Herbal Viagra - A New Discovery

evawhite on July 10th, 2008

I really doubt any of my readers have much use for this piece of knowledge (I hope not!) This topic has been discussed oft and tribes all over the world have laid claim to their own ancient versions of ‘Herbal Viagra’. There is no reason normally to discuss this topic but I have come across what seems the weirdest one of all the ‘herbal’ version sightings.

Caterpillar fungus. That’s right, caterpillar fungus as a stimulant! In the high altitudes of Uttarakhand; an Indian state, people have realized that their age-old quick-fix is also a likely business opportunity! Supported by the local Herbal Research and Development Institute the state has made bold its intentions to bring the quick-fix to the population.

This fungus known in the vernacular as ‘Keera ghas’ and ‘Yarchagumba’ has been used in medicine for a really long time, much longer than it was known to the world. It is common known usage in Chinese medicines.
Due to the ‘important medical and therapeutic’ value of the fungus the state government has declared it a protected asset. Only the ‘Van Panchayats’ are authorized to extract the fungus. The aphrodisiac fungus which sold for around $3000 a kilo five years ago now fetches $8000 for the same! Naturally, there is someone paying that much money and attracting the interest of the state government. The big pharmaceutical companies are making inroads to quickly get on the shelf their own Viagra’s.

During initial discovery the people of China thought that the caterpillar fungus were worms. However, after years of study, it was found that it really is a fruiting body produced by the fungus on dead caterpillars.

When the caterpillar dies the fungus produces a stalked fruiting body that produces spores. The spores are spread in the wind to the next generation of caterpillars. Uninfected caterpillars pupate into relatively large primitive moths.

The caterpillar fungus usage in China was unknown until it was credited for the success of Chinese women athletes at the National Games in Beijing, in 1993. Three Chinese track runners set new world records during the Games. Their coach, Ma Zunren, attributed the runner’s success to intensive training as well as a stress-relieving tonic prepared from the caterpillar fungus. It is very amusing to see that on the other side of the border, in India, the same or a different strain of the fungus has aphrodisiac effects when used on the male! Healthy male stress-relieving for the women?? (all puns intended)

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Tags: catterpillar fungus, Chinese medicines, herbal viagra, Keera ghas, Uttarakhand, viagra, Yarchagumba
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