceae/Cruciferae

Alternate names: Ayak Chichira, Ayuk Willku, Ginseng Andin, Ginseng Péruvien, Maca Maca, Maca Péruvien, Maino, Maka, Peruvian Ginseng, Peruvian Maca

Actions: Anticancer, Antidepressant, Anti-stress, Central nervous system, Cognitive, Exercise, Fertility, Immunostimulant, Osteoporosis, Sexual enhancement

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Scientific names: Lepidium meyenii, Lepidium peruvianum

Family: Brassicaceae/Cruciferae

Alternate names: Ayak Chichira, Ayuk Willku, Ginseng Andin, Ginseng Péruvien, Maca Maca, Maca Péruvien, Maino, Maka, Peruvian Ginseng, Peruvian Maca

Actions: Anticancer, Antidepressant, Anti-stress, Central nervous system, Cognitive, Exercise, Fertility, Immunostimulant, Osteoporosis, Sexual enhancement

View all 21 products

Background

Maca, also called Ginseng Andin, Peruvian Ginseng, Lepidium meyenii, or Lepidium peruvianum, is a relative of radish and smells similar to butterscotch.

Maca is a plant that grows on the high plateaus of the Andes Mountains. It's been cultivated as a root vegetable for at least 3000 years. The root is also used to make medicine, but there isn't enough reliable information available to know how maca might work.

People take maca by mouth for male infertility, health problems after menopause, increasing sexual desire in healthy people, and other purposes, but there is no good scientific evidence to support any of these uses.

Safety Safety definitions

When taken by mouth: Maca is likely safe for most people when eaten in foods. Maca is possibly safe when taken in larger amounts as medicine, short-term. Doses up to 3 grams daily seem to be safe when taken for up to 4 months.

Special Precautions & Warnings:

Pregnancy and breast-feeding: There isn't enough reliable information to know if maca is safe to use when pregnant or breast-feeding. Stay on the safe side and stick to food amounts.

Hormone-sensitive conditions such as breast cancer, uterine cancer, ovarian cancer, endometriosis, or uterine fibroids: Extracts from maca might act like estrogen. If you have any condition that might be made worse by estrogen, do not use these extracts.

Effectiveness

Effective Effectiveness definitions

There is interest in using maca for a number of purposes, but there isn't enough reliable information to say whether it might be helpful.

Dosing & administration

Maca has most often been used by adults in doses of 1.5-3.5 grams by mouth daily for 6-16 weeks. Speak with a healthcare provider to find out what dose might be best for a specific condition.