Not proven. A 2023 review of 10 small studies in healthy adults reported less inflammation with ashwagandha, but in a 12-week placebo-controlled trial, its drop in CRP was no different from placebo. Meanwhile, case reports link it to liver injury that can be serious in people with liver disease.
Where the anti-inflammatory claim comes from
Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) is a root used for centuries in India's Ayurvedic medicine. Today it sits on supplement shelves next to promises about stress, sleep and inflammation.
The best human support for the claim is a 2023 systematic review, which gathers every study on a question that meets set rules. This one looked for trials in healthy adults and found 10. People who took ashwagandha showed less oxidative stress and inflammation, and no serious side effects were reported. The authors called its effects "potent."
That is a big word for 10 studies. The review pooled no numbers, and it says more studies are needed. Healthy adults also have little inflammation to lower. So the idea is worth testing. It is not proven.
Does ashwagandha reduce inflammation in a real trial?
The clearest test we found came from a 2018 randomized, double-blind trial. In that design, people are assigned by chance to the herb or a dummy pill, and nobody knows who got which.
CRP declined more with ashwagandha, but not by enough to beat placebo.From a 2018 randomized trial in J Clin Psychiatry
Researchers gave 66 people with schizophrenia either 1,000 mg of ashwagandha extract a day or a placebo for 12 weeks, on top of their usual medicine. They tracked CRP (C-reactive protein), a protein your liver makes more of when there is inflammation in the body.
The herb did help some symptoms and lowered stress scores more than placebo. But on CRP, the result was a tie. CRP "declined more" with ashwagandha, yet the gap from placebo was too small to rule out chance.
A 2019 meta-analysis, which pools the results of many studies, looked at 56 trials of anti-inflammatory drugs and supplements for schizophrenia. Ashwagandha was on the list. It was not one of the four the authors found worked: aspirin, estrogens, minocycline and NAC.
A twist in the lab: the IL-6 test
IL-6 (interleukin-6) is a signaling protein that rises with inflammation, and it is one of the markers studies use. A 2022 lab study found something odd. When researchers added ashwagandha extract to blood samples, the IL-6 test read lower than it should have. The CRP test was not affected.
This was done in test tubes, not in people taking the herb. Still, it raises a fair question for any study that reports lower IL-6 in people taking it. How much of the drop is the body, and how much is the test?
What ashwagandha does seem to do
Ashwagandha has better evidence for stress than for inflammation. A 2026 meta-analysis of 23 randomized trials with 1,706 people found it lowered cortisol, a stress hormone. A 2024 meta-analysis of 5 trials with 254 people found it lowered anxiety scores, though the trials varied a lot and the authors asked for larger studies.
Does ashwagandha cause inflammation in the body?
In most short trials, no harm showed up. In an 8-week randomized trial of 80 healthy adults, 300 mg twice a day caused no changes in blood tests, liver tests or thyroid hormones, and no one reported side effects.
The liver is a different story. A 2020 report described 5 people in Iceland and the US who developed jaundice (yellowing of the skin and eyes), nausea, tiredness, itching and belly discomfort 2 to 12 weeks after starting ashwagandha. None had liver failure, and liver tests went back to normal within 1 to 5 months in four of them. Four of the five were also taking other supplements.
A 2023 series from India was worse. Among 8 people hurt by single-ingredient ashwagandha, 5 already had chronic liver disease. Three of them went into liver failure on top of that disease, and all 3 died. Liver biopsies showed inflammation inside the liver, and lab tests of the products found no contamination.
So in rare cases, yes: ashwagandha has been linked to inflammation of the liver itself. Case reports cannot tell us how often this happens. They do show that it happens.
A 2026 review also lists stomach upset, allergic-type reactions and hormone effects, including thyroid overactivity. In the 2026 hormone meta-analysis, ashwagandha raised the thyroid hormone T4 a little. In a small trial of 50 people with mildly low thyroid function, it changed thyroid test results over 8 weeks.
What this means for you
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The bottom line
Ashwagandha is an old root with a new label stuck on it. Ten small studies in healthy adults. One trial where CRP did no clearly better than on a placebo. A lab quirk that makes IL-6 look lower than it is. That is the whole case for "anti-inflammatory." Against it sit real liver injuries, a few of them fatal in people who were already sick. The herb may take the edge off stress. For inflammation, the proof is not there yet, and the risk is.
Common questions
Does ashwagandha reduce inflammation in the body?
Not clearly. A 2023 review of 10 studies in healthy adults reported less inflammation, but it pooled no numbers. In a 12-week randomized trial of 66 patients, CRP fell more with ashwagandha than with placebo, but the gap was too small to rule out chance. Larger, longer trials that measure inflammation are still missing.
Is ashwagandha good for inflammation?
The evidence doesn't support taking it for inflammation. Its better-tested effects are on stress: a 2026 meta-analysis of 23 trials with 1,706 people found it lowered cortisol. For inflammation, the one placebo-controlled CRP result we found showed no clear benefit, and the herb carries a rare but real risk of liver injury.
Does ashwagandha cause inflammation in the body?
Usually not in short trials. In an 8-week trial of 80 healthy adults, blood and liver tests stayed normal. But case reports link ashwagandha to liver injury, with biopsies showing inflammation in the liver. Most people recovered within 1 to 5 months, but in an Indian series, 3 people with existing liver disease died.
Is ashwagandha safe for your liver?
For most people in short trials, liver tests stayed normal. Still, doctors have reported liver injury from single-ingredient products with no contamination found. It usually began 2 to 12 weeks after starting and caused jaundice and itching. People with existing liver disease face the highest risk.
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How this article was made
Researched and written from 12 peer-reviewed papers. Our automated check matched every claim against the exact words of its source, confirmed every paper exists in PubMed, and found none retracted. Checked November 1, 2026. Not individually reviewed by a doctor. Photos are illustrative; the people in them are not patients or readers.
Grades run Strong, Moderate, Emerging, Early and Not supported, and the grade decides the words we may use. How we grade evidence · Medical disclaimer
Sources
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- Randomized trialAdjunctive Use of a Standardized Extract of Withania somnifera (Ashwagandha) to Treat Symptom Exacerbation in Schizophrenia: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study.Chengappa KNR, Brar JS, Gannon JM et al. J Clin Psychiatry, 2018.PubMedFull paper
- Meta-analysisAn update on the efficacy of anti-inflammatory agents for patients with schizophrenia: a meta-analysis.Çakici N, van Beveren NJM, Judge-Hundal G et al. Psychol Med, 2019.PubMedFull paper
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- ReviewAshwagandha-induced liver injury-A case series from India and literature review.Philips CA, Valsan A, Theruvath AH et al. Hepatol Commun, 2023.PubMedFull paper
- ReviewPotential Adverse Effects of Ashwagandha: A Critical Review of Preclinical and Clinical Evidence.Kumar A, Sah BK, Ahmad F et al. Phytother Res, 2026.PubMedFull paper
- StudyEstimated Exposure to 6 Potentially Hepatotoxic Botanicals in US Adults.Likhitsup A, Chen VL, Fontana RJ JAMA Netw Open, 2024.PubMedFull paper
- Randomized trialSafety of Ashwagandha Root Extract: A Randomized, Placebo-Controlled, study in Healthy Volunteers.Verma N, Gupta SK, Tiwari S et al. Complement Ther Med, 2021.PubMedFull paper
- Meta-analysisHormonal Modulation with Withania somnifera: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized-controlled Trials.Fornalik M, Malkiewicz A, Adamczak D et al. Planta Med, 2026.PubMedFull paper
- Randomized trialEfficacy and Safety of Ashwagandha Root Extract in Subclinical Hypothyroid Patients: A Double-Blind, Randomized Placebo-Controlled Trial.Sharma AK, Basu I, Singh S J Altern Complement Med, 2018.PubMedFull paper
- Meta-analysisSafety and efficacy of Withania somnifera for anxiety and insomnia: Systematic review and meta-analysis.Fatima K, Malik J, Muskan F et al. Hum Psychopharmacol, 2024.PubMedFull paper
