What is ashwaghanda and what are its benefits?

So what is Ashwaghanda?

If you’ve been feeling nervous or stressed-out, someone has probably given you a mini sermon about the wonders of ashwagandha. If they haven’t, here’s one!

This powerful herbal medicine adaptogenic medicine used in ancient Ayurvedic medicinal practices to increase energy, improve overall health and reduce inflammation, pain and anxiety. It is the root plant native to warmer climates such as India and Africa.

What does Ashwaghanda do?

It enhances the function of the brain and nervous system and improves the memory. It improves the function of the reproductive system promoting a healthy sexual and reproductive balance. Being a powerful adaptogen, it enhances the body’s resilience to stress.

The herbal medicine can increase energy, improve overall health and reduce inflammation, pain and anxiety

Ayurvedic medicine is the traditional medicine system in India. It’s a healing tradition that uses nutrition, exercise, mindfulness practices and herbs to promote balance between the body, mind, spirit and the environment.

Ashwagandha is suited for those who prefer herbal medicines rather than suffering with the myriad of side effects most allopathic medicines can bring.

How can Ashwaghanda help me?

Modern life is full of stress triggers. And that stress contributes to physical and mental illness. During stressful moments, the cortisol stress hormone held in your body becomes elevated, and this causes your heart to pump harder and faster. You breathe rapidly and your body generates more glucose for a quick burst of energy. Your mind becomes hyper-focused on any threats, and your body goes into fight or flight mode.

When the stressful event is over, cortisol levels normalise and the symptoms you experienced disappear.

 

Unfortunately, when a threat is chronic — whether it’s stress from finances or work — the stressful response also becomes chronic. If it’s not nipped in the bud, and managed effectively, long term stress can contribute to persistent inflammation in the body and increase the risk of chronic ailments such as obesity, diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, stroke, cancer, osteoporosis and fibromyalgia.

Ashwagandha benefits

So hopefully at this point in reading, you’re realising that Ashwaghanda can be a great support to providing yourself with a more balanced and harmonised body, along with other stress management and a healthy lifestyle.

Here are some of the main benefits of Ashwaghanda.

• Normalises cortisol levels, which reduces the fight or flight stress response – Ashwagandha is perhaps best known for its stress-relieving properties. Several studies highlight this advantage, observing ashwagandha’s ability to decrease participants’ stress and anxiety levels significantly. One particular study indicated that ashwagandha can benefit sleep quality as well—researchers confirmed participants slept much better with doses of the herb compared to placebo doses.
• Reduces inflammation.
• Improves memory.
• Improves immune function and anti-aging properties.
• Improves sleep.
• Lowers blood sugar and fats. A couple of small clinical studies found ashwagandha to be helpful in reducing blood sugar levels and triglycerides (the most common type of fat in the blood). One study likened ashwagandha’s blood sugar-lowering effects to those of medications prescribed for type2 diabetes
• Increases muscle and strength – Researchers continue to study ashwagandha’s efficacy in improving strength and muscle size. One study found participants experienced increased speed and strength . Another study observed an increase in muscle power, alongside a lower body fat percentage and reduced cholesterol levels when ashwagandha was consumed. Some participants also experienced better sleep, but this study did not compare ashwagandha consumption against a placebo. Ashwagandha treatments produced positive results in another study conducted solely with male participants. Compared to the placebo group, men who received ashwagandha saw significant gains in muscle strength (measured using bench press and leg extension exercises) and muscle size in their arms and chests, as well as a great reduction in body fat percentage. percentage and post-workout muscle damage.
• Sharpens focus and memory – Ashwagandha may help improve cognition, memory and the ability to perform motor responses after instruction. Small studies have found that, compared to a placebo, ashwagandha significantly improved participants’ reaction times during cognition and psychomotor tests (which measure the ability to respond to instructions and perform an indicated action). One study even found that ashwagandha significantly improved participants’ attention spans, as well as their immediate and general memory across a variety of tests
• Supports heart health – At least two studies have shown that ashwagandha can increase VO2 max levels, which is the maximum amount of oxygen you take in while physically exerting yourself^[. These levels are used in measuring cardiorespiratory endurance—how well the heart and lungs deliver oxygen to muscles during physical activity. Thus, higher VO2 max levels can indicate a healthy heart that performs well under those circumstances. With that said, this one study’s results may not apply universally since it was conducted with healthy, athletic adults exclusively as opposed to a more diverse group of participants.

How much should you take?

Ashwagandha comes in a variety of forms. It’s available in gummies, capsules, liquid drops and powders that you can mix into drinks.

I recommend a form that has no other agents in it such as binding agents or if a tincture, a alcohol free one. 500mg twice a day is the average recommended daily dosage and for no longer than six months at a time with a few weeks break. Dosages can vary depending on the reason you’re prescribed them. Your consultant will explain the reasons for dosage if asked.

Risks and Side Effects of Ashwagandha

Ashwagandha is a safe and nontoxic plant, but there are a few factors to consider before adding it to your diet.

Do you take other medications? It’s a good idea to let your doctor(s) know if you want to add something new to your health routine, including ashwagandha. If you’re already taking other medications, ashwagandha may enhance or weaken their effects.

Are there other conditions to consider?Ashwagandha may be unsafe if you are pregnant, breastfeeding, immunocompromised, soon undergoing surgery or have a thyroid condition. It’s also worth noting that some people who are allergic to nightshades or have certain grass allergies don’t tolerate ashwagandha well. If any of these situations apply to you, talk to your doctor or an integrative health specialist to determine whether it’s safe for you to take ashwagandha.

 

 

If you are struggling with any of the above ailments please get in touch to arrange a consultation. Click https://homeofalchemy.co.uk/classes/ to take a look at the services I offer.

I look forward to helping you on your healing journey.

Much love,

Lea

 

Footnotes –

• Singh N, Bhalla M, de Jager P, Gilca M.  An overview on ashwagandha: a Rasayana (rejuvenator) of Ayurveda. Afr J Tradit Complement Altern Med. 2011;8(5 Suppl):208-213. 
• Pratte MA, Nanavati KB, Young V, Morley CP. An alternative treatment for anxiety: a systematic review of human trial results reported for the Ayurvedic herb ashwagandha (Withania somnifera). J Altern Complement Med. 2014;20(12):901-908. 
• Lopresti AL, Smith SJ, Malvi H, Kodgule R.  An investigation into the stress-relieving and pharmacological actions of an ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) extract: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study.Medicine (Baltimore). 2019;98(37):e17186. 
• Salve J, Pate S, Debnath K, et al.  Adaptogenic and Anxiolytic Effects of Ashwagandha Root Extract in Healthy Adults: A Double-blind, Randomized, Placebo-controlled Clinical Study. Cureus. 2019;11(12): e6466. 
• Agnihotri AP, Sontakke SD, Thawani VR, Saoji A, Goswami VS.  Effects of Withania somnifera in patients of schizophrenia: a randomized, double blind, placebo controlled pilot trial study. Indian J Pharmacol. 2013;45(4):417-418. 
• Andallu B, Radhika B.  Hypoglycemic, diuretic and hypocholesterolemic effect of winter cherry (Withania somnifera, Dunal) root.Indian J Exp Biol. 2000;38(6):607-609. 
• Sandhu JS, Shah B, Shenoy S, Chauhan S, Lavekar GS, Padhi MM.  Effects of Withania somnifera (Ashwagandha) and Terminalia arjuna (Arjuna) on physical performance and cardiorespiratory endurance in healthy young adults. Int J Ayurveda Res. 2010;1(3):144-149. 
• Raut AA, Rege NN, Tadvi FM, et al. Exploratory study to evaluate tolerability, safety, and activity of Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) in healthy volunteers. J Ayurveda Integr Med. 2012;3(3):111-114. 
• Wankhede S, Langade D, Joshi K, Sinha SR, Bhattacharyya S.  Examining the effect of Withania somnifera supplementation on muscle strength and recovery: a randomized controlled trial. J Int Soc Sports Nutr. 2015;12:43. 
• Dongre S, Langade D, Bhattacharyya S. Efficacy and Safety of Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) Root Extract in Improving Sexual Function in Women: A Pilot Study. Biomed Res Int. 2015;2015:284154. 
• Gupta A, Mahdi AA, Shukla KK, et al.  Efficacy of Withania somnifera on seminal plasma metabolites of infertile males: a proton NMR study at 800 MHz. J Ethnopharmacol. 2013;149(1):208-214. 
• Mahdi AA, Shukla KK, Ahmad MK, et al. Withania somnifera Improves Semen Quality in Stress-Related Male Fertility [published online ahead of print, 2009 Sep 29]. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2009;2011:576962. 
• Lopresti AL, Smith SJ, Malvi H, Kodgule R.  An investigation into the stress-relieving and pharmacological actions of an ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) extract: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study.Medicine (Baltimore). 2019;98(37):e17186. 
• Wankhede S, Langade D, Joshi K, Sinha SR, Bhattacharyya S.  Examining the effect of Withania somnifera supplementation on muscle strength and recovery: a randomized controlled trial. J Int Soc Sports Nutr. 2015;12:43. 
• Pingali U, Pilli R, Fatima N.  Effect of standardized aqueous extract of Withania somnifera on tests of cognitive and psychomotor performance in healthy human participants. Pharmacognosy Res. 2014;6(1):12-18. 
• Choudhary D, Bhattacharyya S, Bose S. Efficacy and Safety of Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera (L.) Dunal) Root Extract in Improving Memory and Cognitive Functions. J Diet Suppl. 2017;14(6):599-612. 
• Choudhary B, Shetty A, Langade DG. Efficacy of Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera [L.] Dunal) in improving cardiorespiratory endurance in healthy athletic adults. Ayu. 2015;36(1):63-68.
• Sandhu JS, Shah B, Shenoy S, Chauhan S, Lavekar GS, Padhi MM.  Effects of Withania somnifera (Ashwagandha) and Terminalia arjuna (Arjuna) on physical performance and cardiorespiratory endurance in healthy young adults. Int J Ayurveda Res. 2010;1(3):144-149. 
• Harris ES, Cao S, Littlefield BA, et al.  Heavy metal and pesticide content in commonly prescribed individual raw Chinese Herbal Medicines. Sci Total Environ. 2011;409(20):4297-4305. 
• Ćwieląg-Drabek M, Piekut A, Szymala I, et al. Health risks from consumption of medicinal plant dietary supplements. Food Sci Nutr. 2020;8(7):3535-3544.