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Ashwagandha

What is Ashwagandha?

The Ashwagandha plant is a small shrub with yellow flowers that’s native to India and Southeast Asia. People use extracts or powder from the plant’s root or leaves to treat a variety of conditions, including anxiety and fertility issues.

“Ashwagandha” is Sanskrit for “smell of the horse,” which refers both the herb’s scent and its potential ability to increase strength.

Ashwagandha Overview
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People have used Ashwagandha for thousands of years to relieve stress, increase energy levels, and improve concentration.[1]Direct human studies with weight-lifting men has found Ashwagandha can build more muscle mass than placebo. In addition, Ashwagandha increases strength and stamina, and reduces recovery time between sets and between workouts.

Ashwagandha Benefits

In an 8 week study men who took Ashwagandha had 30% more muscle growth in their thighs alone. This study also saw a drop in body fat percentage more than double the placebo group. There are several mechanisms leading to this effect, beyond T-Boosting. No trial showed any side effects or tolerance issues in men taking Ashwagandha.[2]
In a 30 day study men dropped over 2 points off their body fat percentages, and an increase of 18% to their strength testing.[3]

Another 8 week study took a battery of tests to arrive at the Absolute Power of human subjects by measuring the weight and speed of various lifts to determine the force they could exert. Men in the Ashwagandha group had a 9% increase in total absolute power, statistically significantly higher than the placebo group (<1%).[4] The study showed that Withania somnifera increased velocity, power and VO2 max whereas Terminalia arjuna increased VO2 max and lowered resting systolic blood pressure. When given in combination, the improvement was seen in all parameters except balance and diastolic blood pressure.

One important study found that Ashwagandha helps ADP become less dependent on Magnesium, and therefore it can generate into ATP faster.2

Ashwagandha supplements have been shown in some studies to benefit male fertility and increase testosterone levels. In one study, 43 males aged 40–70 with overweight and mild fatigue took tablets containing Ashwagandha extract or a placebo daily for 8 weeks. The treatment was associated with an 18% greater increase in DHEA-S, a sex hormone involved in testosterone production. Participants who took the herb also had a 14.7% greater increase in testosterone than those who took the placebo.[5]

Sources:

[1] Safety and clinical effectiveness of Withania Somnifera (Linn.) Dunal root in human ailments by Neeraj Tandon and Satyapal Singh Yadav.

[2] Examining the effect of Withania somnifera supplementation on muscle strength and recovery: a randomized controlled trial by Sachin Wankhede, Deepak Langade, Kedar Joshi, Shymal R. Sinha, and Sauvik Bhattacharyya

[3] Exploratory study to evaluate tolerability, safety, and activity of Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) in healthy volunteers by Ashwinikumar A. Raut, Nirmala N. Rege, Firoz M. Tadvi, Punita V. Solanki, Kirti R. Kene, Sudatta G. Shirolkar, Shefali N. Pandey, Rama A. Vaidya, and Ashok B. Vaidya

[4] Effects of Withania somnifera (Ashwagandha) and Terminalia arjuna (Arjuna) on physical performance and cardiorespiratory endurance in healthy young adultsby Jaspal Singh Sandhu, Biren Shah, Shweta Shenoy, Suresh Chauhan, G. S. Lavekar, and M. M. Padhi

[5] A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Crossover Study Examining the Hormonal and Vitality Effects of Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) in Aging, Overweight Males by Adrian L. Lopresti, Peter D. Drummond, and Stephen J. Smith

[6] Effects of a standardized extract of Withania somnifera (Ashwagandha) on depression and anxiety symptoms in persons with schizophrenia participating in a randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial by Jessica M Gannon 1, Jaspreet Brar, Abhishek Rai, K N Roy Chengappa

[7] Randomized Placebo-Controlled Adjunctive Study of an Extract of Withania somnifera for Cognitive Dysfunction in Bipolar Disorder by K. N. Roy Chengappa, MD, FRCP(C); Christopher R. Bowie,PhD; Patricia J. Schlicht,BSN,MA; David Fleet,BSc,MSc,MSc; Jaspreet S. Brar, MBBS, PhD; and Ripu Jindal, MD

[8] A systematic review of the clinical use of Withania somnifera (Ashwagandha) to ameliorate cognitive dysfunction by Qin Xiang Ng, Wayren Loke, Nadine Xinhui Foo, Weng Jun Tan, Hwei Wuen Chan, Donovan Yutong Lim, and Wee Song Yeo

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