Ashwagandha Root

Ashwagandha Root Unless you’re in the health and wellness industry, you may not have heard of Ashwagandha let alone know what it is.

We think you should know and are here to share the history and health benefits of Ashwagandha.

What Is Ashwagandha?

Ashwagandha is a plant in the Solanaceae family. Its botanical name is Withania Somnifera and is commonly known as “Indian Ginseng” or “Indian Winter Cherry”.

What’s in a name? “Ashwa” means horse in the Indian language, Sanskrit and “-gandha” means smell – the root of Ashwagandha smells like a horse.

The History of Ashwagandha

In Ayurveda (a historic Indian system of medicine) Ashwagandha is classified as a tonic, aphrodisiac, diuretic, anti-parasitic, astringent, and stimulant and is thought to be around 6,000 years old. It’s used for constipation, insomnia, joint diseases, stress and nervous breakdowns. In India, all parts of the Ashwagandha plant were used, including the leaves for fever and swelling and the flowers, as a diuretic and aphrodisiac.¹

In recent years, Ashwagandha has gained prominence as a herbal remedy for various disease conditions in the western world, in countries like Australia, and the US and has since been subject to numerous clinical studies.

Health Benefits of Ashwagandha

Along with the use in traditional Indian medicine, Ashwagandha has a beneficial effect in many disease conditions common in today’s modern lifestyle. Some of these health benefits are as follows:

Anti-Stress/Adaptogen

With its potent anti-stress activity, Ashwagandha has been known to increase physical endurance, sexual vigour and cardiac activity. Along with this, it may improve thyroid function, prevent stress related ulcers and gastrointestinal problems and protect liver cells.²

It’s also thought to have a role in detoxification by helping protect the body from toxic effects of pollutants, and certain medications. It can also prevent stress induced atherosclerosis, hypertension, diabetes, and even malignancies. It can also have rejuvenating and vitalising properties.²

Neuroprotector

There is clinical evidence that shows that Ashwagandha may prevent damage to the brain cells¹, thus it may have a role in preventing dementia³ and improve memory and brain function.

Along with this, it also has anxiolytic properties which may help prevent anxiety and depression.¹^,³

Anti-Inflammatory

Ashwagandha also has a marked anti-inflammatory effect, which researchers think could be due to alkaloids and withanolide⁸ content in its extracts.

This can help reduce pain and inflammation in various inflammatory conditions including joint diseases and rheumatic disease.⁴

Cancer Prevention

Impressively, Ashwagandha may even help prevent certain types of cancers with its inhibitory effect on breast cancer, colon cancer and lung cancer. It also has anti-angiogenic properties which may help prevent the spread of the cancer in some cases³.

Cardioprotective

Clinical studies have shown that Ashwagandha has cardioprotective properties. What does this mean? Preservation of the heart by reducing or even preventing myocardial damage.

There are many ways in which the consumption of Ashwagandha exerts such an action, such as through its positive effect on hemodynamics, by improving cardio-pulmonary endurance (the level at which your heart, lungs, and muscles work together) due to antioxidant properties and its role in suppressing chronic inflammation, creating a positive impact on lipid profiles.⁵

Anti-Diabetic

Use of Ashwagandha may also help reduce cortisol levels, increase insulin secretion, reduce insulin resistance, and help lower blood glucose levels as a result.⁶

In addition, it may also have a role in preventing diabetes related complications due to its positive impact on cardiovascular health.⁶

Male Fertility Improvement

It is said that Ashwagandha makes you feel like a horse (stallion), due to its ability to increase energy levels, libido, and sperm count. One of the clinical trials resulted in marked improvement in testosterone levels, and levels of other fertility related hormones.

Using Ashwagandha for 90-days resulted in a 167% increase in sperm count!⁷

Ashwagandha has many more health benefits, from treating adrenal fatigue, normalising hormonal levels, stabilising mood, boosting immunity and increasing stamina.

Want to add Ashwagandha into your health routine, but aren’t sure how? It’s usually taken in a form of powder or tablet and is available online or from health food stores.

Properties

Adaptogen¹^,²
Adrenal Support¹
Anaemia¹^,²
Anti-Aging¹^,³
Anti-Bacterial¹
Anti-Inflammatory¹^,³
Anti-Parasitic¹
Anti-Stress²
Antioxidant²
Anxiety¹
Aphrodisiac⁷
Arthritis⁴
Astringent¹
Atherosclerosis⁵
Brain Function / Neuroprotective¹^,³
Breathing Difficulties¹
Cancer Prevention³
Cardiovascular Support⁵
Cholesterol⁵
Concentration¹^,³
Constipation¹
Cough¹
Dementia Prevention¹^,³
Depression¹^,³
Diabetes / Blood Sugar⁶
Digestive Function¹^,⁶
Diuretic¹^,⁶
Energiser¹^,²
Enhances Endurance¹^,²
Enhances Strength⁷
Eye Health¹^,3
Fatigue¹^,²
Fever Reduction¹
Heart Support / Health¹^,²
Hormonal Balance¹^,²^,⁷
Hypertension⁵
Immune Booster¹^,4
Insomnia & Sleep Support¹^,²
Libido & Sexual Performance⁷
Liver Health¹
Memory Retention¹^,³
Mood Stabalising²
Muscle Mass⁷
Nervine¹^,³
Physical Endurance⁷
Sedative²
Skin Issues¹^,⁶
Stamina Support¹^,⁷
Thyroid Support¹^,²
Toxin Removal¹^,²
Ulcer Support¹^,²

References