Ashwagandha – Health Benefits, Uses, Research, Preparation, Precautions

by

Ashwagandha – Health Benefits, Uses, Research, Preparation, Precautions

Raut AA, Rege NN, Tadvi FM, et al. conducted a study to evaluate the tolerability, safety, and benefits of ashwagandha. Their research revealed that the physical strength of participants’ leg and back muscles increased when ashwagandha was consumed. They also discovered that the participants lost body fat. Their proportions of lean muscle mass increased. Unhealthy cholesterol levels, triglycerides, fasting blood sugar values decreased. Participants consumed ashwagandha supplements in doses up to 1,250 milligrams per day.


How to Prepare Ashwagandha for Medicinal Use

Commercial preparations of ashwagandha are available as capsules, teas, pills, and tinctures. Ashwagandha may be purchased as a single herb or as part of an herbal blend.

The root is the plant part used commercially. Two to six grams of the dried root should be used daily.

To make a decoction, mix one teaspoonful of the dried root with one cup of water. Simmer the blend, covered, for ten minutes. Remove the pan from the stove, and let it sit, covered, for twenty minutes.

Strain out and compost the spent herb. Drink one cup of the tea three times daily.

If using the tincture, take two to four milliliters of a 1:5 45% alcohol tincture three times each day.


Precautions

Ashwagandha is generally well tolerated. The herb is safe for long term use. It is most effective when taken consistently. While large amounts of ashwagandha should not be used during pregnancy, small amounts have been recommended for pregnant women in India for centuries. If you take sedative drugs, such as barbiturates and benzodiazepines, you may experience increased drowsiness if you use ashwagandha and the medications concurrently.


References

http://abc.herbalgram.org

Kuhn, M.A. and Winston, D. Herbal Therapy and Supplements. Lippincott, Williams and Wilkins.2001

Pingali U, Pilli R, Fatima N. Effect of Withania somnifera extract on mental stress induced changes in hemodynamic properties and arterial wave reflections in healthy subjects. Curr Top Nutraceutical Res. 2013; 11(4):151-158.

Raut AA, Rege NN, Tadvi FM, et al. Exploratory study to evaluate tolerability, safety, and activity of ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) in healthy volunteers. J Ayurveda Integr Med. July 2012; 3(3):111-114


Author

This article was written for Insights-on-Health.com in 2015 by Patricia Bratianu RN PhD RH-AHG. Patricia has been a Registered Nurse for almost forty years in a wide variety of settings. As a Registered Nurse, she realized that conventional healthcare was not meeting the needs of all patients. She became an herbalist and obtained a PhD in Natural Health. Patricia is a professional member of the American Herbalist’s Guild, passing the stringent peer reviewed process to become a Registered Herbalist.

Pages: 1 2

Follow this site

Where To Buy
Quality Dietary Supplements, Herbs, Natural Remedies
and Other Natural Products at Affordable Prices

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

*

You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>