Ashwagandha
ash-wuh-GAHN-duh
An Ayurvedic root increasingly used in scalp serums and botanical formulas, with emerging research into its effects on hair health.
Sign in to save this term.
Ashwagandha, Withania somnifera, is one of Ayurveda's best-known botanicals and is traditionally categorized as an adaptogenic herb. It has more recently appeared in topical scalp serums and hair-care formulations. Unlike many herbal hair-growth claims that rely primarily on traditional or animal evidence, early human research has evaluated standardized ashwagandha root extract in topical hair serum and reported improvements in several hair measurements.
Those findings are promising but still emerging, and they apply to the studied standardized formulations; Not automatically to every ashwagandha powder, oil, or DIY preparation.