What is Adrenal Fatigue?

High stress, chronic exhaustion, poor nutrition: your fast-paced lifestyle can lead to more than burnout. Your adrenal glands might be feeling the burn as well. Enter adrenal fatigue. 

In the same way chronic stress can stress out your thyroid and cause lasting damage, your adrenal glands can suffer, too. In this article, we’ll explore adrenal fatigue, including common signs, and adrenal fatigue supplements that can help you get back to feeling your best. 

What do adrenal glands do?

The adrenal glands are two small, triangular glands located on top of the kidneys. Like other parts of the endocrine system, our adrenal glands are primarily responsible for two things: hormone production and hormone release. What makes the adrenal glands unique is their involvement in moderating our response to stress. The hormones manufactured in the adrenal glands are directly involved in triggering the stress response. These include: adrenaline, noradrenaline, aldosterone, cortisol, and dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA). 

Adrenaline

Adrenaline (also known as epinephrine) is one of the hormones involved in activating our “fight, flight, or freeze” response. When the brain encounters danger, it signals for the release of adrenaline, which increases heart rate, induces faster breathing, and increases the oxygen and bloodflow to our muscles for increased strength and speed. 

Unfortunately, our brains aren’t always the best at distinguishing real danger from momentary stress. For example, your adrenal glands will probably release adrenaline if you encounter a bear while hiking or narrowly miss hitting another car in an intersection. But you could also experience adrenaline release while giving a presentation at work or when your neighbor’s car backfires. 

Noradrenaline

Noradrenaline is a chemical precursor to adrenaline. In addition to helping our bodies produce enough adrenaline to meet our needs, noradrenaline also increases blood pressure in response to stress. 

Aldosterone

While less well-known than adrenaline, aldosterone is responsible for regulating important electrolytes like potassium and sodium. These electrolytes have a direct impact on essential bodily functions including heart rate and blood pressure. 

Cortisol

Another famous (or, infamous) hormone, cortisol is another signaling molecule that our bodies produce in response to stress. The effects of cortisol in the body are well-documented and include: moderating the sleep cycle, wakefulness, inflammation regulation, increases blood sugar, boosts energy, manages use and storage of carbohydrates, fats, and protein. 

DHEA

DHEA, while less involved in regulating our response to stress, also plays an essential role in our health. DHEA is primarily involved in the production of sex hormones. After being released from the adrenals, DHEA is sent to the ovaries to become estrogen or to the testes to become androgen. Imbalances in DHEA can have serious repercussions because it can throw off the production of other important hormones.  

What is adrenal fatigue?

When the adrenal glands are activated frequently in response to chronic stress, the constant demand can lead to burnout. Essentially: the adrenal glands become overtaxed, and struggle to keep up with the body’s increasing demand for stress hormones. 

Ultimately, adrenal fatigue leads to a lack of cortisol and adrenocorticotropic hormone, which can have serious impacts on our metabolism, energy, digestion, mood, and more. 

Adrenal Fatigue Symptoms

Common symptoms of adrenal fatigue include: 

• Exhaustion
• Sleep issues (trouble falling asleep, staying asleep, and/or waking up. Shallow or non-restorative sleep).
• Chronic fatigue
• Hair loss
• Changes in weight
• Poor concentration
• Brain fog
• Muscle aches

Best Adrenal Fatigue Supplements

Many people turn to caffeine or sugar for a quick fix when confronted with the chronic fatigue and exhaustion that comes from overworked adrenal glands. Unfortunately, these band-aid solutions may make adrenal fatigue worse.

Caffeine makes us feel awake and energized because it activates the secretion of cortisol, the stress hormone. Unfortunately, taking caffeine to overcome the exhaustion that comes from adrenal fatigue is ultimately counterproductive, since it relies on triggering the same overworked stress response pathways involved in adrenal fatigue. That’s why it’s important to look for adrenal fatigue supplements that don’t include caffeine.  

Similarly, depending on sugar for quick energy can put your body on a glucose rollercoaster as the inevitable sugar crash strikes. Even worse, regular sugar consumption can leave your body addicted and stuck in a cycle of vicious cravings. 

Here’s a list of our top three recommended adrenal fatigue supplements:

MediHerb Adrenal Complex

MediHerb Adrenal Complex supports adrenal gland function through a potent combination of licorice and rehmannia. Licorice contains glycyrrhizin, a naturally-occuring phytochemical that not only gives licorice its unique taste, but helps the body maintain adequate cortisol levels. 

The glycyrrhizin in licorice stops the enzyme 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 2 from deactivating cortisol in the kidneys. As a result, cortisol stays active in the body for longer periods of time, lowering demand for the adrenal glands to produce more.

Each dose of MediHerb Adrenal Complex by Standard Process is guaranteed to contain 192.3mg of 100% organic, high-quality licorice root for powerful, adrenal-boosting support. Buy it here in our shop.  

Standard Process Drenamin

Standard Process Drenamin contains a balanced and effective combination of nutrients utilized in the adrenal glands. Packed with Vitamin C, Riboflavin (B2), Niacin (B3), and pyridoxine (B6), sourced from 100% organic, whole food ingredients, Standard Process Drenamin makes sure your adrenal glands have the nutritional support they need to recover from adrenal fatigue and  sustain optimal performance. Try it here in our shop.