Ashwagandha is a very valuable plant. It has been used in Ayurvedic medicine for centuries. Due to its beneficial properties, this herb is becoming more and more appreciated and used. Numerous scientific studies confirm the effectiveness of ashwagandha in many ailments and diseases, including stress and fatigue.
Ashwagandha – what is it?
Ashwagandha (łac. Withania somnifera), is also known as Indian ginseng, winter cherry. It is a plant whose natural habitat is South-East Asia, Mediterranean countries, high regions of the Himalayas, Africa and Australia.
Ashwagandha is a herb traditionally used in Ayurvedic medicine. It is a popular adaptogene, i.e. a plant that contains active substances that increase resistance to stress.
Ashwagandha – active ingredients
Ashwagandha is a treasury of bioactive ingredients, thanks to which it exhibits a wide spectrum of activity. The main active ingredients include:
- alkaloids (vitanin, somniferin, somnine, tropin, somniniin, pseudo-vitamin, withananin, pseudotropin, choline, kuscohigrin, isopeletierin and anaferin),
- steroid lactones (withanolides).
In addition to alkaloids and withanolides, ashwagandha also contains:
- flavonoids, saponins, coumarins (scopoletin), chlorogenic acid, β-sitosterol, nitrogen-containing compounds (vitanol, somnitol), acylated sterol glycosides, glycovitanolides, resins, lipids, carbohydrates, phytosterols and fatty acids.
Stress – effects on the body
Stressful situations are now an inseparable part of everyone’s life. Stress is defined as: “the process by which environmental factors threaten or upset the body’s balance and by which the body responds to a threat”.
The stress statistics are frightening. Stress affects both children and adults. As UNICEF reports: “The scale and severity of the mental health problems faced by adolescents in Europe are alarming. Suicide is the second leading cause of death of young people in Europe”. According to a UNICEF report from 2021: „19% of boys in Europe between the ages of 15 and 19 suffer from mental health disorders. Among girls, it is over 16%. Moreover, nine million adolescents in Europe (children aged 10-19) live with a mental disorder. Depression and anxiety disorders account for more than half of the cases”.
The Polish report “Work Safety in Poland 2021” shows that over 1/3 of employees indicated stress as one of the 5 most important factors affecting their work. According to the Central Statistical Office (GUS) data, stress is also one of the three main causes of health problems for employees aged 15-44 and 54-64.
Stress, although it is sometimes mobilizing, wreaks huge havoc in the body. Research shows that long-term stress is a very serious cause of the development of various diseases, including depression and metabolic disorders.
You can hear more about stress on our YouTube channel (Probiotyki Living Food, in Polish): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1quU_V_4YkE&t=3s
Ashwagandha – effects
Ashwagandha, thanks to the content of numerous bioactive compounds, has a very broad effect, including:
- ANTI-STRESS – as an adaptogen it increases resistance to stress.
- NEUROPROTECTIVE – protects against toxic changes in neuronal and glial cells. It may also be a promising herb supporting the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease.
- CARDIOPROTECTION – protects the circulatory system, and also improves hematopoiesis, which is the process of producing all blood cells.
- ANTIBACTERIAL – shows antibacterial activity against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria.
- ANTI-INFLAMMATORY – thanks to its antioxidant properties, it can effectively reduce inflammation, including inflammatory bowel disease.
- ANTI-DIABETES – normalizes the level of sugar in the urine and blood.
- ANTI-MALE INFERTILITY – increases sperm concentration, sperm motility and sperm volume in men with oligospermia.
- ANTI-CANCER – can be a valuable supplement to anti-cancer therapy.
- INCREASING PHYSICAL STRENGTH OF ACTIVE PERSONS AND ATHLETES – has an anabolic effect, increases strength and physical endurance, improves muscle tone, adds energy and vitality.
More about the properties and contraindications of ashwagandha is at: https://www.living-food.pl/katalog-surowcow-roslinnych-i-ziol/
ECO Probiotic Joy Day Ashwagandha and ECO Concentrate of probiotic drink Joy Day ANTYSTRES Ashwagandha
There are many products on the market that contain Ashwagandha. What to choose? We recommend our novelties: ECO Probiotic Joy Day Ashwagandha and ECO Concentrate of probiotic drink Joy Day ANTYSTRES Ashwagandha.
ECO Probiotic Joy Day Ashwagandha is a PREMIUM standard food supplement. It is the perfect combination of live and active probiotic bacteria in liquid form and ashwagandha roots in the fight against the harmful effects of stress on the body.
More about the product at: https://www.living-food.pl/produkty/nasze-marki/joy-day/
Product available on: https://flowday.pl/produkt/natualne-probiotyki/joy-day/probiotyk-joy-day-ashwagandha/
It is also worth going to Rossmann and trying the ECO Concentrate of probiotic drink Joy Day ANTYSTRES Ashwagandha. It is a product that contains live and active probiotic bacteria in liquid form, enriched with specially selected plant additives – ashwagandha, brahmi and shatavari. The bioactive ingredients contained in herbs are properly selected for the body exposed to the daily impact of harmful factors, including stress and changes caused by life in a constant run.
Product available on: https://www.rossmann.pl/Produkt/Napoje-roslinne/Joy-Day-koncentrat-napoju-probiotycznego-antystres-500-ml,396031,8762
Stress promote the development and progression of many diseases. These are both ailments related to the work of the digestive tract, the heart and mental disorders. One must not assume the attitude that “everyone has stress, it’s nothing like that” and do nothing with it. With good daily habits and a proper diet based on probiotics, you should teach yourself and your body to deal with stress, and when necessary, use the help of a specialist – a psychologist and psychiatrist.
A summary and a warning regarding the negative impact of stress on the body is the story from the forum:
“I have never had such stressful situations so far. But 10 weeks was enough and the results are already there. My dad is seriously ill, he has been in hospital for 10 weeks. After long medical examination, it turned out that he had brain cancer. Every time I come back from the hospital, I am sick! I started to have frequent heartaches. The doctor even heard something and directed me to the EKG. My general health has deteriorated so much that today I heard from my doctor that I must go to the hospital for a few days. I won’t mention digestive system ailments at all! I can’t sleep because when I close my eyes I see the hospital and my dad. Doctors said (I don’t know how true that is) that Dad’s cancer started due to prolonged stress. So on the basis of this, I can tell you that constant stress is very dangerous”.
References:
- Girdhari Lal Gupta , AC Rana: Withania somnifera (Ashwagandha): A Review. Pharmacognosy Reviews,2007,1,1,129-136.
- Grygorczuk A.: Pojęcie stresu w medycynie i psychologii. Psychiatry 2008; 5: 111–115.
- Nowak G.: Surowce roślinne stosowane w wyczerpaniu psychofizycznym i stresie, “Herba Polonica”, nr 55 (2) 2009.
- Orzeł J.: Ashwagandha – czym jest i jak działa? Właściwości, zastosowanie i przeciwwskazania do stosowania żeń-szenia indyjskiego. 2021: https://www.doz.pl/czytelnia/a13462-Ashwagandha__czym_jest_i_jak_dziala_Wlasciwosci_zastosowanie_i_przeciwwskazania_do_stosowania_zen-szenia_indyjskiego
- Polumackanycz M. i in.: Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera L.) – the plant with proven health-promoting properties. 2020. Farmacja Polska 76(8):442-447.
- https://www.prawo.pl/kadry/przeciwdzialanie-stresowi-obowiazek-pracodawcy,513417.html
- https://unicef.pl/co-robimy/aktualnosci/dla-mediow/zdrowie-psychiczne-w-europie
- https://forum.gazeta.pl/forum/w,216,47842056,47842056,Ciagly_stres_grozny_.html
