Peruvian ginseng widely recognized as maca, is known to be a herbaceous biennial plant of the Brassicaceae family that is edible and that is local to the high Andes heaps of Peru. It was discovered in the late 1980s at the Meseta de Bombón level near Lake Junin. Maca is developed for its plump hypocotyl that is combined with a taproot, that is ordinarily dried, yet may likewise be cooked like a root vegetable. After being dried it can also be processed into flour as a dietary supplement as well as for baking. It additionally has applications in traditional medicine. Since it is a cash crop, Maca is essentially exported in the form of a powder that might be crude, or processed by the supplement business: gelatinized or made into a concentrate. Maca is known to be a cruciferous vegetable and consequently associated with cauliflower, broccoli, kale and cabbage. Maca is the solo part from the Lepidium family that has a fleshy hypocotyl, which is combined with the taproot to frame a pear-like body. Maca varies significantly in shapes and sizes of the root, which might be flattened circular, rectangular, triangular, or spherical. Generally, local producers have recognized four assortments of maca, in view of their root color: black, cream-yellow, purple, and half purple; fluctuating levels of anthocyanin is principally in charge of the differences in their color.
The taste of maca root powder, which a few people despise, has been portrayed as nutty and earthy. Maca is commonly cultivated for consuming its root. The dominant part of maca is dried. In this frame, the hypocotyls can be stored for many years. In Peru, maca is cooked and consumed in different ways. Several people use it in desserts, smoothies and oatmeal. Owing to its indicated impacts on fertility, maca developed in agricultural, research and commercial interest throughout the recent years. Market reports demonstrated low acknowledgment of the specific maca taste by purchasers when initially exposed to it, making an obstruction for notoriety of this food as a culinary vegetable. The financial interest existed more in the health impacts of the root's constituents provided as a concentrate in a dietary supplement. Early research recommends that taking maca twice every day for 12 weeks somewhat enhances sexual dysfunction in women who are consuming antidepressants. Studies have suggested that taking a particular maca product every day for 4 months increases the sperm count in men. Yet, it's not clear if this outcomes in enhanced fertility.