ABOUT
- Herbal Medicine
- The Clinic
- Richard Whelan

HERBS
- Alphabetically

CONDITIONS TREATED
- By Group
- Alphabetical

CLINIC INFORMATION
- Clinic Hours
- Clinic Location

This months ~ FEATURED ARTICLES
	High Blood Pressure
.
FEATURED HERBS
	Kola Nut
.
FEATURED VIDEOS
	Pregnancy Nausea

What is it?

The roots of Withania, a small shrub that grows from 30-70cms tall in hot, dry places in the world, especially in India where it is one of the most widely used and revered of all traditional Ayurvedic herbs.

How has it been used?

Withania’s traditional usages include fatigue and exhaustion, anaemia, failure to thrive in children, wasting diseases, low thyroid function, bone or muscle weakness, senility, rheumatism, memory loss, anxiety, arthritis...

To understand how one herb could be used for so many different problems it is necessary to grasp the concept of a tonic, a medicine that works to help the body heal itself.

It is commonly said that Withania is the single most important herb in Ayurvedic medicine, itself a system with written records that go back thousands of years and an oral history that goes back at least 5000 years.

TOP | HERBS A-Z LIST

Personal experiences

I rate Withania as highly as any beneficial substance I have ever worked with and If by some horrible drought of supplies I could only have one remedy to use it would have to be Withania. This is simply because it has so much to offer the patients I see on a day to day basis.

Withania has a complex personality as a plant, it has a pronounced relaxing effect when people first start using it, they sleep better, they feel noticeably less stressed, and then, if they keep on it for a litle while, its 'tonic' effects start to become more and more pronounced. For children this might show as an increase in appetite and which turns into an increase in growth, for older people it is commonly felt as a gradually renewed sense of vitality. Many adults who use Withana for a time find that there is a noticeable libido enhancing effect...
This is what I mean when I say it has a complex personality; you can't put it in one box.

Withania combines perfectly with Panax Ginseng and Licorice root for fatigue or exhaustion, with Echinacea for a depressed immune system and with Hawthorn for a lack of physical vitality and heart strength.

Traditional Ayurvedic recipe for Withania

Take 1 heaped dessertspoon of cut Withania root and place in a small saucepan with about 1 ½ cups of milk (or a combination of milk and water). Add at least one tsp or more of raw sugar or honey to taste and also add a small sprinkle of black pepper, also to taste. You might like to try a small amount of Cinnamon powder as an option as well. Bring this mixture to just about boiling and then keep stirring on a gentle simmer for several minutes or until nearly half a cup has evaporated or been absorbed into the root. Take off the heat, strain the remainder into cup, and drink. Most people find the taste of this old traditional Withania drink more than acceptable and many say they actually find it quite delicious, especially after they have had it a few times. You can see people visibly relaxing and smiling more by the time they finish drinking this, it is a feel good medicine.

TOP | HERBS A-Z LIST