Ashwagandha trial reports stress-score improvements, with an unclear comparison
The abstract reports questionnaire improvements but leaves their statistical comparator unclear. Cortisol and salivary alpha amylase did not differ significantly between groups.
Based on the published abstract. The full paper may contain additional methods, results and limitations.
The 30-second takeaway
The researchers reported improvements in stress, anxiety, and sleep questionnaire scores with the tested formulation. However, the abstract does not clarify whether those tests compared treatment groups or changes within the formulation group. It therefore leaves the added benefit over placebo uncertain, while explicitly reporting no significant group differences in the measured stress biomarkers.
This abstract-based explanation cannot resolve the questionnaire comparisons or assess their practical size because score differences are missing. Reported tolerability also comes without detailed adverse-event results, and chronic stress was outside the studied population.
What researchers found
Serum cortisol and salivary alpha amylase
Zenroot versus placebo during the 84-day study; the abstract does not give assessment-specific biomarker comparisons.
What the questionnaires measured
Perceived stress was the primary outcome. Anxiety, mood, and sleep quality were secondary outcomes alongside physiological measurements. The reported questionnaire changes describe participants’ experiences, but the unclear statistical comparison prevents a firm claim of benefit over placebo.
How to read the biomarker result
Cortisol and salivary alpha amylase showed no statistically significant differences between groups. This does not establish that the treatments were equivalent. Other physiological measures improved at selected assessments, leaving a mixed picture across the measured outcomes.
The original publication
A New Ashwagandha Formulation (Zenroot™) Alleviates Stress and Anxiety Symptoms While Improving Mood and Sleep Quality: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Clinical Study.
Mahadevan M, Gopukumar K, Gupta R et al.
Adv Ther · 2025
- PubMed ID
- 40875185
- Record checked
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