Gastrodia elata has been found to prevent Alzheimer's disease.

Experiments conducted by the Chinese Medical Research Institute of Taiwan's Chinese Medical College have found that Gastrodia elata can improve learning and memory impairment, not only for health care, but also for the prevention or treatment of Alzheimer's disease. As it has been proved to be non-toxic by toxicity tests, the institute plans to develop Gastrodia elata, which is similar to pickled melons or health drinks.

Xie Ming-cun, president of Taiwan College of traditional Chinese Medicine, and Wu Chi-Rui, PhD of the Institute of traditional Chinese Medicine, have recently devoted themselves to the study of the effect of Gastrodia elata on improving learning and memory impairment. They have found that Tianma Yuan, the main active ingredient in Gastrodia elata, can increase the secretion of adrenal hormones, increase the utilization of blood sugar in the body, and then activate brain function.

In addition to overcoming memory disorders, Wu Chi-Rui says that in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease, traditional Chinese medicine has confirmed that Tianma owners "speak in a trance and lose consciousness," which refers to the symptoms of confusion in the speech of the elderly.

After animal experiments, Wu Qirui also found that Gastrodia elata is used in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease, which is better than the intelligence enhancer currently used in Western medicine. Western medicine is more hepatotoxic and has side effects such as headache and gastrointestinal discomfort.

At present, there are often unscrupulous drug dealers in the market to replace Gastrodia elata with counterfeit or inferior products. Wu Qirui suggests that consumers should choose solid and heavy texture, parrot mouth, fine longitudinal wrinkles and bright cross-section. In the edible aspect, can boil fish, stew ribs, replace shredded ginger to use, or steamed soft direct consumption, taste similar to melon.