You might have not heard of ashwagandha before but this exotic super herb certainly deserves the limelight. Traditional medicine traces it back several thousand years — and its popularity is only growing, as ashwagandha provides many benefits for men and women alike.
Growing naturally in India, the Middle East, and several African nations, the root of the ashwagandha plant has been linked to a number of different uses and benefits.¹
In fact, ashwagandha has been a part of the ayurvedic health system for six millennia. Yes, six millennia! If you’re not familiar with ayurveda, it marks the traditional approach to medicine rooted in the Indian subcontinent.²
Coming from South Asia, this traditional and holistic approach is now also making waves in the Western world — bearing a message about this powerful herb you should try.
So let’s find out when to take ashwagandha and let’s learn about its many benefits for men and women — how you can take care of your body, feel energized, and take charge of your health.
What the Heck is Ashwagandha & When Should You Take It?
While ashwagandha might be a new word for you to add to your list of hard-to-pronounce names of herbs, it’s more than just a tongue-twister. The many benefits of ashwagandha are evidenced by the role it can play in your health.
Botanically referred to as Withania somnifera, ashwagandha is also dubbed “Indian Winter Cherry” or called “Indian Ginseng.”² The term “ashwa” means horse and references the distinct smell of the ashwagandha root — giving ashwagandha a name linking to the “power of the horse.”²
Traditionally, ashwagandha has been used as a Rasayana² — an ayurvedic approach used to support longevity and maintain youthfulness. As a matter of fact, for the majority of six thousand years, this is what ashwagandha has been used for.²
Needless to say, ashwagandha has stood the test of time, knocking on our doorstep many millennia later, able to provide benefits and value to those who use it.
When to take ashwagandha then, you wonder? In classical use, the root of the ashwagandha plant is crushed and diluted with water and used for joint inflammation, but also to improve memory and anxiety, as well as achieving an anti-stress calming effect on those who take it.²
While we’re mainly focusing on consuming ashwagandha, there’s a lot more to it — even including options for topical use that can help with swelling and ulcers.²
Let’s dissect this a little bit more in-depth, so we can fully grasp the benefits of ashwagandha for both men and women. Ready to take your herbal journey to the next level? Let’s go, my friend.
The Long List of Ashwagandha Benefits for Men & Women
If you’re as much of a nature-lover as we are and like to look for plants and herbs to help you in living a healthy life, you might want to add ashwagandha to your list. ashwagandha is packed with an array of benefits for men and women alike and can boost your health.
Here’s how:
(1) It Can Relieve Stress & Anxiety
You know what it’s like: you’re drowning in piles of paperwork at the office, rushing to get dinner on the table on time, and hearing your kids happily scream in the background while taking down your favorite vase — an irreplaceable family heirloom from your great-grandmother.
Your stress odometer keeps on ticking, slowly but surely. You’re beginning to feel overwhelmed, causing waves of anxiety to take over.
In this jungle of chaos, here’s some good news: ashwagandha is a common ayurvedic adaptogen — meaning the extract from the ashwagandha root can be used to counteract stress,³ so you can feel like yourself again.
Research even suggests that taking ashwagandha can help lower your levels of cortisol,³ which is your dreaded stress hormone. Less cortisol means feeling less stressed and improving your overall quality of life.³
(2) It Can Reduce Fatigue
Out of the corner of your eye, you’re reluctantly glancing at the overflowing laundry baskets — no, you can’t pretend they’re not there anymore. But you’re physically drained and mentally exhausted. That’s when you can take ashwagandha and help get those energy levels back up.
But how does it work?
In traditional ayurvedic medicine, ashwagandha is known to boost your energy and support your well-being by combating fatigue. Whether you’re physically worn out or mentally stretched thin, fatigue can certainly exacerbate the situation.
Feeling depleted of energy can make it harder to get through the day and perform well at your job. We know how important it is for you to be able to function at full charge and ashwagandha can help you get there.
(3) It Can Sharpen Your Memory
While we’re all forgetful at times, some of us have a much sharper memory and can recall events in vibrant colors, remembering amazing details and key specifics. Yes, you’ve guessed correctly. This is one more benefit ashwagandha can have for both men and women.
But our memory can change over time — sometimes as a result of old age and sometimes due to illness. Memories become more distant and less vivid and it feels like suddenly there are blank pages in your life story.
You’re reminiscing over your child’s birth and telling your friends about how cute Baby Max was when he was born. How much he weighed? That’s easy… Umm… Well, not sure right now actually. How come you don’t remember? You only have one child.
Just like other parts of our bodies, our brain function and memory require constant nurturing. Studies suggest that ashwagandha can support memory in elderly individuals or those with neurodegenerative diseases, such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s.²
Supporting your memory consistently can help give it the extra charge it needs to run smoothly — even when you get older.
(4) It Can Reduce Inflammation & Support Your Immune Function
There are more benefits to this powerful herb — ashwagandha may also have anti-inflammatory properties, which means that it can help with inflammation in your body and support your immune system. Just another one of its amazing benefits for women and men.
Inflammatory diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis can show improvement when you take ashwagandha.² Even throughout ayurveda’s history of traditional medicine, ashwagandha has been used to help with joint inflammation.²
By acting as an anti-inflammatory agent, ashwagandha can support your immune system. But research also suggests that taking ashwagandha can also increase your cytokines⁴ — a type of protein that helps manage your immune cells.
Ashwagandha can therefore contribute to a healthy immune system by boosting your immunity.⁴
Ready to Try Herbaland’s New Ashwagandha Gummies?
You want to just leave your stress behind and find a way to stay calm and energized throughout the day. That’s when it’s a good time for you to take ashwagandha and strive for a natural alternative to relieve your stress.
We know it’s not easy to find a way to calm your nerves, especially given the demands of today’s lives — but no need to panic because we got you.
Herbaland is proud to introduce our new ashwagandha gummies that can help boost your energy and curb your anxiety. It’s time to shake that stress off of you and say goodbye to mentally and physically draining fatigue.
Our ashwagandha gummies come with a punchy orange tea flavor and are:
- Vegan
- Gluten-free
- Sugar-free
- And Non-GMO
And because we always seek to improve things, starting with your health and ending with the health of our planet, each pouch is 100% compostable. Better even, we plant a tree for every pouch purchased because, let’s face it, our environment is invaluable.
If you’re ready to try our fruit-flavored ashwagandha gummies, be prepared to have a full charge again and say buh-bye to stress, anxiety, and fatigue. Let’s take on the next adventure — because we’re sure it’s already waiting for you.
FDA Disclosure:
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.
References:
- Ashwagandha: Health benefits, side effects, and how to use. Accessed January 31, 2023. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/318407#_noHeaderPrefixedContent.
- Singh N, Bhalla M, de Jager P, Gilca M. An overview on ashwagandha: a Rasayana (rejuvenator) of Ayurveda. Afr J Tradit Complement Altern Med. 2011;8(5 Suppl):208-13. doi: 10.4314/ajtcam.v8i5S.9. Epub 2011 Jul 3. PMID: 22754076; PMCID: PMC3252722.
- Chandrasekhar K, Kapoor J, Anishetty S. A prospective, randomized double-blind, placebo-controlled study of safety and efficacy of a high-concentration full-spectrum extract of ashwagandha root in reducing stress and anxiety in adults. Indian J Psychol Med. 2012 Jul;34(3):255-62. doi: 10.4103/0253-7176.106022. PMID: 23439798; PMCID: PMC3573577.
- Tharakan A, Shukla H, Benny IR, Tharakan M, George L, Koshy S. Immunomodulatory Effect of Withania somnifera (Ashwagandha) Extract-A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo Controlled Trial with an Open Label Extension on Healthy Participants. J Clin Med. 2021 Aug 18;10(16):3644. doi: 10.3390/jcm10163644. PMID: 34441940; PMCID: PMC8397213.