Written by Greg Arnold, DC, CSCS.  A two week supplementation with 500 mg of ashwagandha significantly improved the reaction time in participating subjects when compared to the control group.

ashwagandhaAshwagandha, also known as Indian Winter Cherry, is an herb used extensively in Ayurvedic medicine. Ashwagandha’s ability to help the body adapt to stress, possibly because of its antioxidant content, make it known as an “adaptogen” (1, 2) while its ability to help increase feelings of vitality have earned it the name “Indian Ginseng” (3, 4).

Ashwagandha has been shown to possess other health benefits, including increasing endurance (5) and helping reduce anxiety and stress (6). Now research (7) has started to suggest that Ashwagandha may help improve reaction time. In a 2014 study (8), 20 healthy males aged 20 to 28 received either 500 milligrams (250 mg taken twice daily) of Sensoril Ashwagandha or placebo for 14 days. Before and after the study, each subject underwent a series of tests to measure reaction time.

After 14 days, Ashwagandha improved reaction time significantly better compared to placebo in two different tests:

Simple reaction test – The reaction time of those in the Ashwagandha group improved by 6.3% (306 to 287 milliseconds) compared to a 0.9% decrease in reaction time in the placebo group (313 to 316 ms, p < 0.05).   The test lasted 60 seconds and began with a picture of a boy that appeared in the center of the screen 20 times, 1 second at a time, with a 1.5-2.5 second gap between pictures. Subjects were asked to press a button with a ‘BOY’ symbol every time the picture appeared.

Digital vigilance task – The reaction time of those in the Ashwagandha group improved by 3.2% (1360 to 1317 ms) compared to a 1.9% decrease in the placebo group (1371 to 1398 ms, p < 0.05). In this 60-second test, subjects responded to seeing a specific digit on their hand on the screen, pressing the “Enter Button” on the response box as quickly as possible every time the digit in the series matched the target digit.

While admitting that “The mechanism by which Ashwagandha exerted beneficial effects is presently not clear”, the researchers concluded that “Ashwagandha extract can improve cognitive and psychomotor performance and may, therefore, be a valuable adjunct in the treatment of diseases associated with cognitive impairment.

Source: Pingali, Usharani, Raveendranadh Pilli, and Nishat Fatima. “Effect of standardized aqueous extract of Withania somnifera on tests of cognitive and psychomotor performance in healthy human participants.” Pharmacognosy research 6, no. 1 (2014): 12.

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 Posted September 22, 2016.

Greg Arnold is a Chiropractic Physician practicing in Hauppauge, NY.  You can contact Dr. Arnold directly by emailing him at PitchingDoc@msn.com or visiting his web site at www.PitchingDoc.com.

References:

  1. Singh N, Nath R, Lata A, Lata A, Singh SP, Kohli RP, et al. Withania somnifera (Ashwagandha), a rejuvenating herbal drug which enhances survival during stress (an adaptogen) Int J Crude Drug Res. 1982;20:29–35
  2. Provino R. The role of adaptogens in stress management. Aust J Med Herbalism. 2010;22:41–9
  3. Mishra LC, Singh BB, Dagenais S. Scientific basis for the therapeutic use of Withania somnifera (Ashwagandha): a review. Altern Med Rev. 2000;5:334–46
  4. Weiner MA, Weiner J. Herbs that Heal. Mill Valley, CA: Quantum Books; 1994. Ashwagandha (Indian ginseng) pp. 70–2
  5. Choudhary B. Efficacy of Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera [L.] Dunal) in improving cardiorespiratory endurance in healthy athletic adults. Ayu. 2015 Jan-Mar;36(1):63-8. doi: 10.4103/0974-8520.169002
  6. Chandrasekhar K,  A Prospective, Randomized Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study of Safety and Efficacy of a High-Concentration Full-Spectrum Extract of Ashwagandha Root in Reducing Stress and Anxiety in Adults.  Indian J Psychol Med. 2012 Jul-Sep; 34(3): 255–262. doi:  10.4103/0253-7176.106022
  7. Pingali U. Effect of standardized aqueous extract of Withania somnifera on tests of cognitive and psychomotor performance in healthy human participants. Pharmacognosy Res 2014 Jan;6(1):12-8. doi: 10.4103/0974-8490.122912.