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Gkb9.0
Ginkgo Biloba Research
Probably helpsModerate safety
64 peer-reviewed studies
What the evidence says
Probably helps
Ginkgo Biloba helped in about half (7/11) of the studies that measured an effect — promising, but not unanimous.
Most evidence is from high-quality meta-analyses and randomised trials published 2008–2026 with a typical study size of 1,278 participants.
Based on 64 studies · 28 meta-analyses · 7 RCTs · 64,949 total participants
Confidence
High
What the studies found
7helped4unclear· 53 more without graded effect data
By outcome
Cognitive functionModest improvements in memory and processing speed · 4-6 weeks
Probably helps49 studies
Neuroprotection & brain agingImproves cerebral blood flow and antioxidant defence in CNS · 8-12 weeks
Focus & attentionMay improve attention, especially in older adults · 4-6 weeks
Mostly mechanism / observational3 studies
Depression & mood
Too few graded studies2 studies
Inflammation
Too few graded studies2 studies
Glucose & metabolic
Too few graded studies1 study
By the numbers
Pulled from 40 studies with measurable effects
Likely real effects
67%
across studies
People studied
65k
typical study: 1278 people
Strongest designs
35
28 pooled, 7 randomised
Showed benefit
64%
7/11 studies
How long studies ran
1–4 weeks
1
1–3 months
1
3+ months
3
Populations Studied
Patients with tinnitus3
Patients with dementia3
General population2
Patients with mild dementia1
Active research area
41 studies in the last 5 years · Latest meta-analysis: 2026
200820172026
1Cognitive function in mild dementiaMeta-AnalysisCited 4×n=782 · large study2025
The meta-analysis demonstrates that patients with mild dementia benefit from EGb 761 in terms of cognition, activities of daily living, global assessment and quality of life.
Riepe M et al. · The world journal of biological psychiatry : the official journal of the World Federation of Societies of Biological Psychiatry (2025)
The meta-analysis demonstrates that patients with mild dementia benefit from EGb 761 in terms of cognition, activities of daily living, global assessment and quality of life.
2ADHD symptom improvement with antioxidantsMeta-AnalysisCited 5×n=3,650 · very large study2024
The rankings of safety and efficacy of the 12 antioxidants vary.
Zhou P et al. · PloS one (2024)
The rankings of safety and efficacy of the 12 antioxidants vary.
Due to the low methodological quality of the included studies, the probability ranking cannot fully explain the clinical efficacy, and the results need to be interpreted with caution.
More high-quality studies are still needed to verify our findings.
3Unstable angina pectoris symptom improvementMeta-AnalysisCited 11×n=9,513 · very large study2024
GBE preparations may alleviate angina symptoms and myocardial ischemia in the treatment of UAP with favorable safety.
Liu Y et al. · Journal of ethnopharmacology (2024)
GBE preparations may alleviate angina symptoms and myocardial ischemia in the treatment of UAP with favorable safety.
Shuxuening injection may be the most effective among all GBE preparations in improving angina symptoms, while Ginkgo tablets may perform best among oral formulations.
4Meta-AnalysisCited 2×n=7,214 · very large study2024
In this network meta-analysis of studies of patients with AD and a follow-up period of at least 1 year, EGb 120 mg demonstrated cognitive benefits, while placebo posed the least harm for AD.
Deng X et al. · Medicine (2024)
The network meta-analysis resulted indicated that placebo demonstrated greater effectiveness compared to Atorvastatin-calcium 80 mg (mean different [MD] = -6.93, confidence interval [CI] -11.57, -2.29) and Rivastigmine 12 mg (MD = -3.33, CI -6.56, -0.09).
In this network meta-analysis of studies of patients with AD and a follow-up period of at least 1 year, EGb 120 mg demonstrated cognitive benefits, while placebo posed the least harm for AD.
More RCTs are required to address the uncertainty surrounding the efficacy of medication.
6Meta-AnalysisCited 45×n=2,100 · very large study2022
Nevertheless, the preclinical and clinical data suggest that further large-scale clinical trials may be needed in order to examine the effects of long-term GEB administration on early-stage AD.
Xie L et al. · Cells (2022)
GBE was shown to reduce the escape latencies in several studies, in both rats and mice (I2 > 70%, p < 0.005).
For the clinical trials, eight trials, including 2100 individuals, were conducted.
A lack of sample size calculations and the poor quality of the methods are two obvious limitations of the studies.
7Serum CRP reductionMeta-AnalysisCited 19×n=1,104 · large study2022
Therefore, this medicinal herb might be a possible strategy for inflammation control.
Mousavi SN et al. · Phytotherapy research : PTR (2022)
Noticeable benefit
← WorseNo effectBetter →
Likely real
In the meta-analysis, the weighted mean differences (WMD) in change for serum CRP were -1.5 mg/L (95% CI: -2.16, -0.85, p < 0.001).
Moreover, WMD for serum IL-6 and TNF-α were in favor of the GBLE compared to the placebo [(-16.86 pg/mL, 95% CI: -19.38, -14.34, p < 0.001); and (-4.19 pg/mL, 95%CI: -5.14, -3.23, p < 0.001), respectively].
Subgroup analysis showed that GBLE has a beneficial effect on serum CRP at the baseline levels≥3 mg/L and doses<500 mg/day.
8Health-related quality of life (Glasgow Health Status Inventory)Systematic ReviewCited 30×n=1,915 · large study2022
There is uncertainty about the benefits and harms of Ginkgo biloba for the treatment of tinnitus when compared to placebo.
Sereda M et al. · The Cochrane database of systematic reviews (2022)
No clear effect
← WorseNo effectBetter →
One study found that there may be little to no difference between the effects of Ginkgo biloba and placebo on health-related quality of life measured with the Glasgow Health Status Inventory at three months (MD -0.58 (scale 0 to 100), 95% CI -4.67 to 3.51; 1 study; 60 participants) (low-certainty).
Ginkgo biloba may not increase the frequency of other adverse effects (gastrointestinal upset, headache, allergic reaction) at three months compared to placebo (risk ratio 0.91, 95% CI 0.52 to 1.60; 4 studies; 1175 participants) (low-certainty).
There is uncertainty about the benefits and harms of Ginkgo biloba for the treatment of tinnitus when compared to placebo.
9Tardive dyskinesia symptom reliefMeta-AnalysisCited 19×n=1,278 · large study2018
This review has found that the use of valbenazine or extract of Ginkgo biloba may be effective in relieving the symptoms of tardive dyskinesia.
Soares-Weiser K et al. · The Cochrane database of systematic reviews (2018)
Noticeable benefit
← WorseNo effectBetter →
Studies were primarily of short (three to six6 weeks) duration with small samples size (10 to 157 participants), and most (61%) were published more than 20 years ago.
Two studies found moderate-quality evidence of a benefit of the intervention compared with placebo: valbenazine (RR 0.63, 95% CI 0.46 to 0.86, 1 RCT, n = 92) and extract of Ginkgo biloba (RR 0.88, 95% CI 0.81 to 0.96, 1 RCT, n = 157), respectively.
This review has found that the use of valbenazine or extract of Ginkgo biloba may be effective in relieving the symptoms of tardive dyskinesia.
10Repigmentation in vitiligoMeta-AnalysisCited 124×n=4,512 · very large study2015
This review has found some evidence from individual studies to support existing therapies for vitiligo, but the usefulness of the findings is limited by the different designs and outcome measurements and lack of quality of life measures.
Whitton ME et al. · The Cochrane database of systematic reviews (2015)
All of the studies assessed repigmentation, however only five reported on all of our three primary outcomes which were quality of life, > 75% repigmentation and adverse effects.
This review has found some evidence from individual studies to support existing therapies for vitiligo, but the usefulness of the findings is limited by the different designs and outcome measurements and lack of quality of life measures.
There is a need for follow-up studies to assess permanence of repigmentation as well as high- quality randomised trials using standardised measures and which also address quality of life.
11Cognitive function, activities of daily living, and global clinical assessmentMeta-AnalysisCited 79×n=2,608 · very large study2016
Ginkgo biloba is potentially beneficial for the improvement of cognitive function, activities of daily living, and global clinical assessment in patients with mild cognitive impairment or Alzheimer's disease.
Yang G et al. · Current topics in medicinal chemistry (2016)
Ginkgo biloba is potentially beneficial for the improvement of cognitive function, activities of daily living, and global clinical assessment in patients with mild cognitive impairment or Alzheimer's disease.
12Cognition, function, behavior, and global changeMeta-AnalysisCited 144×n=2,561 · very large study2015
EGb761 at 240 mg/day is able to stabilize or slow decline in cognition, function, behavior, and global change at 22-26 weeks in cognitive impairment and dementia, especially for patients with neuropsychiatric symptoms.
Tan MS et al. · Journal of Alzheimer's disease : JAD (2015)
EGb761 at 240 mg/day is able to stabilize or slow decline in cognition, function, behavior, and global change at 22-26 weeks in cognitive impairment and dementia, especially for patients with neuropsychiatric symptoms.
17Systematic ReviewCited 90×n=149 · medium study2021
While most food, herbs and supplements can be safely taken in moderation, healthcare professionals should be aware of the increased risk of bleeding when taking several food and herbs.
Tan CSS et al. · British journal of clinical pharmacology (2021)
These reports described potentiation with 45 (57.7%) herbs, food or dietary supplements while 23 (29.5%) reported inhibition and 10 (12.8%) reported limited impact on warfarin pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics.
While most food, herbs and supplements can be safely taken in moderation, healthcare professionals should be aware of the increased risk of bleeding when taking several food and herbs.
These include Chinese wolfberry, chamomile tea, cannabis, cranberry, chitosan, green tea, Ginkgo biloba, ginger, spinach, St.
19Cognitive function and nootropic effectsSystematic ReviewCited 31×2023
Together, the results from the compiled studies highlight the nootropic effects and the inconsistencies regarding PDNs that require further research.Supplemental data for this article is available online at https://doi.org/10.1080/10408398.2021.2021137.
Lorca C et al. · Critical reviews in food science and nutrition (2023)
Bacopa monnieri improves language, learning and memory.
Withania somnifera (Ashwagandha) modulates anxiety and social-related cognitions.
Caffeine enhances attention and executive functions.
20Acute mountain sickness preventionMeta-AnalysisCited 7×n=451 · medium study2018
The currently available data suggest that although GBE may tend towards AMS prophylaxis, there are not enough data to show the statistically significant effect of GBE on preventing AMS.
Tsai TY et al. · BMJ open (2018)
No clear effect
← WorseNo effectBetter →
Borderline
In the primary meta-analysis of all seven study groups, GBE showed trend of AMS prophylaxis, but it is not statistically significant (RR=0.68; 95% CI 0.45 to 1.04; p=0.08).
The I2 statistic was 58.7% (p=0.02), indicating substantial heterogeneity.
The currently available data suggest that although GBE may tend towards AMS prophylaxis, there are not enough data to show the statistically significant effect of GBE on preventing AMS.