If the function of the adrenal gland is compromised, many symptoms may appear such as:

• Fatigue,

• The need for more sleep,

• Irritablity,

• Anxiousness,

• Low libido,

• Sighing or yawning a lot

• Long standing poor immune system

If you have any one of these problems, you may want to keep reading. I am going to cover how fatigue starts to build, dietary guidelines, natural supplements, and herbal remedies.

Just so you know, I have had to work my way out of two adrenal crashes for myself.  You would think I would learn after one, but what I want you to realize is there are specific ways to drive your body in to the ground and specific things to do to bring it back to life.  The last straw that forced me to change my life was my wife kicking me out of bed.  I knew things were bad when I slept through 6 snooze alarms.  I literally could not get out of bed.  In case you need a red flag to look for, here it is.  I never use an alarm clock anymore, and depending on the type of job you have you may need one, but if you need a snooze alarm, you’re in trouble.  You can go many years with this behavior, but it is an early warning sign that your adrenal glands are fatigued.

The first cause of adrenal insufficiency and fatigue.

Stress

…yes, the little pest that we all seem to be annoyed by.  It is not possible to have zero stress, but how much we take on and more importantly, how well we handle stress will determine the effects on our bodies.   Stress to me — is conflict.  Not just an argument, but conflict in emotions, in how you live life, who your friends are or just your desires.  I know that sounds vague but it boils down to:

• Having things you don’t want.

• Doing things you don’t want to do.

• Desiring things you can’t have.

The adrenal glands allow us to adapt to stress.  Lots of stress can burn them out.  Fixing the stressors  in your life is the most critical job in getting out of adrenal fatigue.  I’ve done it twice.  Both times I had too many irons in the fire, and as they say I was burning the candle at both ends.  I made the changes you see here.

The second cause of adrenal insufficiency and fatigue.

Diet…

Eating a good diet in general helps but there are some very specific foods that directly affect the adrenal glands.  One interesting point that relates to stress and diet is the outpouring of adrenaline with a high stress level.  The adrenaline causes a rise in blood sugar, which if isn’t used in a “fight or flight”  now has to be lowered with the pancreas producing insulin.  It can perpetuate blood sugar problems.  Also, take care not to allow the blood sugar to go too low by skipping meals, that will just kick the adrenals into high gear to produce a hormone known as cortisol to raise the blood sugar.

Carbs…

Eating refined carbohydrates and sugars can lead to a blood sugar roller coaster.  As insulin floods into your bloodstream it often crashes the blood sugar below acceptable levels.  Your adrenal glands have to come to the rescue and raise the blood sugar by increasing cortisol output again.  As a reminder, refined carbs are things like cereal, most bread, muffins, donuts, most pastas and stuff that comes in a box.

Fat…

This is one of my favorite topics because it is often the most misunderstood.  One of the greatest myths of all time is that of a low fat diet.  It has caused more disease and problems than almost any other dietary advice ever given.  The adrenal hormones that are in such precious demand to combat the stress of life are made from FAT and most specifically cholesterol.  Yes, you read that right.  Now look at this scenario.  A forty year old, in a high stress job / life, kids, taking cholesterol drugs and following a low fat diet recommended by his doctor.  That’s pretty common.  Now look at the symptoms above and they are pretty common as well.  Hmmmm.  Fat as I refer to it is good fats not just any old fat.  The best fat an adrenal fatigued person can consume would be cod liver oil.

Salt…

This could almost be as controversial as eating fat.  Salt isn’t as evil as it is led to be.  Once again this refers to unrefined sea salt, most specifically Celtic Sea Salt.  I will have more articles on this later but for now I will relate to clinical cases.  The adrenals use salt in abundance for many things.  We see this very clearly with people when we do the purification program and salt is eliminated from the diet.  If people are suffering from moderate to advanced adrenal fatigue and we deprive them of salt, they get more tired and lethargic.  As soon as we add Celtic Sea Salt back into their diets they spring to life like a man crawling through the desert who finds a bottle of water.

Caffeine…

Caffeine is a stimulant to the inner part of the adrenal gland.  It causes a rise in adrenaline, which in turn causes the outer adrenal parts to kick in to calm you down.  Constant caffeine intake can lead to adrenal gland burnout.

As you fix some of these things you may be wondering what else you can do.  Here are some of the whole-food supplements and herbal supplements I have used over the years.  When it comes to the adrenals there are quite a few things that you can use this is not an all-inclusive list, but some of the major things I have used and why.  Best to talk to me about specific problems if these problems relate to you.  As a side note, what always makes me feel better than any supplement–an adjustment.

The two supplements I am currently using that you can see on the front desk anytime are:

1. Adrenal Complex Tablets:  I use these for fatigue, sleep, irritability and any anxiety.  I mostly use them to combat general fatigue.

2. Rhodiola and Ginseng Tablets: I take one everyday to give my body a little boost of energy and truth be told I have another secret.  I did a little research into lactic acid build-up and I use this to help prevent this.  Just exactly why this is so important I will let you read the much longer explanation in my new book coming soon.

3. Cataplex B:  I take this every day.  The wheels of energy manufacturing (Kreb’s Cycle) need the specific natural B’s in this supplement.  It also helps with my nerve conduction and as a chiropractor, I love it when my nerves are humming along at top speed.  If you also read Bruce West’s articles , you will appreciate how important and powerful this is for the heart.

4. Withania Complex:  I used this many years ago during my first adrenal crash.  When I was in chronic fatigue and just generally run down this helped pull me out and then after I felt better I used the next one.

5. Eleuthero:  This is Siberian Ginseng, and is typically used to maintain resistance to stress.  So, that is how I used it.

6. Drenamin: As an ongoing adrenal food supplement.  This has been good for overall maintenance.

7. Astragalus Complex: This goes back about 10 years ago, after we started the office I was so busy with a new family, new business, new home and lots of constant stress.  I was sick and had a low grade illness that wouldn’t go away.  I think I would have done even better if they had the Adrenal Complex back then, but that is fairly new.

If you need to get better these things aren’t that difficult to change.  A life of energy and vitality is worth it.  Most of us have some adrenal fatigue and could benefit from some of the suggestions here.

Remember: Identify and fix the stressors in your life.  Eat fewer refined carbs, more good fats, get some Celtic sea salt and less caffeine.  If you are feeling some of the effects I was you may want to try some of the supplements.  For questions, just post a comment on the bottom of this page.

P.S. For more great email updates just sign up above with feedburner.

Let’s say Mr. Faust comes into the office with asthma, rheumatoid arthritis, colitis, and skin rashes and maybe a little lupus for good measure. These problems have one thing in common. I’ll tell you later, hang-on.

Now Mr. Faust was given the usual meds. The steroid inhalers made his asthma go away, his body pains disappeared with the Prednisone, along with the bloody diarrhea and his long-standing skin rash.

Mr. Faust was not too keen about the notorious side- effects showing up. His face was swelling, his mood was unstable, he got stomach ulcers, diabetes, and osteoporosis.

Now his original problems were coming back, too— “up the dose of Prednisone and the other steroids.”

He is now addicted to the medication, why?

Mr. Faust has weak adrenal glands.

The Prednisone takes the place of the adrenal glands. Instead of stealing from Peter to pay Paul, Prednisone turns Peter into a loan shark. You need him now, and more and more in the future. I don’t need to tell you what happens when you stiff the loan shark.

If some form of cortisone works –then the adrenals are weak. Tada problems solved, right!

How Do The Adrenal Glands Poop Out?

Are you tired? Stressed? Work a lot? Sleep little? Do you go,go,go and go some more?

You are frying your adrenals, I know, I’ve done it.

You might remember those early frying pan commercials where they drop some eggs in and the announcer comes on and says “this is your brain on drugs”. Those are your adrenal glands now. Then drugs like Prednisone take your adrenals and put them in the microwave to make sure all the life is cooked out of them.

I can’t help you with the medications but I can start you on the road to healing your adrenals. The bottom line is that if Prednisone makes your symptoms go away or get better, you can bet that you have an adrenal problem. Now if the medics deny this fact of physiology, that doesn’t mean it’s not true.

So What Do Your Tired, Sore, and Stepped On Adrenal Glands Need To Start Making Hormones Again?

1. Fat-Yes the sick, twisted, and wrong thinking low-fat diets are killing your ability to make hormones.

2. ALL, yes ALL, yes, one more time ALL adrenal hormones come from CHOLESTEROL. All those wonderful adrenal hormones that help us deal with stress, inflammation, and even injuries come from cholesterol. You need cholesterol

3. The adrenals can’t use the cholesterol without Vitamin A. So take your cod liver oil.

4. Since the adrenals are also involved in sugar regulation, don’t eat simple sugars. Try keeping your carbohydrate load below 75 grams a day.

5. And lastly I have to step on one more medical myth. Your adrenals NEED natural salt. Not Morton’s, but Celtic Sea Salt. I’ve seen this impressive fact directly. When we do the purification program and someone has weak adrenals, it shows up about in the second week, because there is no salt in the program. They have near immediate improvement in fatigue when they take Celtic Sea Salt. And no, it doesn’t raise blood pressure.

This is shaping up to be a nasty year for colds and flus. It has already started.

Normally this time of year I’m thinking about how to promote football and chiropractic. The closest I’ve come, is the fact that all the NFL teams have a team chiropractor except Oakland.

The best athletic teams use chiropractic for 2 key reasons. Chiropractic decreases injuries and enhances performance. Great joints just work better.

B ut this year, I can hear the coughing from anywhere in the office. The sneezing has already blown a disc for a patient. We have run out of kleenex’s wiping little kids’ noses. It’s not a pretty picture.

If you need any furniture sanded, my hands

can help from all the washing.

Kids in school, people in church, husbands, wives, dogs, cats, and random deer are coughing in the woods. Everybody seems to be sick. People I haven’t seen in 3 months are coming in sick, and they know they can get better by getting adjusted.

One of our tricks in school was to get adjusted 3-4 times a day. I was always better the next day. The upper part of the neck controls all the parts of the immune system. High stress in your body increases dysfunction quickly. That’s why 3-4 visits/ day works.

So, for the first time ever, I am offering our cold and flu program in October. You pay for the first visit, and the rest of the visits for the day are free. We have already had a 9 y.o. girl come in 3 times a day, and was much better by the 3^rd visit. More stories are hanging on the wall.

You need good nutrition to heal and be healthy, along with some good sleep. Your adrenal glands need those things too. If you are constantly tired and can’t get out of bed in the morning, Cha-Ching…you are whipping your adrenal glands like a race horse and they are giving up before the finish line.

Guess what else? Your adrenal glands also control your immune system in your nose, your mouth and your lungs. This is why lots of stress and the go…go…go… attitude can drive you to being sick often.

I first started thinking about long term patient health 6 years ago when I started reading Bruce West’s newsletter. He made a profound statement.

He said it is much harder to help people get well today than it was 20 +years ago when he started in chiropractic. After 8 years, I would have to agree. What used to take 6 visits now takes 16 for people to get better. People have fewer resources to heal.

Start Making A Switch AND…

While you’re At It,

Help Someone Along The Way.

Our acceptance and tolerance of bad, cheap, non-nutritious food won’t change unless we educate ourselves and our loved ones.

Back to being sick. I know where it comes from and I know I need your help to educate others.

My wife was on a school field trip as a chaperone. I am extremely nervous for the health and well-being of our youngsters. One kid, for his lunch, had a WHOLE can of Pringles chips. Those babies are loaded with partially hydrogenated fat and other nasties. If you have kids in school, a book you should read is The Crazy Makers.

Ramp up your immune system everyday.

A bonus for those of you who are getting some cod liver oil everyday: It’s an excellent source of vitamin A.

A summary of 2004 research on Vitamin A

(If you want the full references just ask)

Vitamin A benefits:

1.Improved hormone patterns in girls

2.Enhance immune function

3.Protect against cancer

4.Modulates inflammation

5.Vit. A&D decreased cell number of pancreatic cancer cell lines.

6.Protects against chemicals and pesticides (this is one of my favorites, everyone needs this)

7.Lack of Vit. A screws up the lining of the small intestine.

8

.Improves iodine efficacy in kids. A healthy thyroid is critical for healthy nerve functions.

This is also another reason to eat butter instead of margarine. Butter is a natural source of vitamin A. Margarine is made from laboratory chemicals. No matter what your doctor says or what the label says

Do Not Under Any Circumstance

Voluntarily eat margarine