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Polyrhachis Ant Extract - Does it help?

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96
A little embarrassed to even have to ask about this one...

Polyrhachis Ant Extract - Does it help?

Here is a link. I couldn't find much information, except that in the wild seems they feed on ginger in the mountains.

https://www.amazon.com/Samsara-Herb...01M75DAOS/ref=sw_img_sspa_dk_huc_pt_expsub_3?

Although eating ants is far from the most extreme thing I have tried, I must admit it feels a little suspect to think eating ants might help me.
 

YippeeKi YOW !!

Senior Member
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16,047
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Second star to the right ...
A little embarrassed to even have to ask about this one...
Madder things have been tried and posted. No shame .....

n the wild seems they feed on ginger in the mountains.
Uh, yeah. Unless ant extract turns out to be the Holy Grail, I think I'd settle for just eating the ginger an hoping for the best.


Ginger was a small part of my redemption from bedbound to the exalted levels I'm at today :rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes: .... Hey, dont laugh !!! It's a lot better than it was during what DB and I call The Troubles :D:D ....
 

Wishful

Senior Member
Messages
5,739
Location
Alberta
Polyrhachis Ant Extract - Does it help?

With ME, the question is not whether it will help PWME in general, it's whether it will help a specific individual. The answer to that is: no one knows until you try it. There might be someone it works well for, but if a million other PWME tried it, they might have no effects or negative effects and no one else having a positive one.

There's no reason to believe that something that is written about in health magazines or marketing is any more likely to help a specific individual with ME than something randomly selected from a drug store or grocery store. There's a tiny chance than anything might work, but you won't know until you try it. My suggestion is to try cheap, easy-to-get things first, and leave the expensive wildcards for when you're really desperate.

I have sampled random vegetation while walking in the woods. I suppose random insects are just as likely to be helpful, but for some reason, I'm less eager to test them.

Hmmm, actually I expect that random insects are less likely to be helpful. Mobile creatures have other potential defenses, plants lacking in prickles have to rely on chemical defenses, and it's those chemicals that have potential to affect whatever ME is. If you do want to try eating insects in the search for a treatment, I suggest trying ones with painful stings or horrible flavours/smells first.


Hmmm, what if you did try a really horrible-tasting insect and it did help reduce a symptom? Is eating a bowlful of stinkbugs twice a day worth it?
 

hapl808

Senior Member
Messages
2,108
Ants have been used in Traditional Chinese Medicine for many years. So maybe.

Yeah, I used to take a formula that had ant extract during my early days of CFS when I was still pretty mild. Maybe all my following decline was because I stopped taking ant extract. :)

I vaguely remember it being vaguely helpful. Like taking some ginseng or something. Nothing huge, but maybe useful.
 

Wishful

Senior Member
Messages
5,739
Location
Alberta
My most recent bucket of rainwater had sat outside for maybe a couple of weeks. It had a green blob at the bottom, which turned out to be a dead spider that the algae grew around. I assume that some unusual chemicals leached out of the arachnid. If it provides a noticeable reduction in my ME, I'll post immediately.



If I stop posting, well, maybe it wasn't such a good idea after all. ;)
 
Messages
96
Coming back to this thread with an update. I am still feeling the "power of the ant" but the overall effect is negligible. It helps some, but not a lot. I continue to take it once a day in the AM, and sometimes in the afternoon if I am needing a 4-6 hr boost. It's not a lot, but I recommend someone considering it to give it a try, but with low expectations.
 

ChrisD

Senior Member
Messages
475
Location
East Sussex
I've been experimenting with this and have found a slight raise in libido - which has to be a good thing. But also find my brain can be more overstimulated at night.