5 Amazing Benefits of the Ashwagandha Herb

One of the most common elements used in Ayurvedic medicine, known as Indian ginseng or winter cherry, Ashwagandha provides many health benefits for both men and women. It is known to help alleviate stress, anxiety, and depression symptoms while boosting energy levels and aiding with weight loss efforts.

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What is Ayurvedic medicine?

Ayurvedic medicine is perhaps one of the world's oldest medical practices, but what exactly is it? Essentially, Ayurveda, a 5,000-year-old natural healing system, originated in India's Vedic culture and is possibly one of the oldest healing sciences. Ayurvedic medicine has undoubtedly stood the test of time, consisting of prevention and treatment through living a healthy lifestyle that embraces natural healing herbs. Living a healthy lifestyle can help alleviate or prevent many health issues, including depression or heart disease.

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Here are five remarkable benefits of the ashwagandha herb that you should know about today!

1) Stress Reduction

Ashwagandha, an adaptogenic herb and one of India's most famous natural healing herbs, is excellent for stress reduction.

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• What is adaptogenic? According to the National Institutes of Health, adaptogens are natural substances in herbal medicine that can help our bodies adapt to stress and exert a normalizing effect on the body

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That's because it balances cortisol levels in your body. Why is that important, you might ask. When cortisol levels rise over time, it can disrupt normal body functions. For example, this cortisol increase may lead to mood irregularity, headaches, memory lapses, rapid weight gain, and decreased sex drive. Also, cortisol imbalances can increase the likelihood of heart disease by increasing visceral fat (a form of gel-like fat that wraps around major organs) in the body. As a result, so-called lifestyle diseases such as diabetes, blood pressure, and osteoporosis can manifest themselves.

Ashwagandha has also been proven effective in improving and supporting your adrenal function. This herb may help you overcome adrenal fatigue when your adrenals become overtaxed by stress.

What does adrenal fatigue look like on a typical day?

• When you wake up, you cannot function without a significant amount of caffeine.
  
• You finally feel a boost of energy during the early part of the day.
• Then your energy levels crash around 2 p.m., they rise again around 6 p.m., and fall again around 9 p.m. Do you fall asleep on the couch while watching a TV show?
• Your energy finally peaks again at 11 p.m. and now you have trouble sleeping.

Ashwagandha is also helpful for anyone who struggles with sleep difficulties. To release the therapeutic compounds in ashwagandha root, put one tea bag into a small pot with one cup of water. After letting the water boil, reduce the heat, so it simmers for 10–15 minutes. If you drink a cup daily, keep in mind that you will need to cycle its use. What does that mean? If you drink a cup daily, do so for up to six months and then stop for three months before continuing again. If you use this tea casually, you don't need to worry about this cycle. Many people find it helpful to combine it with chamomile tea, a flower-like herb with a sweet flavor.

(2) Fatigue Reduction

Here's a fun fact; the Sanskrit word for "ashwagandha," translates to "the smell of a horse," ("ashwa" meaning horse and "gandha" meaning smell). So this potent herb earned its name because the plant's root smells like a horse. However, today most forms of the herb do not carry that smell. Instead, ancient traditions imply that you'll have "the vigor and strength of a stallion upon consuming it." It also has a reputation for providing "the fertility of a horse," a reference to its use as an aphrodisiac, supporting healthy sexual function for both men and women.

The ashwagandha herb has been revered for its dual capacity to energize and calm simultaneously. Maximizing the body's ability to resist stress enables it to reserve and maintain vital energy during the day and at night, promoting sound, restful sleep. Stress is a significant factor in causing fatigue, often manifesting as "hyper" signs like agitation and difficulty sleeping. Ashwagandha can support a healthy nervous system by providing a nourishing yet energizing effect.

(3)Anxiety Relief

Natural healing herbs like Ashwagandha can offer a variety of benefits. From anti-anxiety relief to sleep aid, ashwagandha herb is sure to find a way to help you. For example, suppose you're interested in exploring your anxiety and possible panic attacks. In that case, Ashwagandha may be just what you need to feel calm, relaxed, and happy again. In addition, the herb can be helpful for those suffering from obsessive or compulsive disorders or depression. Since there are different herb varieties, it's hard to pinpoint which types work best for what situation. Still, it seems most types should provide natural relief from anxiety and other conditions mentioned above. See more on "Full-Spectrum" vs. "Extracts" later in this post.

Ashwagandha tea is one drink that incorporates this potent herb into its recipe. Most brands will combine the leaves with peppermint and ginger for taste. Peppermint is also known to promote relaxation, while ginger helps ease stomach distress. The ingredients combined with the natural healing properties of Ashwagandha make this herbal tea blend an excellent choice to naturally soothe some of your conditions.

(4) Anti-Cancer Properties

This herb contains several powerful phytochemicals. The most potent is "withanolides," also called "steroidal lactones," which is geek talk for "That thing that makes things work." It is the active ingredient responsible for Ashwagandha's beneficial effects on the immune system, inflammation, and chronic skin diseases like psoriasis. Withaferin A is another chemical compound found in this herb, and it displays significant anti-cancer properties. Most notably in breast cancer and prostate cancer cells where it inhibits proliferation, reduces the spread and recurrence of tumors by preventing them from becoming metastatic, promotes programmed cell death or apoptosis, and causes tumor cells to die off by triggering a natural process called autophagy.

According to a scientific research team out of Cairo University, Egypt, studying the effects ashwagandha leaves have on cancer, they published their background statement and conclusion as follows.

Background: "Ashwagandha, a tropical herb used in Indian Ayurvedic medicine, has a long history of its health promoting and therapeutic effects. In the present study, we have investigated an anti-cancer activity in the water extract of Ashwagandha leaves (ASH-WEX)."

Conclusion: "We provide the first molecular evidence that the ASH-WEX and TEG have selective "cancer cell" growth 'arrest' activity and hence may offer natural and economic resources for anti-cancer medicine."

There is a fair amount of scientific research into the ability of Ashwagandha to stimulate immune function against tumors. In one study, scientists found that lab mice treated with this herb before exposure to carcinogens developed significantly fewer tumors than untreated mice. Ashwagandha also protects healthy cells from damage caused by chemotherapy drugs used in cancer treatment while enhancing their effectiveness. A study on Ashwagandha published in the "Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics" found something exciting. Researchers noted that rats given Ashwagandha before exposure to a poisonous substance had increased survival rates over those who hadn't received this treatment.

(5) Improves Memory

For centuries Ashwagandha has been used to improve memory and fight against the effects of aging. In addition, Ashwagandha tea may help to increase concentration by sharpening your brain function, lowering stress hormones, and improving your ability to focus. It also helps alleviate pain brought on by inflammation or chronic stress. However, it's also important to note that taking too much of this herb could also cause some ill effects. With the availability of making teas and tinctures, it's easy to go overboard if you're not paying attention. See cautions and indications later in this post. However, if you follow conservative dosages listed on the supplement packaging you should get the benefits of this wonderful herb without any side effects. Consult your doctor or healthcare professional for more customized to your body details.

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Differences between Full-Spectrum vs. Extracts

Many people don't know that there are two forms of Ashwagandha: full-spectrum and extracts. Many extraction methods also produce different end products within the two primary forms. Here we will consider the advantages and disadvantages of Full-Spectrum vs. Extracts.

"Full-Spectrum," or whole herbs, are practically just like they sound. First, the "herb" in its natural form; leaves, stems, or roots are dried, then cut, and screened to be used for tea or ground and milled into a powder. The powders are then either packed inside a capsule or sold loose, so the user can easily add the nutrient powder to a shake or a green smoothie.

• Advantages: Because you will be consuming, essentially, the whole plant, you will be getting the "full spectrum" of Ashwagandha's plant chemicals, called phytochemicals. That is a good thing because the herb's phytochemicals work in tandem, and we don't always know how a single plant chemical, as in extracts, performs on its own. Also, because the preparation process is relatively simple, whole herbs are typically more economical alternatives than the other forms.
• Disadvantages: Whole herbs are generally not standardized, meaning they don't get tested to determine how many specific chemical components they contain, which makes it hard to judge their quality and potency. Whole herbs also include a small portion of indigestible plant fiber and less active phytochemicals than extracts. As a result, your body will eliminate those portions as waste, meaning you will not absorb everything. Finally, they are usually less potent, so you'll likely need to take more of the herb to see the desired benefit.

"Extracts," on the other hand, can come in several formats. Today we'll talk about dried powder extracts and liquid extracts.

Dried powdered extracts

Powdered extracts get created by soaking the herb in a solvent that later goes through an evaporation process. The material that is left behind is a concentrated powder of plant chemicals. The powder is then typically mixed with some whole herb powder to add consistency and sold in capsule, tablet, or powder form.

• Advantages: Dried powdered extracts are the most potent herbal preparations. They're even more powerful than their liquid extract counterparts. They are also effortlessly taken and can be carried with you anywhere, making them the most flexible option.
• Disadvantages: Some companies use potent and possibly toxic chemicals in their soaking solvents. Such solvent residue may be unsafe for human consumption in unregulated quantities. You can avoid this by researching and buying from a reputable company that tests to ensure the solvent chemicals evaporate entirely.

"Liquid extracts" (aka tinctures), In making liquid extracts, the whole herb gets soaked in a solution that's more than just water. Typically it's a mix of water and alcohol. However, manufacturers can also do it with vegetable glycerine or apple cider vinegar. These solutions pull crucial plant chemicals out of the herb and act as a preservative.

• Advantages: These liquid extracts are very concentrated, so you only need to take a small amount to get the desired benefit. Because they're taken sublingually or under the tongue, they enter the bloodstream much faster than other methods. So you will, in most cases, notice its effects much sooner, though it depends on the herb.

• Disadvantages: They often have a bitter and disagreeable taste. Another downside is if you're taking multiple different liquid extracts simultaneously, you are ingesting a lot of alcohol, which can be a problem for some people's digestive health.

Cautions concerning Ashwagandha

As with any other herb, there are always some risks that go along with taking it. There are some Crucial things to remember before taking Ashwagandha, consider all cautions and do not take this lightly. Speak with your doctor or your primary healthcare professional before proceeding:

1. Do not use this herb while pregnant or breastfeeding.
   
2. The interactions of Ashwagandha can cause an increased risk for stomach ulcers, dehydration, diarrhea, and vomiting.
   
3. Many people have reported feeling worse after they have stopped taking it.
   
4. It is best to take breaks from usage. For example, you can take a week off each month or take it 3 or 4 times a week instead of daily consumption. Some take it daily for 5 or 6 months and then stop all usage for 3 or 4 months before starting up again. The best way to make decisions like this is by consulting your doctor or healthcare professional before starting an Ashwagandha regimen.
5. Commonly reported effects: Mild to moderate drowsiness, upper GI discomfort, and loose stools.
6. Be cautious if you have a mental illness because it may worsen symptoms of psychosis and mania.
   
7. If you are taking medications currently or have medical conditions, consult your doctor before taking ashwagandha supplements because they could react negatively to your illnesses and medicines.
   
8. Different forms of Ashwagandha will be more potent than others. Do not assume that because your doctor approved one type, all types, in your case, are safe to take. Your doctor or health care professional should review and authorize each form you consider.
   
9. A final warning about Ashwagandha - too much of this herb can be toxic. In most cases, if you develop symptoms, stop usage, and they will typically go away. As I've stated above, please don't overdo it! You can start slow, and if your body tolerates it, you can increase your amounts. Always consult your doctor or healthcare professional before using Ashwagandha. Remember these cautions when considering trying the impressive benefits of Ashwagandha!
   

Contraindications for Ashwagandha

Ashwagandha is a calming herb that helps people stay alert, focused, and present in high-stress situations. The herb also has been found to help people manage chronic pain, depression, and anxiety. In addition, it does not typically have serious side effects when used appropriately. However, it is always a good plan to consult with your doctor, especially if you are taking any medications or have certain medical conditions that could be affected by this herb.

• Ashwagandha may increase testosterone levels, so patients with hormone-sensitive prostate cancer should avoid its use.
• Patients who take anticonvulsants, benzodiazepines, or barbiturates should likely avoid Ashwagandha because this botanical may have sedative and GABAnergic effects.
• Pregnant women or nursing mothers should avoid Ashwagandha as it may induce abortion at higher doses.

As seen above, Ashwagandha has many benefits for both mental and physical health. You can take it as a supplement, put it in tea, or use the oil form to reap these benefits.

I hope this post was helpful!