What the Heck Is Ayurveda?
Ashwaghanda has been used in Ayurvedic medicine for three millennia. Ayurveda, one of the oldest systems of medicine in the world, has been practiced in India since a time before written word. So many of the Ayurvedic practices were passed orally from generation to generation. Ayurveda comes from the Sanskrit words for life (ayur) and knowledge (veda).
An Herb By Many Names...
Ashwaghanda, scientific name Withania somnifera, has many names, and many spellings. Let’s start with the Sanskrit meaning for the name; the Sanskrit words ashva, meaning horse and gandha, meaning smell probably refer to the strong smell of the roots, but it could be argued that the consumption of the root can give a guy, or gal, the strength of a horse.
The spelling is a nightmare if you’re doing any research. Ajagandha, ashand, ashandh, asgandha, ashagandha, ashvaganda, ashwanga, asvagandha, aswagandha, the list goes on.
Then there are the completely different names: amangura, asan, asoda, avarada, Ayurvedic ginseng, clustered winter cherry, withania, kuthmithi,. And my favorite, Rhoda asoda, because it rhymes.
So What’s Ashwaghanda’s Claim to Ayurvedic Fame?
Ashwaghanda is the crown jewel of Ayurvedic medicine. It is prized as the Fountain of Youth herb and is used to treat multifarious maladies and afflictions.
Stress Management - My Favorite Use For Ashwaganda
Okay, so you know when you get all stressed out and you start feeling tired and have a hard time thinking clearly? You start feeling like you must have mad cow disease or something because you can’t remember where you put your keys or your specs? If it’s been more than just a stressful day or two, it’s been a stressful month, maybe you’re putting on some extra belly, having a hard time sleeping and your decision making skills are lacking.
Well, that’s the work of cortisol. Cortisol is the corticosteroid that is pumped out of your adrenal gland when you’re stressted out. It’s the fight or flight hormone. Longterm stress causes longterm cortisol presence. Longterm cortisol presence can increase the risk of insomnia, depression, anxiety, headaches, memory loss, impaired concentration, heart disease, weight gain, high blood sugar and digestive trouble, among other things.
Although studies of herbal medicine in the U.S. are limited (reasons for that are numerous, and a subject for another post), in other countries herbal medicine is studied and taken seriously.
Ashwaghanda has been shown to reduce both stress and anxiety in patients during a double blind test overseen by doctors at the Department of Neuropsychiatry and Geriatric Phychiatry at Asha Hospital, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India.
In another study performed by the Department of Pharmacology, Institute of Medical Sciences, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India showed that the use of Ashwaganda was as effective as lorazepam in treating depression and anxiety.
Both studies showed that ashwaganda can be used safely to treat depression and anxiety.
Ashwaganda Is Also Used In The Treatment Of...
- Inflammation
- Longevity and Anti-Aging
- Athletic Performance
- Cardiovascular Ailments
- Osteoporosis
- Alzheimer’s and Memory Problems
- Arthritis and Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
- Cancer
- High Cholesterol
Many scientific studies have been done on the effectiveness of ashwaganda use. Don’t take my word for the safety or effectiveness of ashwaganda use. Do your own research.
Preparation and Dosage
The general guidelines for preparing ashwaganda: make a tea by boiling ashwaganda root in water for 15 minutes and allow it to cool. Drink 750 mL per day. If using ashwaganda root tincture the dosage is 2-4 mL, three times daily.
Side Effects
According to Dr. Peter Bongiorno ND, LAc in a Phychology Today article, ashwaganda has no noted side effects, but when taken in large doses it could cause stomach upset, diarrhea or vomiting.
Warnings and Precautions
Ashwaganda is likely to be unsafe during pregnancy, and could cause miscarriage. Do not use while breast-feeding.
Ashwaganda can lower blood sugar, and this could interfere with diabetes medication and cause dagerously low blood sugar.
Ashwaganda should be used cautiously with medications for high blood pressure, and when used by anyone with low blood pressure.
Ashwaganda may irritate the GI tract and should not be used by anyone with stomach ulcers.
Ashwagandha can make the immune system more active, which can increase the symptoms of auto-immune diseases such as multiple sclerosis, lupus, rheumatoid arthritis and other conditions.
Ashwaganda can slow the central nervous system. Anesthesia and other meds during and after surgery could increase this effect. Do not take ashwaganda for two weeks prior to a scheduled surgery.
Ashwaganda can increase thyroid hormone levels. Anyone with a thyroid condition or taking thyroid hormone medications should use caution when taking ashwaganda, or avoid it altogether.
More information about the potential risks and side effects of ashwaganda can be found at WebMD.
You may be interested in these other posts about medicinal herbs:
- Here you can learn a little about toothache plant.
- Lemon balm is my go-to for congestion and bronchitis. Learn about it here.
Congratulations @powellx5!
Your post was mentioned in the hit parade in the following category:
Fantastic post! My brother gave me a bottle of Ashwaghanda a while back, I stashed it and forgot all about it until now. I'll definitely give it a go.
For sure! Do you have a particular condition you’d like to treat with it, or are you thinking of the overall benefit of it?
I believe I have symptoms of adrenal fatigue. I'm mostly concerned with my derealization disorder which I got from a super stressful event. I try not to go too hard on supplements as I don't want freak out my body. I take fish oil, probiotic, Vitamin D3, L-Theanine and biotin... basics.
I haven't done any reasearch on derealization disorder. But ashwaganda is said to be super useful in the treatment of adrenal fatigue. Good luck, @shoogie!
I appreciate the luck! I'm going to look further into it for sure.
I have a friend who sqears by it. We would love to grow it here too
Here is an Australian seed supplier with good reviews that you might want to look into. :)
Thank you, I .will
synchronicity is against strong today - i had just picked up one of my ayurveda books last night & was wondering which plants i should consider attempting. thanks for hearing my ponderings!
You ask and the universe delivers!
i am so thankful for it! <3
Very informative article. Didn't realize it had so many uses.
I almost did it in two parts so I could get further into it. It really is one of the work horses of my tiny apothecary.
There was a time in my life when I knew so many plants and uses. Life carried me in another direction for what seems like a very long time! lol You are re kindling my interest! On steem I find there are so many things i'm interested in. From food to politics and technology. Looking forward to more posts. :)
I know! Steemit has reminded me of things that I forgot I loved and made me aware of things I wish I had started loving a long time ago. ☺
That was beautiful as always, Shari :-)
You forgot to include the space between the ### and the Thanks ;-)
Thanks for the typo catch! 😋 Have a great day!
Nice! Thanks to you I learned a lot today. And now I really want to grow Ashweganda!
Good! There's so much more to ashwaganda, just too much to put in a single post. (I try to keep them around a five minute read, three is better...with the attention span of the average human 😂.) But if you're interested and have time, you might look into aome of the other benefits and the traditional uses.
Well my attention span is like a 3 year old child! Well half the time anyway :P Yes I should read up on Ashweganda, it sounds amazing. Thanks for putting it on my radar :)
I have heard of this herb!! (Not even gonna try to spell it right now...LOL)
I see you have a seed packet for it!! It had not even occurred to me that you might be able to grow it!!
Thanks for the inspiration!
Off to research!
♥
There's so much to research, like I said to @sagescrub. It's a rabbit hole!
Absolutely!!
Awesome post! I write a lot about medicinal plants too, but mainly the ones growing around my home. I do not have ashwaganda! I've heard a lot of good things though. Maybe I'll add it to the gardens this year. Do you grow it?
Yes, I grow it. There are so many wonderful medicinal plants, I only jave time to thoroughly research those that I grow. I'm gonna check out you stuff. Matbe I can skip some research and find some new stuff to add to the garden! ☺
Yes, so so many :) it's awesome :) I haven't done a lot of plant posts yet, I think I've covered 5 or so. I am waiting on a lot because I want to get awesome pics of them when they're growing :)
I’ve thought the same thing, but I want to encourage people to get them started and use them this season. I figure I’ll post nice pretty pictures of them at harvest time and give a how-to on storage, preparation and use.
I’ve read through a few of your posts. I’m always just a little sad to think that people do everything they can to wipe out all the weeds on their lawns. Plantain, dandelion and so many others are so undervalued. I can’t help but think that it’s just a lack of education. But then again, when I tell anyone about how beneficial they are, they just roll their eyes. I guess it’s just a difference in values.
I did a post on lemon balm also. You probably saw the link at the end of the article up there. I use it mainly as an inhalant for chest congestion.
I had no idea that Old Man’s Beard was medicinal! I’ll be collecting it when I get a chance! Thanks so much for that information!
Yeah I'm going to keep making posts too, I do have some good pics saved :)
I very much agree about the weed thing. I think its definately a lack of knowing, but it's not their fault they haven't been taught. That's what I hope to do, help people learn! At least spark some interest hopefully :)
I did see you did a Lemon balm post, so funny that our main uses for it are diffetent. Just shows you how amazing these plants are, so many uses for each!
I'm really glad I could share some knowledge with you, I look forward to learning from you too!
@powellx5
Nice post, just reminded me to take some Ashwaganda, it is quite nice, makes me wake up early with a lot of energy, but if I take to much I don't want to sleep at night...
Yeah, there's such a thing as too much of a good thing, for sure. I appriciate feedback from other's who actually use the herbs I post about. I think it adds to the credibility of the article. Thanks for sharing!
@powellx5
Cool, thank you!!! Thanks for sharing!!! If you have any questions or such I can answer you!
How did I miss this post?!
I don't know, but of you enjoyed it, I'm glad you found it! 😄
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thanks for this post @powellx5 i follow u please follow me @exchangetimes
I'll take a look at your page and see what I can see. 😀 Have a wonderful day!