True Spring Alchemy/Woman Quintessence Shatavari (Asparagus racemosus) is a top quality Ayurvedic herb. It is the Queen of all women’s herbs – if we had to choose just one herb to take, this would be it. The name “Shatavari” means “She who has a Hundred Husbands” and it has a history of being a supreme fertility tonic, galactogogue, aphrodisiac and adaptogenic balancer of the female hormonal/endocrine system. It is deeply nourishing of a woman’s essence and there is no other herb quite like it.
What It Does
Shatavari is both calming and sustaining – tonifying, regulating and balancing our hormones and moods and also increasing libido, arousal and orgasmic capacity. In addition, it regulates ovulation, eliminates pre-menstrual/general fluid retention, boosts healthy cervical mucus production and alleviates vaginal dryness, hot flushes and other symptoms of menopause.
In Ayurvedic terms, the sweet and bitter tastes of this herb reduce hot pitta and dry vata, while increasing wet kapha, which is cooling, moistening, grounding and restoring. These qualities are often needed in women’s health, where ungrounded vata can create depletion leading to menstrual deficiency, amenorrhoea (missing periods) and dysmenorrhoea (painful periods). Shatavari’s nourishing properties are used to rejuvenate the reproductive system, building the volume and quality of blood and increasing fertility. Its nourishing and cooling properties are also perfect for alleviating hot flushes and other symptoms of menopause as well as the burning irritation of urinary infections.
Additionally, Shatavari is an excellent oestrogen regulator, and stimulates the anterior pituitary gland, supporting the production of luteinizing hormone which is responsible for properly regulated ovulation. It is a diuretic, helping the body to eliminate excess water build-up, specifically pre-menstrual fluid retention. It is useful for supporting the health of the mucous membranes of the cervix and is thus useful for women needing to boost healthy cervical mucus production, or who experience vaginal dryness.
To top it off, it is altogether an excellent adaptogen and destressor, immune strengthener and true longevity botanical.
Top Quality
When we use herbs, making sure they are of high quality is vital – and True Spring Alchemy/Woman Quintessence Shatavari is top notch. It is a pure, excipient-free 5:1 water extract (no solvents used) of the highest quality organically grown, heirloom Shatavari and is “Original Biome” certified – meaning it is grown in the same soil type, microclimate and biotope in which it acquired its ancient “Queenly” reputation. (Protecting the genetic and epigenetic influencers of medicinal plants is key to their enduring efficacy – and this has been rigorously applied with this Shatavari).
Directions For Use
A recommended daily dose of this Shatavari extract will be between 500mg and 2000mg (which corresponds to between 2.5g and 10g of the raw herb). For the majority of women the ideal daily dose will be in the range of 750mg to 1250mg. The included measuring spoon weighs out just over a gram when completely level and uncompressed (i.e. lightly shaken), so the minimum dose will be about ½ a spoon and the maximum dose about 2 spoons.
It is recommended to start with one spoon (or just under, to make it 1g) and intuitively adjust that dosage up or down over time to find your personal sweet spot – which will vary from one woman to the next. Some people find that 500mg (or even less) is completely adequate for them (particularly those who are high kapha in Ayurvedic terms), while others like to go above 1500mg (or even more) to get a really strong effect.
As a principle, if you find that you are not noticing any effect then increase the dose little by little. And if you develop any discomfort or adverse symptoms then decrease the dose little by little. If you ever intuitively feel like a break for a couple of days, then take it. This is the right way to use Shatavari.
Woman Quintessence Protocol
To get maximum benefit from taking Shatavari, we suggest following the Woman Quintessence Protocol, as put together by True Spring Alchemy, the supplier of this Shatavari.
(Please note, however, it is absolutely not necessary to follow this protocol – if you just wish to take the Shatavari in hot water or another herbal tea, you will still gain much benefit from doing so).
This protocol consists of taking the Shatavari in our African Forest Medicinals’ Superhero Immune-Boosting Tea Mix – (produced by myself and my husband, and also available from our shop) – and comprising of organic Goji berries, Chaga, wild-harvested Reishi, Turkey Tail and Cinnabar mushroom. Additional Chaga and Goji Berries can be added if wished:-
- Goji berries (Lycium barbarum) are an antioxidant rich superfood with a whole host of profound and extensively documented health benefits. They are included in this protocol primarily as a Yin Jing tonic, i.e. they increase the stores of cooling, descending Yin- polarized energy in the kidneys and thus go a great way to mediating hot flushes in menopause which are in part caused by unrestrained ascending Yang. By increasing the Yin Jing, the feminine essence, which is expressed as juiciness internally and radiance externally, is enhanced. It is a supreme longevity substance which harmonizes perfectly with the Shatavari. More info here: https://superfoods.co.za/product/goji-berries-organic/
- Chaga (Inonotus obliquus) is a black/brown fungus that grows on Birch trees and is considered the King of medicinal mushrooms. While it has profound benefits related to immunity and cellular integrity, the primary reason for taking Chaga as part of this protocol is that it has a regenerative effect on the endocrine glands, which start atrophying and calcifying as part of the aging process. Using Chaga rejuvenates these glands which allows them to increase the output of our subtle hormonal chemistry. More info here: https://superfoods.co.za/product/chaga-powder-wildcrafted/
- The African Forest Medicinals Superhero Immune-Boosting Tea Mix is an excellent tea base made predominantly from wild-harvested Ancient Reishi (Ganoderma applanatum), Cinnabar Polypore (Pycnoporus cinnabarinus) and Turkey Tail (Trametes versicolor) mushrooms. It is delicious tasting, deeply nourishing, protective and rejuvenating. Additionally the Cinnabar boosts circulation and blood flow and helps deliver all the other herbal components deeply into the tissues of the body. More info here:- http://africanforestmedicinals.com/superhero-immune-boosting-tea-mix
The best way to prepare the tea is in a slow cooker / rice cooker / electric crock pot (available from most supermarkets in 3 litre and 6 litre sizes). One can also prepare the tea in a normal pot on the stove by bringing it just to the boil and then leaving it to simmer for an hour. The slow cooker is preferred because it can just be left on the lowest setting and the tea will always be ready for you (and, with consistent heat, won’t go off). Otherwise, you need to cook up the tea and then refrigerate it, reheating small quantities as needed.
While making the tea base is also a very intuitive affair, with lots of variation permissible that will still allow for a very efficacious protocol, you can use the following guidelines to begin:
The Superhero Tea base makes about 30 cups (or a month’s supply) if it is used conservatively. We recommend emptying about half the pack into the slow cooker and using it for about two weeks, and then making a new batch. If you like your tea a little fresher, then use a quarter bag every week. Some people just throw the whole bag in and use the contents for a long time and simply add more ingredients as they proceed. It’s all up to you, so have fun and experiment.
If you wish to add more chaga and goji berries (which sweeten the tea in a beautiful way) to the tea mix, then work on adding 100g pack of chaga and 200g pack of goji berries per packet of tea.
Of course there are no rules ultimately, so feel free to mix it up as you wish. Whilst you should definitely not exceed 2g / 2 measuring spoons of the Shatavari extract per day, the rest of it can be taken without any limits, and you will certainly enjoy the benefits from overdoing it a little if you feel moved!
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