ADRENAL EXHAUSTION and HOW to FIX

One of the most common health problems faced in today’s society is adrenal exhaustion or adrenal fatigue.  And it is no wonder as the adrenal glands are little warriors – they help the body to cope with stress, manage electrolyte and mineral balance, blood sugar and blood pressure and even regulate our hormone balance.

When your adrenals are working optimally – you will have lots of energy, wake with vigour, sleep beautifully, experience mental clarity, have a primed immune system and a heightened ability to cope with stress.  If the adrenal glands become ‘burnt out’ due to constant stress or other factors, it can weaken other endocrine glands like the pancreas and thyroid, resulting in lots of unwanted symptoms.

The adrenals are two tiny little triangular shaped glands that sit on top of the kidneys. They are made up of two sections, the adrenal cortex and the adrenal medulla.  The adrenal cortrex produces hormones that control sex hormones (estrogen, testosterone), electrolyte balance (alderosterone), sugar balance and stress support (cortisol, DHEA). These hormones cause physiological changes that enable you to cope with stress more effectively as well as helping to regulate blood pressure, emotions, inflammation, energy and allergies.  DHEA is a famous longevity hormone that plays a major role in testosterone and estrogen production thereby improving bone strength, cardiovascular health, sex drive and immune protection. The major hormones produced in the adrenal medulla are catacholamines – adrenaline type hormones like epinephrine and norepinephrine. These cause bodily changes to improve your ability to cope with stress. 

The adrenal glands are built to help us cope with acute stress, not long term chronic stress like most of us face today.  Stress can come from constant negative emotions like worry or anger, from working long hours, shift work, financial or relationship issues, trauma, a lack of sleep or exercise, exposure to environmental toxins and pollutants, crash diets, surgery, medications, over-exercising, inflammation, pain or illness.  Eating lots of processed and white flour products, sugar, salt, caffeine or nicotine can also quickly zap the adrenals of their power.

If you experience more than one of these signs or symptoms on a daily basis, your adrenals definitely need an overhaul.

 

There are some great medical tests that can help to give you a key to whether your adrenal glands are burnt out and needing a little help. Ask your GP to order:

DHEA/Cortisol Ratio

ACTH

Complete thyroid function – T3, T4, Thyroid antibodies, TSH

Reverse T3

Adrenal stress saliva test (a naturopath can organize this)

Neurotransmitter urine test (this can be ordered via your naturopath or online)

QUICK HOME TEST In Iridology, we can use the iris to diagnose adrenal fatigue. If you sit in a dark room and shine a light into your pupil and it doesn’t contract, this is a sign of adrenal fatigue. In some cases, the pupil stays extremely large and this is more severe adrenal fatigue.

If you feel that your adrenal glands are exhausted or burnt out, trying to fix them may seem like an exhausting task.  However, there are some great natural solutions to get your adrenals back into working order to feel vibrant, happy and balanced again.  The most important steps are

1. REMOVE STRESS
2. ELIMINATE TOXINS
3. REMOVE NEGATIVE THINKING and
4. REPLENISH your BODY with the right FOODS and SUPPORTIVE SUPPLEMENTS and HERBS

ADRENAL SUPPORT DIET

CAFFEINE can burn the adrenals out further and make it hard for the adrenal glands to recover. If you need something to give you a boost in the morning, try licorice tea, yerba mate or matcha green tea.

SUGAR and SWEETENERS burn out the adrenal glands. Look for natural alternatives like stevia, birch xylitol and monkfruit.

PROCESSED FOODS devoid of nutrition need to be avoided as they simply place more stress on the adrenal glands.

CARBOHYDRATES can convert into sugars placing more stress on the adrenal glands. The worst are gluten grains like bread, biscuits, white flour products, cookies, cakes and crackers.

PROTEIN with meals – it is important to include protein with each meal. Protein is made up of amino acids which are the building blocks for all of our cells.  We need these to support the building and repair of all muscle tissues, hair, skin, nails and every organ.  I always recommend a minimum of 1 gram of protein for every kilogram of body weight – so if you are 65 kilograms you will need a minimum of 65 grams per day.  If you are working, exercising or repairing from trauma, add another ½ gram of protein per kilogram of body weight. The best sources of animal based proteins are organic grass-fed red meat (do not eat in excess), organic eggs, seafood like oily fish and liver and non animal based protein is found in activated nuts and seeds, organic soy like tempeh, blue-green algae, soaked and sprouted beans and legumes and hemp seeds.

Include foods rich in Vitamin B5 like tomatoes, avocado, licorice, brown rice, sardines, salmon, organic soy beans, mushrooms, green peas, sunflower seeds, sweet potato, broccoli, kale, brazil nuts, almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts, pecans, kelp, sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds.  This handy vitamin is needed to restore adrenal function.

 

BEST ADRENAL BOOSTING FOODS   Coconut Olives Borage leaves Organic eggs Almonds, pumpkin seeds Avocado and healthy fats like udo’s oil, flaxseed oil and hemp oil Cruciferous vegetables Bee pollen Fatty fish Organic chicken and turkey – helps to make serotonin Bone broth Activated walnuts, almonds and pumpkin seeds Fermented foods Celtic and Himalayan salt (for the extra mineral content) Kelp and seaweeds Chaga, cordyceps and other medicinal mushrooms

Adrenal Robbers – avoid as much as possible   Caffeine Alcohol Salt – soy sauce, MSG, fish sauce Nicotine Sugar – disrupts insulin function wearing out kidneys and adrenals Fried Foods

Adrenal Boost Smoothie   ½ cup of malt free soy milk, nut milk, rice milk or raw milk ½ cup of purified water 2 tablespoons of ENDLESS ENERGY (medicinal mushrooms & herbs to boost adrenals) 1 tablespoon of royal jelly (rich in vitamin B5 and minerals) 1 teaspoon of MACA Powder (balances endocrine glands) 1 teaspoon of phytoplankton or supergreen mix A handful of berries or 1 banana or 1 mango Ice   Mix all of these ingredients together in a blender.  This will help boost energy, immunity and stress resistance.

Nutritionally it is very important to include the following vitamins/minerals to improve adrenal gland function:

• Vitamin C – try a liposomal form for better absorption – I would aim for a minimum of 3000 mg daily
• Vitamin D – this can be found in medicinal mushrooms like CHAGA and CORDYCEPS
• Magnesium – use a threonate, glycinate, chelate or a liposomal form
• High quality fish oil – make sure it is clean and rich in EPA
• L-Tyrosine is an amino acid that is very good for boosting adrenal gland function
• Zinc – look for picolinate or biglycinate or chelate form – aim for a minimum of 25 mg per day
• Activated B vitamins rich in Vitamin B5

Herbs and medicinal mushrooms contain incredible antioxidants and nutrients to nourish the health of the adrenal glands and thyroid. Many adaptogenic herbs like ashwaghanda, rhodiola and holy basil can calm overactive adrenal glands, relieve anxiety, ease fatigue and bring about a sense of happiness and well-being. My fav adrenal and healing herbs and mushrooms are:

• Ashwaghanda
• Cordyceps
• Chaga
• Holy basil
• Ginsengs – Siberian, panax and Korean
• Licorice (avoid if blood pressure is high)
• Rhodiola
• Schisandra
• Astragalus Root

It is also useful to include a nervine or relaxant to make you feel calmer like

• Skullcap
• Chamomile
• Lavender
• Saffron

Other Helpful Tips

Avoid staying up late and try to go to bed before 10 pm

Sleep 8 to 10 hours of good quality sleep per night – if you are not sleeping well consult with a qualified naturopath to find out what is needed to help bring you back into natural balance

Laugh and do something that fills your heart with happiness every day

Meditate for a minimum of twenty minutes daily to lower cortisol levels and to nourish your adrenals and thyroid glands

Drink alkaline water rich in minerals to nourish the adrenal glands

Minimise work and relationship stress as much as possible

Exercise regularly – include yoga, tai chi, pilates, cycling, swimming, surfing, brisk walking or anything that increases well-being and pumps oxygen through your body – aim for 30 minutes of exercise daily

If you would like specialized information on your adrenal glands or a formula that works for you – please call 0755363113 to book an appointment with one of my amazing natural health practitioners xxx

My favourite wholistic house picks

Endless Energy

In love, health and energy,