Ashwagandha: Exploring the King of Adaptogens and How It Can Help You Fight Stress
Ashwagandha is an adaptogenic herb used in Ayurvedic medicine for thousands of years to treat various conditions. Ayurveda is a form of traditional Indian medicine that balances the mind, body, and spirit. Ashwagandha is known as “Indian ginseng,” “winter cherry,” and Withania somnifera. The ashwagandha plant is a small evergreen shrub that is part of the nightshade family and grows in India, the Middle East, and North Africa.
In Ayurveda, ashwagandha is considered a rusayana, or rejuvenative, for restoring depleted tissues, frazzled nerves, and low libido. Traditionally, the plant roots are used, which can be challenging to digest, so people with low agui, or digestive fire, may want to avoid it. Traditional preparations will pair it with an anupana (carrier) such as ghee, honey, or boiled milk with pepper or cinnamon to improve digestibility. Today, most people take ashwagandha in supplement form, consisting of an extract from the roots and/or leaves.
Adaptogens like ashwagandha help the body adapt to and withstand stress. According to the general adaptation syndrome (GAS) model, the body has a three-stage stress response:
- Alarm reaction (fight or flight) – this is what is often referred to as the “fight or flight” stage. The stressor's onset sends a signal to your hypothalamus, which triggers spikes in adrenaline, norepinephrine, and cortisol. This causes your body to suppress your organs and prepare energy resources to counteract the stressor. Heart rate and blood pressure increase along with blood glucose
- Resistance – during this stage, your body metabolizes and excretes stress hormones, and your systems return to balance. If the stressor is still present, your body remains on high alert during this stage, often triggering irritability and forgetfulness
- Exhaustion – after an extended period of stress, the body has depleted its energy resources by repeatedly trying and failing to recover from the alarm reaction stage. Once you reach the exhaustion phase, your body is no longer equipped to fight stress, and you experience fatigue, depression, and anxiety
We experience constant stress in our daily lives, whether from work deadlines, the daily commute in traffic, family responsibilities, or subtler things like artificial blue light and ultra-processed foods. Our nervous systems are constantly in a state of arousal, and constantly elevated cortisol negatively impacts our long-term health. When you experience persistent stress, your body can’t get out of the exhaustion phase. Adaptogens increase the threshold for triggering a stress response, break down and clear stress hormones, and increase energy to bring your body out of exhaustion.
Ashwagandha has been shown to help balance the relationship between the hypothalamus, pituitary, and adrenal glands (HPA axis), which governs the body’s response to stress. It reduces the activity of the HPA axis so that your body isn’t constantly overreacting to stressful situations.[1] Ashwagandha controls other stress mediators, including heat shock proteins, cortisol, and stress-activated c-Jun N-terminal protein kinase. Studies show that it reduces perceived stress and levels of the stress hormone cortisol. By supporting adrenal function, ashwagandha prevents thyroid hormone and cortisol dysregulation problems.[2]
While ashwagandha is best known for its ability to reduce stress, it has many other positive benefits, including:
- It relieves anxiety and depression – Several studies show that taking ashwagandha can significantly reduce cortisol, perceived stress, and anxiety. Evidence also suggests that ashwagandha may help reduce the symptoms of depression[3]
- It enhances sleep and improves insomnia – Studies suggest that ashwagandha can improve sleep quality, particularly in those with stress-related insomnia. It has also been shown to improve mental alertness upon waking[4]
- It lowers blood sugar, cholesterol, and inflammation – A review of 24 studies found that ashwagandha significantly reduced blood sugar, HbA1c, insulin, blood lipids, and oxidative stress markers. Studies also show promise in boosting immunity and lowering systemic inflammation[5]
- It improves sports and exercise performance – Emerging evidence suggests that ashwagandha can improve athletic performance, including increased endurance, speed, and strength, by enhancing your body’s resilience to physical stress. Research also shows that ashwagandha can help alleviate fatigue from exercise[6]
- It boosts memory and brain function – Studies have shown that people who take ashwagandha score better on tests measuring mental fatigue. It has also been shown in numerous studies to enhance aspects of cognitive function, including reaction time, task performance, memory, and attention[7]
- It improves male fertility and boosts testosterone – Ashwagandha is used in Ayurvedic medicine to improve sexual function and infertility due to its ability to enhance sperm quality. It has also been shown to boost testosterone levels in men by as much as 15%[8]
- It improves female sexual dysfunction – In women, studies have shown benefits from ashwagandha, including increased arousal and enhanced sexual satisfaction[9]
Ashwagandha contains more than 200 metabolites, with glycowithanolides responsible for most of its medicinal properties. Some of the more interesting structures contained in ashwagandha include:
- Withanoside IV – this metabolite reduces stress and anxiety and increases neurogenesis and length of axons
- Sominone – promotes neurogenesis and axon length
- Ashwagandhanolide – has inhibitory effects on certain types of cancers
- Withaferin A – a cytotoxic compound, meaning it can kill cells
- Withanone – promotes cell death in certain cancer cells
Withanone and Withaferina A are toxic to living cells and are found in more significant quantities in leaf extracts than root extracts. You should avoid these poisonous compounds by opting for root extracts over leaf extracts unless they have independent analyses proving low Withaferin A concentration.
A typical daily dose of ashwagandha is 300-600mg with 2-5% withanolides concentration. If your ashwagandha is higher in withanolides, it will have an extra calming effect, which may or may not be a good thing. KSM-66 is a root extract that preserves the natural proportions of active ingredients found in the root and uses a milk extraction process that is consistent with traditional Ayurvedic methods. Clinical studies of KSM-66 show that it promotes cognitive function, stress management, sleep, endurance, and recovery.[10] It’s a safe, low-toxicity form of ashwagandha with a glycowithanolide concentration of 5% and negligible concentrations of Withaferin A.
Ashwagandha is generally safe and well-tolerated. However, people with autoimmune diseases should avoid ashwagandha. It can upregulate the immune system as an adaptogen, exacerbating these conditions. It also stimulates the thyroid and can worsen an already overactive thyroid. Women with hormone imbalances, particularly PCOS, should also avoid ashwagandha because it promotes testosterone.
If you’ve hung around Reddit or the esoteric side of Twitter, you have probably seen anecdotes about people becoming emotionless, a condition known as anhedonia, after long-term use of ashwagandha. It’s important to understand that ashwagandha is an adaptogen; everyone responds differently to adaptogens. However, numerous studies suggest that ashwagandha is safe for consumption without considerable side effects. It is more likely that some people feel like a “zombie” when taking ashwagandha because they are so used to redlining their cortisol and anxiety 24/7 and have forgotten what normal hormone balance feels like. It’s also possible that people are taking insanely high doses of ashwagandha with huge withanolide concentrations.
While some people claim that you need to cycle ashwagandha to combat the supposed risk of anhedonia, thus far, the literature does not find any usefulness in cycling ashwagandha.
Meanwhile, some people worry that ashwagandha supplementation increases the risk of liver toxicity and DNA damage. But if you dig into those studies, you can see that this is not a risk if you take the proper form and dosage of ashwagandha. The studies in question show that Withianone (Win) causes liver and DNA damage in high doses. We see this with many vitamins, herbs, and pharmaceuticals: “The dose makes the poison.” Acetaminophen (Tylenol) is also toxic to the liver in high doses. But if used at proper dosages, it is detoxified by your body’s store of the antioxidant glutathione. The same can be said of Win, which is found in significantly higher amounts in leaves versus roots (19 and 3 mg/g, respectively). So, avoid leaf extracts and stick to a dose of 400-800mg per day. Also, ensure your glutathione stores are topped up to ensure proper detoxification by supplementing with vitamin C, NAC, and selenium.
Ashwagandha has been used safely for thousands of years and can profoundly affect your stress levels, mood, sleep, brain function, exercise performance, and sexual health. THRIVE contains 400mg of KSM-66 ashwagandha to help optimize your mind-body balance.
Note: This article is for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always consult a physician before taking any supplement. These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
[1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6750292/
[2] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6979308/
[3] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6979308/
[4] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7096075/
[5] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31975514/
[6] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8006238/
[7] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31742775/
[8] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6438434/