Ashwagandha reduces cortisol levels, stress and can even boost testosterone levels. Read more to find out all the Ashwagandha benefits.
Ashwagandha Benefits
About 4 million people in the world still put their trust in natural herbs and medicinal plants. Disciplines like the very famous Ayurveda relies on herbs and plants for health care. One of the major herbs used is Ashwagandha. It is also known as the Indian ginseng or winter cherry. It has been in use for over a thousand years in both Chinese as well as Ayurvedic medicines.
So let’s see what is it that makes Ashwagandha so special!
Ashwagandha – benefits
The great thing about Ashwagandha is that it is an adaptogen. It can help our body get relief from stress. Preliminary research also indicates that it has therapeutic capabilities. The use of Ashwagandha can benefit our body in many ways. It has properties like anti-inflammation, anti-oxidizing, sleep induction and drug withdrawal. It can improve different health issues, even rheumatism and arthritis!
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And there are many more benefits so let\’s check some of them out in detail.
Benefits as an antioxidant
It can successfully combat diseases like Alzheimer\’s and Parkinson\’s. This is because it has been found to be very effective in reversing neurotic atrophy. It can also revert synaptic losses, which helps further. It also has a particular effect called the GABA mimicking effect. It promotes the creation of dendrites in the body. Nowadays it is being used as a neuroregenerative agent in medicine.
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Ashwagandha is also extremely rich in antioxidants. It can thus have an antioxidant effect in the brain as well. Ashwagandha in daily diet could increase the levels of major free-radical scavenging enzymes. These include superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione peroxidase (GPX). These are primarily responsible for the protection of the brain. It also protects nervous tissue against oxidative damage.
Benefits for men
Ashwagandha benefits men by helping to increase muscle mass and body strength. Studies corroborate that its regular intake helps to improve velocity and muscle power. There was also a reduced systolic pressure as a result. Supplementing ashwagandha in daily diet could thus improve muscular strength and body coordination.
Ashwagandha may also be a great help to boost testosterone levels in the body. As a result, your fertility could improve too. Stress has a huge impact on testosterone levels in the body. It impacts your sexual performance too. Since ashwagandha has properties that help to control stress, it can improve fertility. Studies show that regular intake of ashwagandha could actually improve semen quality. It helps to revive the enzymatic activity of metabolic pathways and energy metabolism. thus, it helps to form a more fertile body. It could even be used as a possible medicine to treat male infertility!
Benefits for women
Ashwagandha has anti-ageing properties, as per researchers. It can benefit our skin and body in general. It can promote melanin production in hair. This helps to reduce grey hair. It can also make the hair follicles more strong, so that hair fall gets reduced. Ashwagandha is great to increase haemoglobin levels and red blood cell count in the blood.
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Ashwagandha is a common ingredient used in most shampoos and conditioners. It is organic and promotes healthy hair growth. It allows for better blood circulation in the scalp and keeps the scalp moist through natural oil production. This way, the scalp is never dry and the hair is lustrous and shiny.
Benefits for weight loss
Ashwagandha can definitely help to lower cholesterol levels in our body. Added to that, it is also able to control the levels of triglycerides in the body. It can thus help to decrease the amount of fat in the blood, thereby promoting weight loss. Studies show that people who regularly take ashwagandha had reduced levels of LDL or bad cholesterol, even up to 17%.
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Along with reducing cholesterol, ashwagandha has the added benefit of being anti-inflammatory. It can keep your heart healthy by reducing inflammation in the body. The levels of C-reactive protein controls risk to heart diseases. Ashwagandha can efficiently decrease the levels of CRP to adequate levels, as per recent research.
Benefits for diabetes
Ashwagandha has been known to reduce the blood sugar levels significantly, thereby controlling diabetes. Studies confirm that people who consume ashwagandha has a marked increase in insulin secretion in their body. Their insulin sensitivity was also improved, as per the study.
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Benefits for anxiety and stress
We all get anxious and stressed out. It is human nature, but what we should remember is that chronic stress is never good for the body. It leads to fast depletion of essential vitamins and minerals in the body. Ashwagandha functions as an adaptogen, which helps to efficiently manage stress. It does this by managing the serum cortisol levels in the body that usually increases during stressful situations.
Reference: 10
Ashwagandha for cancer
Ashwagandha has also been known to reduce risk against cancer! It can affect the tumour growth in the body and inhibit it. The roots of ashwagandha plant help in this by blocking the growth of cancerous cells. So ashwagandha has been used in cancer treatments like chemotherapy. Research also suggests that ashwagandha can even be used as a synergizer for other cancer-related treatment procedures.
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Ashwagandha and its side effects
In small to medium dosages, it is perfectly okay to consume ashwagandha. There have not been any long term research to look into the long term effects of consumption of this herb. Some records suggest that pregnant women should refrain from using ashwagandha. It may cause premature delivery of the baby. This could prove risky to the health of both mother and child. Another point of concern is the production standards of the herb. Most of the unsupervised production of the herb may contain toxins. These include lead and mercury at high levels. This makes it unacceptable for human consumption. So do make sure to use only products that follow specific standards.
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As explained in detail above, ashwagandha is a traditional herb. It contains wonderful medicinal properties. It has a great many benefits, including reducing the risk of cancer, Alzheimer\’s and other chronic diseases. It is anti-inflammatory and has anti-ageing properties. If used properly, it can do a world of good for our skin, hair, and body. Stay happy and healthy through following this traditional medicine!