Text updated 03.06.2021

Each of us suffers from numerous ailments, both physical and psychological, although the former are very often a symptom of the latter. In a sense, we can say that our body functions according to the principle of communicating vessels, one disease quickly becomes the cause of another. Thus a closed system is created, a kind of “vicious circle”, which has to be broken somehow. In order to do that various methods are used, usually pharmacological ones, which bring not only positive effects but also side effects that are difficult to accept. If we want to avoid them and, at the same time, get rid of what ails us, it is worth turning to traditional Ayuvedic medicine and one of the plants used in it. It is Ashwagandha (withania somnifera), also known as Vitania sluggard or Indian ginseng, is an adaptogen and is characterized by exceptionally broad healing properties.

Witania came to our continent from the Far East, specifically from India and other countries in the region, where it has been used for thousands of years. The origin of its name is very interesting and the word ashwagandha was created by combining two Sanskrit words ashwahorse and gandhaaroma, i.e. it describes the smell of a horse and this is the characteristic smell of Indian ginseng. Ashwagandha is a plant belonging to the Solanaceae family, like potatoes for example, a small shrub with elongated green mat leaves, having bell-shaped flowers that turn into round red or orange fruits.

Its powdered root is used as an ingredient in many preparations and dietary supplements. Ayurvedic medicine quickly appreciated its properties, and since its history is almost 5000 years old, it is worth applying some of the principles also at home, using first of all the adaptogenic properties of vitani. This means that it has a positive effect on the entire body, improving overall health while helping to alleviate the symptoms of various diseases andwithout most of the side effects often seen with popular pharmaceuticals. Ginseng makes the body adapt very quickly to any new conditions in which it must function, even the most unfavourable ones.

Ginseng, like other plants used in natural medicine, owes its unique health-promoting properties to an equally unique composition which can be found in very few other herbs. It contains primarily one group of compounds which have a significant impact on its activity, and these are:

The benefits of including withania somnifera in your daily diet cannot be underestimated, although it is not a miracle panacea for all the ailments that may occur to us. I have deliberately used the words “daily diet” here, because it is this diet, in addition to physical activity, which is the most important if we want to enjoy full health for a long time and remain fit until old age.

The aim of using this variety of ginseng is to support processes allowing for proper functioning of practically all most important systems and organs of our body. Of course, the positive effects are not felt immediately, after the first dose of e.g. a supplement containing powdered ashwagandha root, satisfactory results are achieved after several weeks of treatment. However, it is worth to be patient, and the main benefits that such supplementation will bring us are:

We should take special care of our central computer which controls the work of virtually the whole body. After all, we should care about good memory, concentration, association of facts and undisturbed ability to absorb large amounts of new information. This is what a daily dose of vitamin E will allow us to do, thanks to which we will maintain full mental efficiencyfor a long time.

It is also increasingly appreciated as an element of prevention and prevention of neurodegenerative diseases, especially Alzheimera disease. Preliminary studies have shown that extracts containing the right vitani concentrations reduce fibrosis in brain tissue, which is one of the symptoms of the disease.

There’s no denying that stress is one of the worst civilization diseases we can encounter, and its effects are felt by a growing number of people around the world every year. Symptoms of stress may bother us for various reasons, but it is important to effectively remove them, as they may lead to the development of other, even more serious diseases.

It’s also worth knowing that stress is not just a psychological ailment, untreated it can upset physical health, which can be effectively prevented by ashwagandha, and its adaptogenic properties clearly help. This is due to the action of vitalools, which, as I described above, have the ability to relieve nervous tension, relax, calm down and allow us to fall asleep peacefully. It also improves the quality of sleep, reduces the risk of insomnia, which again is associated with the regulation of the “stress hormone”– cortisol.

As studies show, regular use of withania somnifera also has positive effects on depression, a disease that in many cases even requires clinical treatment. Similar satisfactory results have also been obtained in people suffering from neurosis, anxiety, schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.

The second foundation of our health, as important as brain and nervous system function, is a functioning immune system, also known as the immune system. It is a natural barrier providing protection against possible infections and diseases, which, if for various reasons is weakened, ceases to perform its function. Most often it is caused by viruses or bacteria, which can lead to other, no less serious diseases.

Its strengthening is a task for biologically active components of ashwagandha, showing strong antiviral, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory and anticancer effects. Of great importance for a greater efficiency of the immune system are also adaptogenic properties of this plant facilitating adaptation of the body to almost any conditions in which it will have to live. So we won’t feel them too much, including stress, a factor highly disruptive to our health.

One of the health risks, mainly affecting the heart, cardiovascular system is too high levels of “bad” cholesterol, its fraction LDL. Cholesterol LDL begins to accumulate in the blood vessels, especially in the arteries, quickly leading to their narrowing, which poses a threat of venous blockages and atherosclerosis. ashwagandha helps to lower the LDL fraction while increasing and maintaining the HDL fraction, the so-called good cholesterol.

Specialists in various fields of medicine not for nothing say that we are not able to function without healthy sleep, which guarantees the appropriate quality of rest allowing to better regenerate the body, rebuild damaged physical and mental strength. withania somnifera can help here again, which results directly from its anti-stress properties, regulating the secretion of cortisol, the stress hormone.

When we speak of free radicals, we mean unpaired Reactive Oxygen Atoms (ROS), molecules lacking one of their electrons, which start searching for it by attacking other oxygen atoms. In this way they cause a reaction which results in more and more of these “orphaned” radicals and they begin to pose a threat to the body, being the cause of many diseases. It is worth mentioning here, for example:

Diabetes, both stage 1 and 2, is another disease that cannot be underestimated under any circumstances and whose symptoms can be alleviated by extracts and dietary supplements containing Indian ginseng extracts. They work by reducing and then maintaining proper, safe blood sugar levels.

First of all, the liver and stomach, without which there is no question of proper digestion, the basis for the effective fight against overweight and obesity. These important organs are most often disturbed by toxic substances, such as heavy metals and chemical compounds that are unfortunately also contained in food, water and the air we breathe.

Despite its unquestionable and hard to question properties that benefit our health, ashwagandha is not for everyone who would like to use it. Among others, it cannot be used by pregnant or breast-feeding women, those suffering from autoimmune diseases and those taking certain medications, mainly painkillers or antiepileptics. The powdered plant itself and preparations containing it may also cause certain side effects: