Auragin: Authentic Korean Red Ginseng

Biohacker Review: 6-Year Red Korean Ginseng is the ethical hedonist's adaptogen...

One thing I like about this Ginseng is that it dissolves in about 10 minutes in scalding water to make a nice Ginseng tea. I've used some other Ginseng tablets that don't seem to dissolve so well. Like other Adaptogens I've used, the subjective effects are more noticeable when I consume them as tea. If you follow my recommendations and pick up a bunch of different adaptogens what you could easily do is combine like four or five of them - it will be delicious and will make you feel like a Greek god consuming ambrosia on Elysium.

• There's a sense of tranquility and calm that you would expect from an Adaptogen.
• I've noticed that my hearing is a little sharper and my accuracy and typing speed improve for about 60-90 minutes after dosing.
• It does not make a notable difference in my cognition, where I was a whole better at problem-solving or writing as the Racetams do.
• I've noticed a few times I had cool dreams when I used it later in the day.

I mostly use it for the long-term anti-aging benefits. Let's look at the science...

DNA damage is an inevitable side effect of a life lived vigorously. A 2012 Korean study of healthy adults found the antioxidant mechanism of Ginseng did attenuate oxidative damage to DNA. Let me translate that for those watching who have not been in a science classroom for a long time: Attenuate is a kind of fancy word that just means to decrease the force or effect of something. Researching Nootropics or antiaging you are going to hear about oxidative damage a lot. The famous Transhumanist Aubrey De Gray is fond of saying: 

"Breathing is bad for us."

Which sounds a little absurd but it's quite easy to see that oxygen has a destructive effect:

• If you leave food out it goes bad.
• A piece of metal exposed to the air and elements will eventually rust.

The same slow destructive chemical effect of oxygen is at the core of the aging malfunction to which we are subjected.
From the abstract of the Korean study:

The reported health benefits of Korean red ginseng (KRG) include antioxidant, antitumor, antimutagenic, and immunomodulatory activities; however, the effects on oxidative stress have not yet been evaluated... Fifty-seven subjects completed the protocol. Plasma superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity after the 8-week [Korean red ginseng] supplementation was significantly higher in the low-and high-dose groups compared to baseline... [Korean red ginseng] supplementation may attenuate lymphocyte DNA damage and LDL oxidation by upregulating antioxidant enzyme activity.

Ginseng is a household name as a renowned sexual performance and libido enhancer. I'm a younger guy with a pretty healthy libido so it did not make a big difference for me in this department, however, there was one effect I've noticed that was quite cool...
I learned this tantric technique called the cool draw, which is this breathing technique for transmuting and focusing your sexual energy into creativity or some pursuit more productive than the pursuit of short skirts. The cool draw requires moving energy along what they call the microcosmic orbit, which is usually pretty challenging for me, I practice it a couple of times a week when I'm doing my meditation. I've noticed that if I'm dosed on Ginseng it's a whole lot easier.
I'd be at like a cafe and a beautiful girl would sit down near me; I'd start getting aroused and a little distracted but then I do this tantric breathing technique and I'd get kind of like an espresso hit of creativity and motivation. If you're a guy and this piques your interest check out my course on this.

When I did my meta-analysis of Panax Ginseng I did quite a bit of research to try to figure out the very best way to get real Ginseng; I came up with three options...
a) You could go to the markets in Asia with a friend or trusted consultant who speaks the language and will negotiate on your behalf and purchase the roots as directly as possible from the traders that scavenge them from the wild. If you had some money to spend you could get a lot of quality Ginseng.
b) You could get some Ginseng seeds (they are not very expensive) and plant your own on your property or somewhere that nobody is going to find them. Come back in 4-6 years and you would have a great supply of organic, wild-grown Ginseng that would last you for a while or you could sell it for as much as $1000-per-pound.
c) You could buy Aurigin's 6-Year Red Korean Ginseng, I did quite a bit of Googling, read a lot of reviews and discussions on forums about sourcing Ginseng and I think this is the highest quality mainstream product. It has a very high 8% ginsenoside content. It's the highest-rated Ginseng product on Amazon with over 650 customer reviews, which is pretty impressive. It's a little pricey with a one-month supply running about $40, but if you want the real deal this is it.

If you're a biohacker ballin' on a budget...
Panax Ginseng is a more expensive Adaptogen, if you're looking for a less expensive natural performance enhancer, go with Rhodiola and Eleuthero (Poor man's Ginseng). 100-gram supplies of both (which would cost about $75) lasted me a little over a year and I was using them almost every day.

What is Ethical Hedonism?

The core belief of hedonism is that...

People should do everything in their power to achieve the maximum amount of pleasure. It is also the idea that every person's pleasure should far surpass their amount of pain.

Is the idea that we should have a dual focus on maximizing pleasure and doing what is ethical. Therefore an ethical hedonist is a person who seeks to maximize their own pleasure but only if it's morally right to do so independent of religious or arbitrary belief systems. A hedonist is always looking to get the biggest bang for their buck; they will sacrifice the lesser pleasure for the greater pleasure.

From Lifehacking Ethical Hedonism: Make Good Decisions on Autopilot and Be the ROCKSTAR Forever

About 6-Year Authentic Red Korean Ginseng

Ginseng has been used as an herbal supplement for over 2000 years. It has been shown in clinical trials to increase energy & decrease fatigue, boost the immune system, reduce stress, enhance mood, and boost mental function.*

However, not all ginseng is created equal. The active ingredients in ginseng are substances known as ginsenosides, and ginseng low in ginsenosides may not be effective.

It takes 6 years for a ginseng root to fully develop its ginsenoside content, and this also depends on other factors such as climate and soil conditions. Korea, in particular, is famous for the high-quality ginseng it produces. "Red" ginseng refers to a traditional process of repeat steaming and drying, which increases the number of ginsenosides further.

Auragin is grown in an area of Korea with 500 years of history producing ginseng. Roots are grown for 6 years, preserved using the traditional red ginseng process, ground into powder, and pressed into tablets with no additional ingredients. The result is one of the highest-quality ginseng products on the market.

From Auragin®