What is Ashwagandha? Part 2

A short digression regarding the Ayurvedic multi-talent.

As already announced in part 1 of our Ashwagandha blog article, here is the second part, which will deal with the effect of the Ayurvedic all-rounder on stress and sleep.

According to our founder Joe Weider, adequate sleep and relaxation are two cornerstones of bodybuilding. As Joe predicted early on, adhering to the principles of bodybuilding also leads to an improved quality of life, increased well-being and improved health parameters for the general population. For ambitious athletes, restful sleep and effective relaxation are particularly important, as they are absolutely essential for optimal athletic performance. Accordingly, a plant that can both reduce our stress levels and improve our sleep quality sounds almost too good to be true - right? May we introduce (again)? Ashwagandha!

Admittedly, some time has passed since the first part of our Ashwagandha blog, but perhaps you have been able to use this time sensibly to try out one of our Ashwagandha products yourself and form your own opinion of their effectiveness. If you are still not convinced, we are putting all our hopes in the second part of the Ashwagandha blog - so get into your reading chair (or wherever else you read our blog articles) and go full throttle:

Ashwagandha and stress:
What exactly is stress? Well, let's start by using Wikipedia's definition: “In psychology, stress refers to psychological and physical reactions in living beings caused by specific external stimuli (stressors) that enable them to cope with particular demands, and to the resulting physical and mental strain.”

Stress can help us to cope with special demands, which is a great thing in principle. The physical and mental stress mentioned in the definition does not necessarily have to be problematic, as long as it is short-lived. A distinction is also often made between eustress and distress. While the ancient Greek prefix "eu" means, among other things, "good", the Latin prefix "dis" represents the opposite and gives the word a negative quality. Eustress is therefore perceived as positive, motivating and inspiring, while distress can have both psychological and physical health consequences. It is important to note at this point that eustress also requires regular recovery phases.

We don't want to digress too much, so let's get back to the actual topic. We can say that stress only becomes a real problem when it persists over a longer period of time.

On a physiological level, when acute stress occurs, the hormones adrenaline and noradrenaline are initially released to make us more efficient in the fight or flight situation in the short term (e.g. through an accelerated heartbeat, dilated pupils and an increased blood sugar level for rapid energy supply).

In the long term, stress also causes the release of cortisol, commonly known as the stress hormone. Although cortisol is a vital hormone, it can cause damage to the body if levels are elevated over a long period of time.

In 2021, Speers and colleagues published a review article in which they summarized the data available at the time on the topic of Ashwagandha and stress.

Some human studies have shown that taking Ashwagandha extract can significantly reduce serum cortisol levels. Furthermore, the subjective stress perception (measured using scales such as the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS)) of the study participants could also be improved [1].

Similar biological effects of Ashwagandha administration have also been observed in animal studies (e.g., a reduced stress-induced increase in serum cortisol by Ashwagandha, or a reduced concentration of vitamin C and cortisol in the adrenal glands after stress induction) [1].

The suspected underlying mechanisms of the Ashwagandha-induced effect are diverse and range from a reduction in oxidative stress, to an influence on the HPA axis (hypothalamus-pituitary axis), to the inhibition of inflammation, immune modulation and modulation of the GABA receptors. GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid) is the most important inhibitory neurotransmitter in our central nervous system. By inhibiting certain signals, GABA has a calming effect on our body. Components of the Ashwagandha extract act as so-called GABA mimetics, which means that they bind to the same receptors as GABA itself.

Aside from the direct stress markers, the review by Speers and colleagues also looked at the three most common stress-related neuropsychological disorders: anxiety disorders, depression and sleep disorders. While the data on Ashwagandha's effect on depression is currently lacking, taking Ashwagandha appears to have a beneficial effect on anxiety and sleep disorders. We would like to discuss the latter in more detail in the next section.

Ashwagandha and sleep:
Sleep disorders are defined by, among other things, difficulty falling asleep, difficulty staying asleep, and waking up too early. It is estimated that between 10-30% of the world's population suffer from sleep disorders [2].

We have probably all had phases in our lives where we had trouble sleeping. However, it only becomes critical when insomnia persists over a longer period of time.
Inadequate sleep (qualitative and quantitative) is associated with a number of health outcomes, including an increased risk of hypertension, type 2 diabetes mellitus, obesity, metabolic syndrome, coronary heart disease and stroke [3].

Considering the potential severity of these diseases, it is not surprising that there also seems to be a connection between insufficient sleep duration (<6h) and overall mortality, i.e. the general risk of death [4].

Since many of the pharmacological interventions (sleeping pills) have undesirable side effects, a habituation effect or even a high potential for addiction and psychotherapeutic treatment methods, such as cognitive behavioral therapy, are used too rarely, the search for tolerable natural alternatives is of great relevance.

Since stress and sleep go hand in hand, it is reasonable to assume that Ashwagandha, with its stress-reducing effects, could also have a positive effect on sleep.

In 2021, Cheah and colleagues published a systematic review including a meta-analysis on the effects of taking Ashwagandha on sleep [3]. They examined five studies that were conducted according to the scientific gold standard: randomized, placebo-controlled double-blind studies. In each of the individual studies, the sleep quality of the subjects was assessed using various questionnaires (Sleep Quality Scale, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index). Three of the five studies also used actigraphy. This is a more objective measurement method than the subjective questionnaires, as the subjects were equipped with a watch that measures activity using a motion sensor and can thus provide information about sleep. After evaluating all the data, Cheah and colleagues came to the conclusion that taking the Ashwagandha extract led to a significant improvement in sleep compared to placebo. It should be noted at this point that the duration of the individual studies was 6-12 weeks. The authors conclude that the effect is probably better with a longer period of use. A total of 1764 subjects took part in the five studies. As always, there were of course limitations in the study designs, so the authors point out in their summary the need for further research.

An animal study by Kaushik et al. from 2017 provides an indication of the ingredient in the Ashwagandha plant that is effective in terms of sleep quality, identifying triethylene glycol as a sleep-promoting component [5]. The polyphenols (secondary plant substances) contained in Ashwagandha may also contribute to its sleep-promoting effect [6]. However, further research is needed to characterize the sleep-promoting ingredients more precisely.

Conclusion and outlook:
More recent studies published after the 2021 publications by Speers et al. and Cheah et al. have also confirmed a positive effect of Ashwagandha on stress and sleep [6, 7, 8, 9]. So there seems to be something to the stress-reducing and sleep-promoting effects of the Ashwagandha plant and its chemical components.

Apart from the scientific data, in this case we also look back on a centuries-long history in alternative medicine, as well as numerous testimonials from our athletes, which also confirm the effectiveness of Ashwagandha.

So we can say: If you often feel stressed or are dissatisfied with the quality of your sleep, you might consider taking a dietary supplement containing Ashwagandha. We wouldn't be WEIDER if we didn't have the right product in stock for both purposes:
Our Ashwagandha Professional With its combination of high-quality KSM-66® Ashwagandha root extract, bioavailable magnesium citrate, important vitamin C and the absorption-improving “bio-enhancer” AstraGin®, it is ideal for daily use.

For a more restful sleep we have our Ashwagandha Sleep It combines KSM-66® with the relaxation-promoting amino acids L-theanine and glycine, as well as the natural sleep hormone melatonin, making it perfect for taking before going to bed.

Convince yourself of the traditional Indian medicine Ayurveda and the effectiveness of Ashwagandha - and who knows, you might even experience one or two additional improvements in your well-being: We'll look at the effect of Ashwagandha supplementation on testosterone levels and mental health another time - but a quick note here: Cortisol and sleep are key factors that significantly influence both cognitive performance (including the function of our memory) and testosterone levels. Reduced stress, improved sleep, improved cognitive function and more testosterone? If that doesn't sound like improved athletic performance, we don't know what does. There could be something to these bold claims too. It remains exciting!