Haritaki Herb: Digestive, Joint & Brain Health

Haritaki herb benefits include digestion support, brain health support, and reduction of oxidative stress and joint pain.

Haritaki is also known as Terminalia chebula and Myrobalan. It’s often referred to as the King of Medicines for the exceptional oxidative stress, digestive health, joint health, and brain health support it provides.

Reduction of Oxidative Stress

Oxidative stress often increases when Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) are produced in large quantities. ROS and free radicals can damage body tissues and result in degenerative diseases.

The high number of phytoconstituents found in Haritaki is attributed to its antioxidant activity. These polyphenols protect cell constituents against potential oxidative damage that could damage cells and tissues. Chenulanin, casuarinin, and chebulinic acid in Haritaki may also scavenge free radicals.

Haritaki Herb Digestive Health Benefits

Key Haritaki herb benefits include promoting digestive health and addressing digestive disorders. In addition to providing gut health support, its uses also include strengthening and supporting the proper function of the colon, liver, and spleen.

In traditional systems, it’s seen as being useful for constipation, irritable bowel system, flatulence, ulcers, vomiting, intermittent fever, kidney stones, and hemorrhoids. Studies show it can help maintain regular elimination, helping to clear accumulated toxins in the gut.

Joint Health

Joint and connective tissue integrity, comfort, and function are critical for optimal performance in exercise, recreational, and occupational activities. The fruit of the Terminalia chebula tree has been used extensively in many traditional health systems to provide support for different ailments, including those that affect joint health.

In particular, Haritaki herb may be effective at improving joint health, joint mobility, and functional capacity. Studies in healthy subjects have reported that use of Haritaki as a dietary supplement can increase the reported pain threshold related to range of motion and duration of joint activity. In other words, the subjects of the study were able to be active longer and to bend joints further before reporting the activity as painful.

Haritaki is widely used to help strengthen and nourish the joint tissues, as well as to provide support for joint stiffness, joint pain, inflammation, and other joint health issues.

Brain Health

Haritaki herb is a nootropic, which is a substance that may improve cognitive function, particularly memory, creativity, and motivation. It’s valued for its healing and rejuvenating powers and believed to increase energy, intelligence, and awareness. In particular, it’s used to support the treatment of cognitive deficits and improve learning and memory.

Haritaki has a wide variety of constituents believed to affect cognition. It has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects and may help support treatment for Alzheimer’s disease. A study published in Advances in Pharmacological and Pharmaceutical Sciences indicates that Haritaki extract and its constituents have AChEI and antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects, which are relevant to the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease.

It’s also commonly used as a rejuvenator of the mind and a meditation support to increase clarity of thought. Haritaki is also one of five nootropics extracts in our BrainStorm Nootropic Brain Health Kits.

Haritaki Herb Extract vs. Capsules and Tinctures

Prefer capsules and tinctures to herbal extracts? Your health benefits may be limited, and you may be overpaying. Let me explain.

For starters, it’s hard, if not impossible, to smell your herbals if you’re taking tinctures or capsules. When you can’t smell your herbals, you’re missing an important smell immune response trigger. As it turns out, the nose is an important sentinel against invasive elements, and smell can prime the immune system. In addition, stimulation of the brain via the nose can improve memory (as happens with sage). It can also enhance mitochondrial function, reduce stress, and possibly help protect you from illness.

Let’s say you take Haritaki capsules or a Haritaki tincture. How many capsules or how much tincture should you take each day? The answer is complicated. The amount should depend on your weight, your medical history, and the health issues you’re trying to address. In any case, the number of Haritaki capsules or the amount of Haritaki tincture you take will almost certainly be only a small fraction of the actual amount you need.

In addition, you’re paying a premium for that tincture or those capsules — up to 30 times the cost of Haritaki herbal extract).

We recommend that everyone do as much research on herbal remedies as possible — and do the math. Capsules and tinctures usually cost more (up to 10, 20, or 30 times more) than herbal supplements. Capsules and tinctures, while easy to consume, also don’t usually provide the serving sizes actually needed.

To be clear, if you want to try Haritaki herb, taking it in capsule or tincture form is better than taking no Haritaki at all (so long as the Haritaki is of high quality, that is). However, if you’re looking to optimize your health, you might strongly consider consuming Haritaki herbal extract in the quantity that can best help you achieve your wellness goals.

Learn More About Haritaki Herb Benefits

Extensive clinical research conducted on Haritaki has identified Haritaki pharmacological properties that show why the plant is often used to provide oxidative stress, digestion, joint health, and brain health support.

Today, it’s generally recognized that Haritaki consumption supports a healthy lifestyle approach related to digestive health, joint health, and brain health. There is good reason to believe that a lifestyle-related approach to optimal health will benefit from support with Haritaki as a health supplement.

We sell all-natural Haritaki herb in 200g sizes (200 servings), as well as in smaller 100g sizes (100 servings) as part of our Health Made Simple line of extracts. To learn more, a good place to start is with the Haritaki FAQ.