Table of Contents
“Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) is one of the most highly regarded and commonly used adaptogens in the Ayurvedic medicine pharmacopoeia.” There are 683 medical research articles on the herb on PubMed of the National Institutes of Health.<ref>Medical research on Withania somnifera from [[PubMed] of the National Institutes of Health] Accessed January 4, 2015</ref>
“Maximizing the body's ability to resist stress, it enables the body to reserve and sustain vital energy throughout the day while promoting sound, restful sleep at night. It is considered one of the best herbs for calming vata and for revitalizing the male reproductive system. Used by both men and women, it maintains proper nourishment of the tissues, particularly muscle and bone, while supporting proper function of the adrenals. This potent herb is used to promote muscle strength and to support comfortable joint movement. It is also used to maintain potency and a healthy libido, for it is said to bestow upon its user the vitality and strength of a horse. As a rejuvenative, Ashwagandha is particularly useful to seniors and for anyone that would benefit from a nourishing, natural source of energy.”<ref>[[Banyan Botanicals] Ashwagandha Powder] Accessed January 3, 2015</ref> (Source: Frawley, The Yoga of Herbs: An Ayurvedic Guide to Herbal Medicine, 1986)<ref>Frawley, David and Dr. Lad, Vasant, The Yoga of Herbs: An Ayurvedic Guide to Herbal Medicine. New Mexico, Lotus Press, 1986. Amazon.com</ref>
Ayurvedic Energetics
- Rasa (taste): bitter, astringent, sweet
- Virya (action): heating
- Vipaka (post-digestive effect): sweet
- Doshas (constitutions): Balancing for vata and kapha, may aggravate pitta in excess
This product is organically grown and processed in accordance with the USDA's National Organic Program (NOP). <ref>108
347</ref>, <ref>75
197</ref>, <ref name=horizonherbs1> 105 word quotation: Fair Use Source: Richo Cech, Making Plant Medicine, Williams, Oregon, American Redoubt: Horizon Herbs. Online. https://www.horizonherbs.com/product.asp?specific=326. Accessed January 1, 2015</ref>
See Also
Bibliography and Further Reading
- Lad, Vasant, Dr., B.A.M.S., M.A.Sc., Textbook of Ayurveda Volume Three: General Principles of Management and Treatment. Albuquerque, New Mexico: Ayurvedic Institute Ayurvedic Press, 2012. 668 Pages, ISBN-10: 1883725143, ISBN-13: 978-1883725143 (800-863-7721 or 505-291-9698) Available from Ayurvedic Press, Available from [[Amazon.com]]
- Frawley, David and Dr. Lad, Vasant, The Yoga of Herbs: An Ayurvedic Guide to Herbal Medicine. New Mexico, Lotus Press, 1986. Amazon.com
- Tillotson, Alan Keith, and Tillotson, Nai-shing Hu, O.M.D. The One Earth Herbal Sourcebook: Everything You Need to Know About Chinese, Western, and Ayurvedic Herbal Treatments. New York: Kensington, 2001. Amazon.com
External Links
References
Ayurvedic Medicine Plants used in Ayurvedic Medicine Plants Dietary Supplements Medicinal Plants Herb Botanical Names Herbs Ayurvedic Herbs Ayurvedic Herbs Botanical Names Eastern Herbs Botanical Names Eastern Herbs Western Herbs Botanical Names Western Herbs Flora of Asia Flora of India Flora of Tibet Flora of Nepal Medicinal Plants of Asia Plants used in Ayurveda Plants used in Tibetan Medicine Plants used in Western Herbalism Vata Soothing Herbs Pitta Disturbing Herbs Kapha Soothing Herbs Heating Herbs Pungent Herbs Bitter Herbs Pungent Vipaka Herbs
</ref> }}
Withania somnifera, known commonly as ashwagandha,<ref name=GRIN>
</ref> Indian ginseng,<ref name=prota>
</ref> poison gooseberry,<ref name=prota/> or winter cherry,<ref name=GRIN/> is a plant in the Solanaceae or nightshade family. Several other species in the genus Withania are morphologically similar.<ref>
</ref> It is used as a herb in Ayurvedic medicine.
Description
This species is a short, tender perennial shrub growing
tall. Tomentose branches extend radially from a central stem. Leaves are dull green, elliptic, usually up to 10 - 12 cm. long. The flowers are small, green and bell-shaped. The ripe fruit is orange-red.
Etymology
The species name somnifera means “sleep-inducing” in Latin.<ref>
</ref>
Cultivation
Withania somnifera is cultivated in many of the drier regions of India, such as Mandsaur District of Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Sindh, Gujarat, and Rajasthan.<ref name=mirjalili/> It is also found in Nepal, China<ref name=Pandit/> and Yemen.<ref>Hugh Scott & Kenneth Mason, Western Arabia and the Red Sea, Naval Intelligence Division: London 1946, p. 597 ISBN 0-7103-1034-X.</ref>
Pathology
Withania somnifera is prone to several pests and diseases. Leaf spot disease caused by Alternaria alternata is the most prevalent disease, which is most severe in the plains of Punjab, Haryana, and Himachal Pradesh. Biodeterioration of its pharmaceutically active components during leaf spot disease has been reported.<ref>
</ref> The Choanephora cucurbitarum causes a stem and leaf rot of Withania somnifera<ref>
</ref> A treehopper, feeds on the apical portions of the stem, making them rough and woody in appearance and brown in colour. The apical leaves are shed and the plant gradually dies.<ref>
</ref> The carmine red spider mite (Tetranychus urticae) is the most prevalent pest of the plant in India.<ref>
</ref>
Culinary use
The berries can be used as a substitute for rennet in cheesemaking.<ref name=mirjalili/>
Biochemistry
The main chemical constituents are alkaloids and steroidal lactones. These include tropine and cuscohygrine. The leaves contain the steroidal lactones, withanolides, notably withaferin A, which was the first to be isolated from the plant.
Tropine is a derivative of tropane containing a hydroxyl group at third carbon. It is also called 3-tropanol. Benzatropine and etybenzatropine are derivatives of tropine. It is also a building block of atropine, an anticholinergic drug prototypical of the muscarinic antagonist class.Cuscohygrine is a pyrrolidine alkaloid found in coca. It can also be extracted from plants of the family Solanaceae as well, including Atropa belladonna (deadly nightshade), Datura inoxia and Datura stramonium (jimson weed). Cuscohygrine usually comes with other, more potent alkaloids like atropine or cocaine. Cuscohygrine (along with the related metabolite hygrine) was first isolated by Carl Liebermann in 1889 as an alkaloid accompanying cocaine in coca leaves (also known as Cusco-leaves). Cuscohygrine is an oil that can be distilled without decomposition only in vacuum. It is soluble in water. It also forms a crystalline trihydrate, which melts at 40–41 °C. There are also the alkaloids ashwagandhine, ashwaganidhine, and somniferine, all of which have been identified exclusively in the ashwagandha plant itself.
Traditional medicinal uses
The plant's long, brown, tuberous roots are used in traditional medicine.<ref name=mirjalili>
</ref><ref name=“Pandit”>
</ref> In Ayurveda, the berries and leaves are applied externally to tumors, tubercular glands, carbuncles, and ulcers.<ref name=mirjalili/> The roots are used to prepare the herbal remedy ashwagandha, which has been traditionally used for various symptoms and conditions. In Yemen, where it is known as ubab,<ref>Hugh Scott & Kenneth Mason, Western Arabia and the Red Sea, Naval Intelligence Division: London 1946, p. 597 ISBN 0-7103-1034-X.</ref> the dried leaves are ground to a powder from which a paste is made and used in the treatment of burns and wounds,<ref>Ingrid Hehmeyer & Hanne Schönig, Herbal Medicine in Yemen: Traditional Knowledge and Practice, and Their Value for Today's World, Series: Islamic History and Civilization (vol. 96), Brill: Leiden 2012, p. 200 ISBN 978-90-04-22150-5</ref> as also for a sunscreen upon women's faces.
See also
- Bacopa monnieri (brahmi)<ref>
</ref>