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you asked for it so we're going to break
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down what it is and its reported
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benefits in this video let's get into it
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i'm katie braun product developer at my
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protein ashwagandha is also known as
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indian ginseng a traditional herb that's
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native to india and commonly used in
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ayurvedic medicine it's been used for
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thousands of years but has seen a huge
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rise in popularity recently across
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europe as the research of evidence
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around its shoes and benefits increases
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ashwagandha is thought of as an
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adaptogen and whilst that might sound a
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little bit extraterrestrial
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adaptogens really are just useful herbs
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they are defined as possessing unique
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properties which help the body adapt to
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stress the clue is in the name but it
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doesn't just apply to stress as we
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immediately think of it but to stressors
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to your body of any kind these can be
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biological chemical or physical and
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adaptogens are thought to work by
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restoring equilibrium in the body
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adaptogens have a broad non-specific
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effect and work on multiple body systems
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at once but let's think about
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ashwagandha specifically what is it
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reported to help with here are the top
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six reported benefits the first one is
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thyroid health research has shown a
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benefit to thyroid function in
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individuals who had hyperthyroidism
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where production of thyroid hormones is
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higher than normal a randomized
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double-blind study on 50 people all with
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elevated thyroid levels was performed
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over eight weeks administering either a
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dose of 600 milligrams of ashwagandha
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root or a placebo the result showed
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ashwagandha supplementation was able to
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effectively normalize thyroid levels
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we've still got some work to do though
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to figure out the exact mechanism behind
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this and much larger scale trials would
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be required if we were to start
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recommending ashwagandha as a treatment
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the second one is weight loss
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ashwagandha is linked with lower
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cortisol levels cortisol is known as the
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stress hormone and is commonly higher in
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individuals who are struggling to lose
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weight lowering cortisol as well as
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supporting thyroid function may work
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together to help with weight loss the
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third one is stress levels and here i
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mean feelings of mental stress and
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anxiety that frantic feeling that you
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can't seem to shake scientists think
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that ashwagandha may be able to block
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the pathway that sends stress signals to
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the brain a systematic review of all of
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the available studies at the time in
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2014 found that doses of ashwagandha
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resulted in improvements statistically
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significant ones in most cases versus
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the placebo on anxiety or stress scales
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somewhat interconnected to this it's
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been hypothesized by many that
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ashwagandha can help sleep
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we actually have loads of customer
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reviews on our site saying that
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supplementing with ashwagandha has
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helped them nod off quicker and have a
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deeper night sleep a recent systematic
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review of available evidence from 2021
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found that ashwagandha extract exhibited
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a statistically significant effect on
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overall sleep and these effects were
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more prominent in the subgroup of adults
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diagnosed with insomnia
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ashwagandha can also benefit physical
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performance including strength and
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recovery time an eight week trial and
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healthy volunteers should improve
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strength after taking this medicinal
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herb consistently as part of their
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strength training program this trial
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also showed other promising benefits
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like less muscle damage which translates
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to shorter recovery time a double-blind
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randomized study in males and females
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saw an increase in cardio-respiratory
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endurance the function of the heart and
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lungs measured by oxygen consumption at
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peak physical exertion ashwagandha is
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also becoming a go-to for men with links
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to testosterone levels and fertility a
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review of studies from 2021 found
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supplementation resulted in positive
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effects on testosterone concentrations
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currently though available studies are
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largely based on young populations with
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no underlying testosterone issues with a
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large number using men under 40. we'll
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keep our eye on the emerging research
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here further to this a review of studies
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found decreased infertility among male
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subjects due to the enhancement in semen
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quality it's proposed but not proven
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that it may be due to decreased
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oxidative stress which enhances enzyme
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activity in this evening and it's safe
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research studies doses up to 600
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milligrams daily with absolutely no
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negative side effects but as always we
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recommend consulting your gp if you've
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got any concerns when starting to take a
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new supplement so what do you think
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about ashwagandha would you give it a go
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let us know in the comments below
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remember to like and subscribe to the my
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protein youtube channel for more great
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evidence-based nutrition information
