THE TOP ADAPTOGENS TO TRY

RHODIOLA

AN EVERGREEN perennial, rhodiola grows in the colder, mountainous regions of Europe, Asia, and at high altitudes in the Arctic.

Traditionally it has been used as a herbal cure for anxiety, fatigue, anaemia, impotence, infections, headache, and depression related to stress. People have also used it to increase physical endurance, work performance, longevity, and improve their resistance to altitude sickness.

ASHWAGANDHA

MORE properly known as withania

somnifera, ashwagandha is also referred to as Indian ginseng. Ashwagandha is part of the nightshade family and has long been used in ayurvedic medicine to combat stress, fatigue, lack of energy and to treat problems with concentration.

JUJUBE

PART of the buckthorn family, jujube is a small, deciduous tree or shrub with thorny branches that usually reaches a height of between five and 12 metres. It has been widely cultivated around the world but is thought to be native to Asia. Used in various ways in different cuisines, the tree’s fruit may be candied and eaten as a snack, pickled, smoked, or made into tea and even into wine.

TULSI

AN AROMATIC perennial plant native to the Indian subcontinent, tulsi is grown for religious and medical purposes — it is known as Thai holy basil and revered as the elixir of life within Hinduism.

Many cuisines cook with it, and in some parts of the world it is also used as an insect repellent.

MACA

TECHNICALLY known as lepidium meyenii, maca is a herbaceous biennial native to the high Andes of Peru. It’s the root which is used in cooking — both as a vegetable (it is similar to radishes and turnips) and it can also be dried and used to create a maca flour. It has been used both to improve semen quality and to remedy symptoms of menopause.