Ashwagandha

Which are the active ingredients in Ashwagandha?

It is not known which ingredients in Ashwagandha are the most relevant to its effects on mood and cognition.

Withanolides and withaferin are likely to thank for some of the cognitive and affective effects of Ashwagandha. [10]

Which form of Ashwagandha should I consume?

These ashwagandha extracts have been used in human studies on the cognitive and affective effects of Ashwagandha:

• KSM-66 [1]
  • This product is standardized to contain 5% withanolides [11]
  • It has been studied in 250mg [4] and 600mg doses [12][13][7]
  • You can buy KSM-66 from Mind Nutrition
• Sensoril [18]
  • This product contains more than 10% withanolides and less than 0.5% of withaferin-A [2]
  • It has been studied in 250mg [19] and 500mg doses [6]
  • You can buy Sensoril from Nootropics Depot
• Shoden [3]
  • This product contains at least 35% withanolides [23]
  • It has been studied 240mg doses [24]
  • You can buy Shoden from Nootropics Depot

You can [buy KSM-66], which has 5% withanolides, from our affiliate partner Mind Nutrition.

What substances may stack well with ashwagandha?

There's no high-quality research on the effects of combining ashwagandha with other substances, such as nootropic drugs or supplements. The safety and efficacy of the below-listed combinations are supported only by anecdotal reports. People tend to report better effects from ashwaganda when they also use:

• Rhodiola
• Bacopa Monnieri

Before combining any drugs or supplements, talk with your trusted medical professional about the risks involved.

What time of day should you take ashwagandha?

Ashwagandha can improve sleep quality, but it is usually sedating only in high doses.

Some users report stimulating effects, while others report sedating effects, meaning it is best to self-experiment with an open mindset as regards when during the day to take it. If you feel sedated, taking it before sleep is probably better than in the morning, and if you feel stimulated, it is likely best to take it in the morning to prevent sleep problems.

Why do people use ashwagandha?

People who self-experiment with ashwagandha often state they use it to improve their:

• Sleep
• Stress
• Nervousness
• Mood
• Sociality
• Energy
• Physical performance
• Focus
• Memory

To see what the scientific evidence says about ashwagandha for these purposes in healthy humans, see the table of benefits above on this page.

How does it feel when you take ashwagandha?

The following qualitative user experience reports and reviews are included to give you an understanding of what the experience of taking ashwagandha is like.

Anecdotal ashwagandha experience reports and reviews from Reddit

One redditor had the following experience:

"I dosed 1 capsule around 2 pm and went about my afternoon. Around 6pm, I felt a definite anti-anxiety effect, as well as a bit of calm and slept well.

Today, around noon, I started feeling more anxiety than is normal for me. So I looked back to my previous experiences with Ash (a liquid tincture one time and a powdered form made into tea another) and recalled that I would feel the effects of it shortly after dosing and then the next day I would be slightly more anxious." [30]

Another person on Reddit said the following:

"I felt a huge relief in stress and even felt my workouts were better but after a while, I had practically developed narcolepsy. I fell asleep in public places and was always tired. I even fell asleep at a sports bar when I used to have terrible almost incurable genetic sleep problems and insomnia which I think says quite a bit." [31]

A third redditor said they experienced results first after a month of use:

"No acute effects, but definitely remain more level-headed in stressful situations. Also a lot less anxious in social situations. Started noticing these subtle effects about a month in." [32]

A fourth person on Reddit said the following about their ashwagandha experiences:

"I almost instantly get this feeling of intense mental and emotional clarity, it becomes almost impossible for me to get flustered over anything, I think much more logically and I am much less emotionally reactive." [33]

Yet another person said the following:

"Took ashwaghanda ksm66 for 2 months straight daily. Helped me tremendously during a time of depression as it made me not give a fuck about anything and lifted my mood overall. Was also great for fitness and weightlifting. Couldn't get anything done though since it made me too relaxed for any productive tasks." [34]

Finally, one person said it helped their physical and cognitive performance:

"A lot of things improved, anxiety reduction and sentence flow was improved very nicely. It's not that stimulating, but the anxiety reduction was great. My main purpose was for exercise and I ran faster and felt like I recovered really fast. I worked hard on my arms and I could do it again like normal two days later without that ache you get after a hard workout." [35]

How does ashwagandha work?

Ashwagandha exerts cholinergic [36] and GABAergic [37] activity, but the neuropsychopharmacological effects of ashwagandha have not yet fully been discovered by researchers.

Is ashwagandha neuroprotective?

Ashwagandha has been found neuroprotective in various brain disorders in animals and humans. [38][39]

It is also likely that the neuroprotective effects of ashwagandha depend on what the factor that is damaging neurons in the brain is. For example, lack of oxygen or dangerously high glutamate levels in the brain can lead to increased neuronal death. Different active ingredients in ashwagandha are likely to protect neurons from different forms of neurochemical toxicity. While ashwagandha may be protective in many instances, it is likely not going to protect you from everything you might expose your brain to. The optimal dose and duration for use of ashwagandha for neuronal protection are not known.