Juicing For Health - Adrenal Fatigue
Overview
Adrenal fatigue is a debilitating disorder in which the adrenal glands are said to be exhausted and unable to produce adequate quantities of hormones, primarily cortisol. Adrenal fatigue usually comes about after large prolonged periods of stress or illness.
The adrenal glands are two small glands that sit over the kidneys and are responsible for secreting several hormones such as epinephrine, cortisol, progesterone, estrogen, DHEA and testosterone. Both parts of the adrenal glands, the adrenal cortex and the adrenal medulla perform very separate functions.
Some sites ive seen are trying to make out that adrenal fatigue is a relatively new condition when actually its as old as they come, its just most often goes critically undiagnosed and put down to anxiety, depression or nervous breakdown. It doesnt make it any easier when the medical community largely ignores the adrenal glands minus in severe cases such as Addisons disease.
Symptoms of Adrenal Fatigue
Some symptoms of adrenal fatigue include dizziness upon standing, chronic fatigue, allergies, low blood sugar, weight gain, depression, cravings for salt or sugar, anxiety, low body temperature, reliance on stimulants, tobacco, sugar to get going, reduced libido, insomnia, low immunity, intolerance to stress, difficulty getting up in the morning and pain in upper back or neck for no reason. These are just some of the symptoms assosiated with adrenal burnout/fatigue.
Nutritional Support For Adrenal Fatigue
The best way to build up the adrenal glands is to provide them the nutrients they need the most i.e vitamin C, Pantothenic acid(vitamin B5) and salt.
The best way to replace these is via food sources in my opinion so for vitamin C the best sources are all types of berries, watercress, kiwis and any other high vitamin C food. Many recommend grams upon grams of sythethic vitamin C which is rather unstable so its better to go with natural/herbal sources if you wish to supplement then amla berry, acerola cherry and rosehips are good herbal sources. Natural vitamin C is 12 times stronger than sythethic whilst being alot more stable.
The next most important nutrient to the adrenals is pantothenic acid(vitamin B5). Good sources are bee pollen, rice bran, oat bran, seaweeds and nettle leaf(also helps adrenals). If you choose bee pollen you need to start with just a few gains this helps check if your allergic, then everyday build up until your taking a tablespoon.
The adrenal glands need salt to function properly, likewise sodium is dependant for many body functions such as to make hydrochloric acid in the stomach, eletrical function of heartbeat and so on. The best salts to supplement with are the unrefined type such as himalayan crystal, celtic grey sea salt and other unrefined salts. Himalayan salt can be combined in a concentrated water solution known as sole which has many beneficial properties. The unrefined salts have the balancing 80+ trace elements which attributes to the benefits.
Magnesium can also be deficient in those with adrenal fatigue, if supplementing then its best to use acidified versions such as magnesium malate or citrate.
Herbal Support/Adaptagens
Adaptagen are herbs which increase the bodys ability to adapt to stress, trauma, fatigue and maintain homeostasis. Their are a number of great "adaptagen" herbs all with their own unique benefits, some of the main ones are ashwagandha(indian ginseng), schizandra berry, jiaogulan, suma root(brazilian ginseng), liquorice, maca, astragalus and rhodiola. All of these herbs help restore proper adrenal and endocrine function, whilst helping to balance hormones. It would take multiple pages to list the benefits of these wonderful herbs.
Lifestyle Recommendations
It is absolutely necessary to remove stress from your life, whether its work problems, spouse/partner, children, long-term problems, you have to try keep as chill as possible because at the end of the day its only yourself that its hurting. If you can remove these stressors even better. Learn to love and take care of yourself on a regular basis so many adrenal fatigue sufferers strive for perfection in their lifes.
It is also essential to remove dietary stress such as refined sugars, white flour, caffiene, alcohol, nicotine and other any hidden stimulants. Cleaning up your diet to include more raw wholesome foods will go along way to helping recovery. Food allergies are common in those with low adrenal function so eliminating the common allergens such as gluten, wheat, dairy and egg can help alot, testing is best to find out for sure.
Exercise can stimulate adrenal function, and we all know how good it is at relieving stress and boosting mood. For those with severe adrenal fatigue they'll probably find they may have exercise intolerance, it is best at this stage not to push the adrenals further and focus on building them up for a while first. If you can then small walks are perfect.
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