Ashwagandha is one of the most famous ayurvedic plants that belongs to Rasāyana category (path of essence). It has wide spectrum of uses.

The Latin term is Withania Somnifera, it is a middle sized bush that grows highest up to 1.70 meters and gives birth to a small red fruit.

It grows in warm climates, while her origins will take you to north-eastern part of India.

Nowadays, the plant is successfully grown in many parts of India, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka & Bangladesh.

This plant has many names. In English it is known as winter cherry or Indian ginseng, in Latin - Withinia Somnifera (the one which brings sleep), in Hindus - ansgandh and in Sanskrit - ashwagandha.

Ashwagandha literally means smell of the horse (from Sanskrit: ashwa - horse, gandha - smell), cause her smell really does remind of a horse.

Her name is as well translated as she that gives vitality and strength of a horse.

Ashwagandha has loads of active ingredients, the main ones being alcaloids and steroid lactones. Between alcaloids the most known one is withanine.

Short History

In history books we can see how ashwagandha was favorite healing plant to many.

It was preferred because of her wide spectrum of effects and many health benefits.

Robin Lane Fox, famous English historian, in his book about Alexander the Great he wrote how ashwagandha was used to make wine which was used in therapeutic purposes.

Alexander the Great and his army drank that wine in order so they could boost their energy, strength but as well to heal from many diseases.

According to Anne Van Arsdall, in old English herbarium Ashwagandha was called apollinaris.

There is a legend that states how Apollo was the first one to find ashwagandha and he gave it to god of medicine - Asklepios.

There are lot of historic sources in which ashwagandha is mentioned, which confirms, how she played a strong role in people's life back in the time.

Ashwagandha is one of the most recognizable plants in Ayurveda.

This plant is used in India for thousand of years as a tonic for organism rejuvenation, adaptogen and aphrodisiac.

Why Is It Superfood?

Long story short, because of the super crazy effects it has on the body of humans. Such as:

Colon

Ashwagandha improves appetite and digestion, it helps with stomach cramps.

Cardiovascular System

It serves as heart tonic, being efficient with hypertension. Often it is recommended to people with high blood pressure, since it stimulates the heart and improves blood circulation.

Respiratory System

It affects the respiratory organs greatly. As well it helps organism to get rid of excess mucus, being super efficient with asthma and other lung-diseases.

Nervous System

It normalizes the functioning of the nervous system, increasing the resistance to stress and tiredness. Moreover, it affects the endocrine, cardiovascular and central nervous system. It is used to reduce stress, anxiety and insomnia, being super efficient with diseases related to nervous system.

The Brain

Ashwagandha stimulates the brain functioning along with memory and concentration. It is used for brain revitalization and it's recommended with Alzheimer's disease and any kind of memory problems.

Endocrine System

Ashwagandha is super efficient when it comes to hormone disorders.

Many of us know how hormone balance is crucial to keep psychophysiological processes in check. Any disorder related to endocrine system can have bad consequences on our health. Ashwagandha has certain compounds and alcaloids that are efficient in normalizing hormone functioning in the organism.

Reproductive Organs

Ashwagandha is known as aphrodisiac. It increases the libido at men and women, because of what is is known as Indian ginseng. It increases the quality and sperm count at men.

The Skin

It affects the skin in beneficial way and it is used with eczema, scars and psoriasis.

Immune System

Ashwagandha makes the immunity stronger and it increases the resistance to infections. Immunity-stimulating properties have been confirmed in many scientific researches.

It is super efficient with elders since it protects the organism from viruses, bacteria and parasites.

Rejuvenating Organism

Traditionally, aswagandha is in rasajana category - meaning it makes the organism age backwards.

In ayurveda it is used as a tonic for vitality and longevity. It increases endurance and organism strength.

Anticancerogenic

Ayurvedic doctors in India use ashwagandha for prevention and cancer healing. Her anticancerogenic properties have been confirmed by modern scientific studies.

Antioxidant

It was shown how some compound from ashwagandha are really strong antioxidants. Ashwagandha can efficiently fight free radicals and slow down the process of organism aging.

Now it is clear why it is used in ayurveda for thousands of years when it comes to strengthening the organism thus make it younger and vital.

Anti-rheumatic

Since it has anti-inflammatory properties, because of what it is efficient with arthritis curing as well as other rheumatoid diseases. It reduces inflammation, puffiness and pain in the wrists.

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Conclusion

If you never tried Ashwagandha I don't know what are you waiting for. This plant changed my life for better in many way. The most significant ones include: Inhumane strength, super boosted desire to life live fully and increased sperm count was something that really shook me! I mean, when I bought it for the first time I never read about it in details but after just few weeks of using it combined with raw diet the results were fucking crazy. Out of this world. This plant is an alien...

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