In Ayurvedic therapy, Ashwagandha is a plant that aids the body in dealing with stress and boosts the defense system. In addition, it is a powerful adaptogen that can lower the amount of cortisol in the body. Cortisol is a hormone that can cause problems for people with ongoing stress.
The Mayo Clinic says it is also a good anti-inflammatory and may help with joint pain and tight muscles. It can even help improve your mood and give you more energy.
Significant Gains vs. Side Effects
The plant could also help you build more muscle and get stronger. A study found in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition found that when taken with resistance training, ashwagandha supplements were linked to significant gains in upper and lower body strength. It was also shown to protect muscles from damage caused by exercise and raise testosterone levels in men.
There is no proof that Ashwagandha causes side effects in healthy adults, but it may not be a good idea for people taking certain prescription drugs. For example, it might change the amount of thyroid hormone in your body, so if you’re on medicine, it’s best to talk to your doctor before you start taking the plant. As an anti-inflammatory, it can help with arthritis and rheumatoid arthritis that cause pain and swelling. It has also been shown to help treat lung inflammation and reduce the mucus made by the immune system, which lets it work better.
Several Benefits
Ashwagandha can also help people with problems sleeping, like sleeplessness. It can help you fall asleep faster and stay asleep longer, making it less likely that you’ll have bad dreams or other sleep problems that could mess up your sleep pattern. It can also help with worry, sadness, and stress. In addition, it can help keep your stress hormones in balance and lessen the effects of anxiety, like feeling tired, having tight muscles, and having less desire.
In addition to making you feel less stressed, Ashwagandha can help your body produce more chemicals and hormones, like serotonin, which can improve your mood and give you more energy. It can also help control the sugar in your blood and lower your cholesterol.
The herb may also help with menopause signs, like hot flashes. This is a fleeting feeling of extreme chest, neck, and face heat. Most of the time, they cause heat and sweating but don’t last long.
Ashwagandha is said to have anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties that help protect the body from free radicals, which can cause cancer, heart disease, and other illnesses. People also think that it makes the immune system work better and makes more white blood cells.
It may also help slow or stop the start of Alzheimer’s disease. In addition, it might be anti-inflammatory and stop plaques from building up in the brain. It has also been shown to help cells grow, fix mental problems, and lower the amount of amyloid beta in mice with Alzheimer’s disease.
It has also been shown to help healthy people and those with mild cognitive damage improve their ability to think and remember. The plant significantly improved reaction times and general memory in small studies on several cognitive tests.
