Ashwagandha is a plant that has various medical health benefits. These 10 Health Benefits of Ashwagandha Himalaya That Are Scientifically Proven.
Ashwagandha is commonly known by many names such as:
- Ashwagandha Patanjali
- Withania Somnifera
- Indian Ginseng
- Winter Cherry
- Poison Gooseberry
The plant belongs from the family Solanaceae and has been used in Ayurvedic medicine formulations.
There are clinical facts available about Ashwagandha being a noticeable anti-ailment and adaptogen which also provides brain-boosting results.
Cultivation
It is mainly cultivated in the drylands, countries who cultivate this plant massively are India, China, and Nepal.
Its cultivation season is early spring and the cutting takes place in the late spring.
What Does it Contains?
This Indian Ginseng contains varieties of constituents from its Phytochemistry site.
It has:
- Triterpenes Lactones
- Steroidal Lactones
- Tropine
- Withanolides
- Withaferin A
- Alkaloids
These chemical entities are either eliminated and used separately or in many formulations, they all are present to provide the synergistic effects.
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Ashwagandha Health Benefits
Ashwagandha provides wide arrays of health benefits, below are given 10 top rated medical benefits from the use of Ashwagandha each of which is clinically approved and tested on humans for complete assurance.
1) Reduce Stress and Anxiety
According to many research analysis, Ashwagandha in rats inhibits the stress pathway that signals the central nervous system.
In human, regular use of Ashwagandha reduces the symptoms of anxiety and anxiety which includes feelings of despair, suicidal thoughts, and weakened brain function.
In research where the subjects who were in a chronic state of anxiety were taken.
The study was about 60 days where those individuals who took Ashwagandha supplement regularly experienced a 69% reduction in anxiety, stress, and insomnia.
The 6 weeks’ study performed on males and females elucidated the fact that 88% of them with anxiety were treated completely in comparison with a group who only took a placebo.
2) Strength and Muscle Mass Enhancement
It can increase the density of muscle mass and the strength you have in those muscles.
After taking an effective dosage of the minced Ashwagandha root of about 1250 mg, you can gain over 10 lbs of muscle mass within 30 days only.
Besides increasing body fat, Ashwagandha root tends to suppress the unwanted body fats and manage the body fat percentage of the ideal range.
Studies in which this effect was noticed actually made two groups, one of which had the placebo, just to see the standard effects.
3) Boost Testosterone
That’s right, It can drastically increase the production of natural testosterone hormone which affects the fertility in men.
It is entirely good for reproductive health and the quality of sperms that defines men’s sexual nature.
In a study where 75 sexually disoriented men were taken, about 90% of them after using Ashwagandha supplementation had improved sperm count and motility.
This was because their body started the testosterone generation which since a long time hadn’t found any stimuli.
It provides an effective dose of antioxidants that is good for sperm quality.
Men who cannot impregnate women in a study on Ashwagandha, after 3 months of the supplement about 41% cases were able to make their wives pregnant.
4) Eradicate the Depression Symptoms
Severe depression is a form of the deadly condition which makes men and women extremely mentally fragile.
Subjects who took high concentrated Ashwagandha extract noticed a 79% reduction in the depression symptoms.
Usually, the placebo effects normally eliminate depressive thoughts, but not to the severely depressed individuals.
It takes about 600 mg of Ashwagandha extract for them to overcome the depression.
Reduction of Cortisol hormone level is also associated with the anti-depression effects of Ashwagandha.
5) Blood Sugar Level Reduction
It clearly reduces the total blood sugar level because it has the following effects.
- Increased insulin secretion
- Increased Mast Cells sensitivity to insulin
In human studies, Ashwagandha found effective in lowering the sugar level of individual with or without diabetes.
The same study was done on diabetic individuals, after which it was noticed that through the 30 days’ course of Ashwagandha supplementation, their fasting blood sugar level decreased as it responded to the hypoglycemic medications.
When your body produces more insulin, the sugar will no longer remain and converted into fat but they rather utilized as energy.
6) Reduce Inflammation
Here, we are talking about different forms of inflammation.
One that occurs intracellularly while others take place mainly in the muscles.
Human studies on Ashwagandha supplements prevailed that it secretes a vast quantity of natural killer cells that overcome the inflammation at a much faster rate.
Bodybuilding supplement which has Ashwagandha extract in the list of ingredients are used to battle the muscle fatigue condition.
It also decreases the rate of inflammatory mediators like cytokines and C-Reactive protein that can further lead to cardiovascular disease.
Taking 250 mg of Ashwagandha extract daily can decrease the formation of C-Reactive Protein by 36%, according to the human trials.
7) Recover Brain Functions & Memory Power
Latest studies show that Ashwagandha can treat the marks of reduced memory and brain functions problems which are caused by injury, trauma or any form of the disease.
This can be asserted due to the transfer of anti-oxidant which fight against free radicals.
These free radicals are harmful to the nerve cells and on a longer time, they can cause neurodegeneration.
In Ayurvedic medicines, Rennet holds the ability to boost memory.
The study, in which 500 mg of Ashwagandha root extract was given to the subjects regularly, which shows improvements in their brain related tasks and boosted memory retaining skills about 50-60%.
8) Anti-Carcinogenic (Anti-Cancer)
Ashwagandha supplements are basically known to induce the process of apoptosis.
In medical terms, Apoptosis is a programmed cell death due to the over-accumulation of cancerous toxins inside.
The formation of new cancer cells is well hampered by Ashwagandha in different ways which are:
- Generation of ROS (Reactive Oxygen Species) which plays a toxic role for cancer cells without harming the normal cells
- It minimizes the resistance approach by the cancerous cells in the process of apoptosis
In animals, Ashwagandha Himalaya seems to treat the following kind of cancers.
- Breast cancer
- Lungs cancer
- Brain cancer
- Ovarian cancer
- Colon cancer
In a study on mice who were suffering from Ovarian cancer, administering Ashwagandha extract with anti-cancerous medication can maximize the effects up to 80%.
There are no facts that support it can work on humans though.
9) Efficient Against Hyperlipidemia (Excessive Cholesterol and Triglycerides)
In many cultures, Ashwagandha is called cardio-protective agent because it looks after the health of the heart by eliminating the bad cholesterol from heart valves and arteries.
Animal studies show that it optimally minimizes the total blood fat by 53% if used regularly.
Controlled studies on human, however, shows very little effects. About 17% reduction in the level of bad cholesterol (LDL) and an 11% decline in Triglyceride rate.
10) It Is a Safe Herbal Extract
Ashwagandha extract is far much better and effective than Ashwagandha leaf or root extract in crude form.
The herb does not pose any negative impact on human physiology, however lactating and pregnant women may not take it for safety purposes.
The daily recommended dose of Ashwagandha Extract is 400-500 mg capsule twice daily.
Being a natural herb, some of the side effects are definitely absent in the extract of Rennet.
Conclusion of Ashwagandha Benefits
Ashwagandha Himalaya is a traditional medicinal plant in India, which has multiple health benefits.
It is cultivated mostly in China, India, and Nepal. Besides being an adaptogen, Its extract has a wide ranges of health benefits.
From blood sugar lowering agent for treating depression, stress, and anxiety.
There are only limited things which Ashwagandha cannot do. Adding these healthy plant extracts in your life can improve the quality of your living as well as affect you in so many ways.
Men with sexual disorders like erectile dysfunction and loss of libido are taking Ashwagandha for an ultimate bedroom session.
Seemingly, the herb affects sexual health as well as making you mentally bold and active which is truly demanded by their partners.
In females, it increases the fertility ratio.