The Mercury

What exactly is ashwagandh­a … and is it good for you?

- VIWE NDONGENI-NTLEBI viwe.ndongeni@inl.co.za

After intense training, I tend to book myself for full-body massage to help my body recover. As a routine, I booked myself a session after hiking 21km in the Drakensber­g as part of my training for Mount Kilimanjar­o.

There are several health benefits to receiving regular massages as part of a health or fitness routine. Athletes and coaches swear by sports massages.

Instead of my usual place, I tried a Komani Health Shop and was given a massage by Dr Lydia Jaceni, a naturopath. After our session, she introduced me to a product called ashwagandh­a, which came in the form of drops, for the tension in my shoulders.

The plant is a small shrub with yellow flowers that’s native to India and North Africa. Extracts or powder from the root or leaves is used to treat a variety of conditions.

Dr Mary Bove, previously the director of medical education at Gaia Herbs and currently a member of the Gaia Herbs Scientific Advisory Board, considers ashwagandh­a to be grounding, calming and restoring.

After much research and using it, these are some of the benefits that I found that ashwagandh­a has:

It may help reduce stress and anxiety

Researcher­s say it blocks the stress pathway in the brains of rats, by regulating chemical signalling in the nervous system. Several controlled human studies have shown it can reduce symptoms in people with stress and anxiety disorders.

For Men

In untrained healthy men performing resistance training for eight weeks, consuming the ashwagandh­a root is shown to support healthy muscle strength and recovery. This may be because ashwagandh­a promotes healthy levels of creatine kinase (an enzyme), which reduces muscle damage and supports muscle recovery. Arthritis

Ashwagandh­a may act as a pain reliever, preventing pain signals from travelling along the central nervous system. It may also have some antiinflam­matory properties which may be effective in treating forms of arthritis, including rheumatoid arthritis.

A 2015 study in 125 people with joint pain found the herb to have potential as a treatment option for rheumatoid arthritis.

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