Ashwagandha
by Marcus Ettinger DC, BSc.
10/3/07
A Potent
Adaptogen
We live in a world where stress is a constant reality and has
become accepted as a normal part of the western lifestyle. Stress is probably
the most powerful influence on human beings just behind genetics. Stress exerts
its profound effects on both our physical body and mental state. Research has
been ongoing for decades to deconstruct the effects of stress on humans and to
discover compounds that will reduce its negative effects. Ashwagandha is widely
used in Ayurvedic and Western herbal formulas as an adaptogen**
- a substance that can help our bodies naturally adapt and increase resistance
to physical and emotional stress.
Practitioners worldwide believe that adaptogenic herbs and supplements are an
important addition to any daily supplementation program.
Anti-Stressor
Ashwagandha has been shown to increase stress resistance, improve
memory-related performance, and protect against stress induced responses such as
anxiety, and physiological imbalances, according to numerous animal studies and
several human studies.
A comparative study of the anxiety-reducing and antidepressive actions of
ashwagandha with that of Lorazepam (benzodiazepine) was conducted in mice. Mice
treated with both ashwagandha and benzodiazepine exhibited a reduction in brain
concentrations of a specific neuron-chemical normally elevated in those who
experience anxiety. Ashwagandha, in the same study, exhibited strong
antidepressive effects. The results of similar studies support the use of
ashwagandha as an anti-stress adaptogen[1].
In a clinical study utilizing rats, the stress-reducing effects of extracts of
ashwagandha were compared with those of Asian ginseng (Panax ginseng). Both
ashwagandha and Panax ginseng reduced the number and severity of chronic
stress–induced ulcers, reversed the chronic stress–induced inhibition of male
sexual behavior, and inhibited the adverse effects of chronic stress on the
retention of learned tasks[2].
[1]Bhattacharya SK, Bhattacharya A, Sairam K, Ghosal S. Anxiolytic-antidepressant activity of Withania somnifera
glycowithanolides: an experimental study. Phytomedicine 2000;7:463-469.
[2]Bhattarcharya SK, Muruganandam AV. Adaptogenic activity of Withania somnifera: an experimental
study using a rat model of chronic stress. Pharmacol Biochem Behav
2003;75:547-555.
Anti-Aging
The anti-aging effects of Ashwagandha were shown in a
double-blind clinical trial in which 101 healthy men aged 50–59 years received a
dosage of 3 grams Ashwagandha for 1 year. Specifically, significant improvements
in hemoglobin, red blood cell counts, hair melanin concentrations, and serum
cholesterol concentrations were observed.[1]
[1]Kuttan G. Use of Withania
somnifera Dunal as an adjuvant during radiation therapy. Indian J Exp Biol
1996;34:854-856.
Additional
information on specific terms:
**Adaptogen
(wikipedia) The word adaptogen is used by
herbalists to refer to a natural herb product that increases the body's
resistance to stresses such as trauma, anxiety and bodily fatigue. In the past
they have been called rejuvenating herbs, qi tonics, rasayanas**, or restoratives.
All adaptogens contain antioxidants, but antioxidants are not necessarily
adaptogens and that is probably not their primary mode of action.[1]
Knowledge about adaptogens dates back thousands of years to ancient India and
China, but serious scientific study did not begin until the late 1940s. In 1947,
Dr. Nikolai Lazarev defined an adaptogen as an agent that allows the body to
counter adverse physical, chemical, or biological stressors by raising
nonspecific resistance toward such stress, thus allowing the organism to “adapt”
to the stressful circumstances..[1]
In 1968, Israel I. Brekhman , PhD, and Dr. I. V. Dardymov formally gave
adaptogens a functional definition, as follows:
1. An adaptogen is nontoxic to the recipient.
2. An adaptogen produces a nonspecific response in the body—an increase in the
power of resistance against multiple stressors including physical, chemical, or
biological agents.
3. An adaptogen has a normalizing influence on physiology, irrespective of the
direction of change from physiological norms caused by the stressor.
Very simply, adaptogens are nontoxic in normal doses, produce a nonspecific
defensive response to stress, and have a normalizing influence on the body. They
normalize the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA axis). As defined,
adaptogens constitute a new class of natural, homeostatic metabolic
regulators.[1]
It is claimed that adaptogenic herbs are unique from other substances in their
ability to balance endocrine hormones and the immune system, and they help the
body to maintain optimal homeostasis. [1] Adaptogens have a normalizing effect
on the body and are capable of either toning down the activity of
hyperfunctioning systems or strengthening the activity of hypofunctioning
systems. However they are also functional at the level of allostasis** which is a
more dynamic reaction to long term stress, lacking the fixed reference points of
homeostasis. [2]
[1]Robyn Klein. "Allostasis Theory and Adaptogenic Plant Remedies" 2004
[2]Robyn Klein Masters Thesis Paper, May 2004, Montana State University, Dept
Plant Sciences & Plant Pathology: Phylogenetic and phytochemical characteristics
of plant species with adaptogenic properties
**Rasayanas
**Allostasis
More data on
Ashwagandha
Ashwagandha Exhibits Anti-Stress Activity in Rats
Pharmacological Comparison of Activities of Ashwagandha and Ginseng
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