Brahmi Benefits, Uses, Side Effects and Dosage

One of the most famous health benefits of brahmi is its ability to improve cognition (knowledge and understanding) and memory functions. Since the last few decades, this traditional use of brahmi has been repeatedly put to trial by numerous clinical and preclinical studies.

A review article published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine enlists at least 6 random clinical trials (RCTs) that claim that the consumption of 300-400 mg of brahmi extracts regularly can improve cognition and memory free recall in healthy humans.

A further study suggests that brahmi is an excellent agent for improving delayed memory recall or keeping information in your memory for long. It was also reported that ayurvedic herbs like brahmi and ginseng are as efficient as modafinil (a drug used to improve wakefulness).

Read more: Home remedies to improve memory

Vesicular glutamate type 1 (VGLUT1), is a neurotransmitter (brain signaling) protein. It is responsible for efficient flow of signals and information throughout the brain and a decrease in VGLUT1 is primarily associated with conditions like dementia and schizophrenia. According to an in vivo (animal-based) study, brahmi administration can increase the amount of vesicular glutamate type 1 (VGLUT1). Thus, it may have some possibility as a cognition-enhancing drug for schizophrenia.

In an earlier study, it was claimed that brahmi has two memory-enhancing chemicals called bacopin A and B. Both these chemicals are responsible for repairing damaged brain cells and improving brain function.

Recently, a clinical trial was done in India to test the cognition-enhancing properties of brahmi. A group of 60 healthy students was given either placebo or 150 mg of brahmi extracts once a day, for a period of six weeks. The group that took brahmi regularly, showed marked improvement in their cognitive and memory function.

However, more research is still needed to understand the usefulness of brahmi in cases of long-term human consumption.

Read more: How to improve brain power

Stress is one of the leading causes of many diseases including depression, anxiety, heart problems, diabetes and stomach problems. While most anti-anxiety drugs are considered to be safe in most doses, their excessive use can lead to numerous side effects including overdosing and toxicity.

Traditional and folk medicine consider brahmi as an excellent adaptogenic (anti-stress) herb. It doesn’t only improve cognition and memory but is also known to be beneficial in alleviating stress and anxiety. Various researches have been carried out all over the world to understand the anti-stress and anxiolytic (reduces anxiety) effects of brahmi.

Animal-based studies suggest that consumption of brahmi markedly reduces acute (sudden and severe) and chronic stress (long term). A previous study reported that brahmi is more effective than lorazepam (an anti-anxiety drug) in dealing with stress and anxiety. Additionally, it was mentioned that brahmi mediates its stress-busting function by improving cognition and thus have no evident side effects.

According to a recent clinical study, regular consumption of 300-600 g of brahmi can significantly reduce stress and lead to better moods. It was observed that the antistress effect of brahmi was due to a reduction in cortisol (a stress hormone) levels in the body.

Read more: Home remedies to reduce stress

Brahmi is widely used in ayurvedic medicines in the form of an antidepressant. While clinical shreds of evidence are still lacking in this field, some animal-based studies confirm the efficiency of brahmi in reducing depression. One such study suggests that the bacosides (naturally occurring chemicals) present in brahmi are majorly responsible for its anti-depression action.

Read more: Homeopathic treatment for depression

GABA or gamma-aminobutyric acid is a neurotransmitter in the brain which keeps maintains a balance in the stimulation and relaxation of the brain cells. Any imbalance in GABA functions is generally associated with conditions like convulsions and epilepsy. Preclinical studies suggest that brahmi mediated an anticonvulsant (reduces risks of fits or epilepsy) response by stimulating the anticonvulsant actions of GABA. An earlier study hints that bacoside A present in brahmi is a GABA agonist (improves GABA function).

According to a recent study mentioned in the Indian Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, administration of brahmi reduces the resistance to common antiepileptic drug phenobarbitone.

However, due to the absence of clinical studies, it is best to refer to your doctor before taking brahmi for any kind of fits or epilepsy.

Read more: Ayurvedic treatment for epilepsy

Alzheimer’s is a neurodegenerative disorder that leads to a slow but progressive loss of brain functions like cognition, memory, and basic understanding.  According to a recent report by the World Health Organisation (WHO), Alzheimer’s is associated with at least 50% of dementia cases worldwide. However, its progress has been noted to be more prevalent in the age range of 65 to 85. Unfortunately, there isn’t any specific treatment for Alzheimer’s and the current line of dementia treatment is quite costly. So, studies are being directed towards the use of herbal supplements in reducing the severity of Alzheimer’s, and Alzheimer's related problems like anxiety and irritability.

A clinical study done on 60 Alzheimer’s patients suggests that regular consumption of brahmi extracts have a positive effect on memory, recall, cognition along with decreasing anxiety and irritation.

A further clinical trial suggests that a polyherbal formulation consisting of brahmi as its primary ingredient, is very effective in improving delayed recall, cognition. Additionally, a marked reduction in inflammation was observed.

According to research, cerebral accumulation of a specific protein known as amyloid beta protein is one of the major causes of development of Alzheimer’s. The repetitive claims of brahmi’s neuroprotective (protects brain) actions has inspired a new series of research to find the exact mechanism of action of brahmi on brain function. Recent preclinical studies have found that bacopaside- I, a chemical constituent of brahmi, clears off the amyloid protein by eliciting a specific immune response against them.

Although more studies are still needed in this field, the existing results definitely throw a light on the therapeutic potential of brahmi in the treatment of Alzheimer’s.

Read more: Alzheimer's disease diet

Antioxidants are present in our body as the primary line of defence against free radical overload. Now what are free radicals? Free radicals are a type of oxygen that is produced as a result of various metabolic functions of our body. While they are essential for the normal functioning of our body, an excess or high number of free radicals lead to a condition known as oxidative stress. Various physiological problems like premature ageing, obesity, diabetes, and heart problems have been associated with oxidative stress.

Dietary antioxidants like Vitamin C and BHA (butylated hydroxyanisole) have been proven to be very beneficial for scavenging these free radicals off the body. In a recent research, brahmi extracts have been found to have antioxidant properties similar to that of vitamin C and BHA.

Another study claims that brahmi leaves have a much higher antioxidant potential than the stems of brahmi plant.

According to a peer-review journal, the antioxidative properties of brahmi can be associated with the cognitive and neuroprotective actions of this herb.

Brahmi has long since been used as a pain reliever and an anti-inflammatory agent by the ayurvedic and traditional medicine systems. Numerous researches have been done to test the exact mechanism of action and efficiency of brahmi as an anti-inflammatory drug. In vivo studies have suggested that brahmi mediates a potent anti-inflammatory reaction which is similar to that of indomethacin (an anti-inflammatory drug).

According to an article published in the Indian Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Research, brahmi leaves extract, at a dosage of 200-400 mg has been shown to exhibit a significant reduction in the in vitro and in vivo inflammation models.

A further study suggests that brahmi exerts its anti-inflammatory action by inhibiting the release of certain chemicals that are responsible for initiating an inflammatory response in the body. It was also reported that consumption of brahmi leads to an improved immune response which in turn reduces inflammation.

In an in vitro (lab-based) model of inflamed brain cells, brahmi has been found to be equally effective in lowering inflammation in the brain. Thus, proving once again that it has great potential as a brain tonic.

Read more: Inflammatory disease symptoms

Numerous studies indicate that brahmi plant is an excellent antinociceptive (suppressing pain). According to two different animal studies, brahmi is a better painkiller than commercial drugs like diclofenac-Na and aspirin. While the exact mechanism of action is still not evident, it has been suggested that the chemical constituents in brahmi extracts can bind to certain receptors in the brain (opioid receptors) and give a sense of euphoria thus suppressing pain sensations.

An earlier study hints that bacosine-I may be responsible for the analgesic action of brahmi. According to a recent in vivo study, brahmi can be very useful as an adjuvant (additional treatment along with the usual drug) along with some drugs to reduce the pain associated with allodynia (strong pain by an otherwise non-painful stimulus) and hyperalgesia (high sensitivity to pain).

However, much more research is still needed to confirm the pain-relieving effects and analgesic mechanism of brahmi.

In vivo studies suggest that brahmi may have some beneficial effects for the stomach health. It has been reported to strengthen the inner lining of the stomach and thus protecting it from damage by excess digestive acids. Additionally, in an in vitro study, it was found that brahmi, at a dosage of 1000 mg per mL, can efficiently kill the ulcer-causing bacteria Helicobacter pylori.  

However, no clinical studies have yet been done to confirm similar effects on human cases of peptic ulcer.

Read more: Stomach ulcer diet

In vitro studies suggest that ethanolic extracts of brahmi plant have an excellent antimicrobial action against a particular type of bacteria (gram-positive).

In a further study, brahmi extracts were prepared using various solvents like ethanol, water, diethyl ether, and ethyl acetate. Differential and wide range anti-microbial action were reported by the diethyl ether and ethyl acetate extracts while the ethanolic extracts were found to be more potent in killing fungi like Candida albicans and Aspergillus niger. However, the aqueous extracts failed to show kill any of the tested microbes. It was speculated that this happened due to the absence of certain chemical compounds in the water-based extracts of brahmi plant.

Much more research is still needed to understand the mechanism of action of brahmi as an antibacterial and antifungal agent.

Read more: Treatment of fungal infection

Brahmi and brahmi oil have a long history of being used in various hair care products like shampoos and conditioners. As we know now that brahmi improves memory and cognitive functions (a nootropic herb) but is there any scientific proof behind its efficacy as a hair tonic?

According to an article published in the International Journal for Innovative Research and Development, brahmi is indeed a hair tonic. It can improve hair growth by nourishing the hair follicles and improving blood circulation in the scalp. Additionally, its anti-inflammatory and antibacterial action may help you get rid of itching and infections in the scalp and hair follicles. Thus providing longer and shinier hairs.

Read more: How to make your hair grow faster and longer

An open clinical study claims that a polyherbal formulation consisting of brahmi as one of its ingredients is very helpful in reducing hair fall. No side effects were noted in any of the subjects.

So, it can be said that brahmi does have some evidential benefits in maintaining and improving hair health.

While there hasn’t been any clinical study regarding the hypoglycemic (blood sugar reducing) effects of brahmi, animal-based studies suggest that brahmi may have some hypoglycemic potential. Additionally, it has been hinted that consumption of brahmi also reduces the risk of diabetes-associated kidney damage and memory loss.

An in vitro study claims that bacosine, a chemical compound present in brahmi may be responsible for its anti-diabetic action.

It was further added that brahmi reduces glucose levels in the body by mimicking the action of insulin in the body.

Read more: Blood sugar test