Ashwagandha is commonly used to alleviate stress, anxiety, depression, and insomnia. It may also be beneficial for reducing blood sugar, cholesterol, and inflammation, as well as enhancing sleep, immunity, sports performance, memory, and brain function in both men and women. Additionally, ashwagandha may help improve male fertility and improve sexual dysfunction in females. Ashwagandha also appears to significantly lower the symptoms of stress and its associated disorders–like fatigue, insomnia, and cognitive impairment–and reduce cortisol levels in the blood. Human studies have associated ashwagandha supplementation with cortisol reductions ranging from 14.5 to 27.9% in stressed but otherwise healthy individuals, which is substantially greater than many other supplement