Standardized ashwagandha extract from Sabinsa may relieve stress in healthy adults according to a recent study

Photo © iStockphoto.com/BartekSzewczyk

A recent study¹ found that a standardized ashwagandha root extract, marketed as Shagandha by Sabinsa Corp. (East Windsor, NJ), was found to alleviate stress, and improve quality of life in healthy adults. Shagandha is standardized to 2.5% withanolides. In the study 54 subjects were randomized to receive either 500 mg of the ashwagandha extract or placebo once daily for 60 days. Researchers assessed the impact on perceived stress scale (PSS), generalized anxiety disorder (GAD-7), quality of life (QOL), cognitive scores in the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB), changes in salivary cortisol, urinary serotonin, dopamine, serum levels of nitric oxide (NO), glutathione (GSH) and malondialdehyde (MDA) from baseline to end of the study.

Results showed that subjects taking the ashwagandha extract saw significant improvements in PSS, GAD-7, and QOL scores compared to placebo. In addition, CANTAB analysis showed that subjects taking the extract saw significant improvements in multitasking, concentration, and decision taking time, compared to placebo. Assessment of biomarkers found that ashwagandha supplementation was also associated with greater reduction in morning salivary cortisol and an increase in urinary serotonin, compared to placebo, while serum levels of NO, GSH, and MDA were not significantly different.

“The world’s population is living through extraordinarily stressful events, and many are turning to natural remedies to help them cope,” said Muhammed Majeed, PhD, the founder and chairman of Sabinsa Corporation, in a press release. “Just as we’ve seen with Curcumin C3 Complex, published clinical studies help both consumers and healthcare practitioners understand the safety and efficacy of standardized herbal extracts. This is just the most recent example of Sabinsa’s long history of conducting clinical studies on herbs to confirm and expand upon traditional knowledge of their benefits.”

Reference

Majeed, M.; Nagabhushanam, K.; Mundkur, L. A standardized Ashwagandha root extract alleviates stress, anxiety, and improves quality of life in healthy adults by modulating stress hormones: Results from a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Medicine, 2023, 102(41): e35521. DOI: 10.1097/MD.0000000000035521