Comment · Wed, March 2, 2016 · Ceretropic & Nootropics Depot
The authenticity and quality of Rhodiola rosea products. (2015)
What they were answering
Direct reply to the original post in this thread.
u/MisterYouAreSoDumb · Ceretropic & Nootropics Depot
Full paper: The authenticity and quality of Rhodiola rosea products.
Some of their findings are pretty scary.
While adulteration by other Rhodiola species, including R. crenulata presents one particular problem, adulteration with 5-hydoxytryptophan or other material not detected in this set of samples is potentially even more worrying.
The crenulata issue is not a super big deal. Both salidroside and tyrosol are in the crenulata species too. The adulturation with fucking 5-HTP is a big damn deal, though! That's nuts!
Approximately one quarter of unregistered Rhodiola products were either adulterated or of low rosavin content and did not conform to their label specification regarding the rosavin levels present. Also, around 80% of products were of poorer quality than the THR products as regards the rosavin content. This indicates that there are major breakdowns in the quality systems employed along the various stages of Rhodiola value chains.
There is a conflict of interest, but it does not look to be a super big issue in the actual scientific findings.
Conflict of interest
Anthony Booker’s research position is funded through a charitable donation by Dr. Willmar Schwabe GmbH & Co. KG, Germany.
It would be interesting to see the actual brands they tested. However, that would open them up to litigation; especially since the study was funded by a competing company.