When the adrenals become exhausted

In some alternative health circles, it is believed that millions of people are suffering from adrenal fatigue syndrome, writes FIONOLA MEREDITH

IT’S THE sort of self-diagnosis that you come up with late at night, as you sit browsing the internet. Feeling stressed? Prone to headaches? Tired all the time? Digestive system in overdrive? If the answer to these questions is yes, you could be suffering from adrenal fatigue syndrome – at least according to the numerous alternative health practitioners out there who are convinced that it’s a real condition.

There are millions of people around the world who claim to be suffering from this putative health disorder, and a whole, largely unregulated dietary supplement industry has sprung up to treat it. Nonetheless, most mainstream medics remain to be persuaded that these two grape-sized glands, perched on top of the kidneys, are causing such widespread havoc.

The idea behind adrenal fatigue syndrome – sometimes known as 21st century syndrome, since feeling drained and burnt out seems to be such a problem of our times – is that with long-term stress your adrenal glands get overwhelmed, exhausted and unable to produce adequate quantities of hormones, primarily cortisol. This state of permanent “fight or flight” arousal, it’s said, leads to a plethora of weird, medically unexplained symptoms from dry skin to palpitations. The supposition is that adrenal fatigue syndrome doesn’t show up on existing blood tests because the hormonal dip is too small to register, as it would with clinically defined adrenal dysfunction disorders such as Addison’s disease. But it’s significant enough to make you feel weak, depleted and miserable . . . or so the (unproven) theory goes.

American doctor James Wilson coined the term 10 years ago, after noticing clusters of apparently unrelated symptoms in his patients. He now insists that the condition affects “an estimated 80 per cent of people living in industrialised countries”.

The main warning signs of adrenal fatigue syndrome, he says, are feeling “tired for no reason; having trouble getting up in the morning; needing coffee, colas, salty or sweet snacks to keep going; feeling run down and stressed”.

Wilson also claims that adrenal fatigue syndrome often plays a role in many other health conditions, such as chemical sensitivities, allergies, autoimmune diseases such as fibromyalgia and rheumatoid arthritis, low libido, chronic anxiety and mild depression.

The author of the widely acknowledged definitive guide to adrenal fatigue syndrome, Wilson also sells a range of dietary supplements on his website – such as “adrenal power powder” and “super immune space sprinkles” – designed to boost adrenal function.

Wilson believes that we are particularly vulnerable to sliding into an adrenally depleted state after a stressful event, in the so-called “let-down” period. His account of the physiological adjustments the body makes when it encounters stress does sound plausible.

“Your initial stress reaction produces a large rise in cortisol, adrenaline and other adrenal hormones that mobilise your energy, mental and physical resources to take action,” he says.

“This lasts for a few minutes to a few hours – essentially how long it might take you to fight or run away from a threat. At the end of this alarm phase there is a recovery period lasting a few hours to a few days, when levels of cortisol and other adrenal hormones drop and remain low. This is a natural letdown phase during which you are likely to feel more tired and listless and want to rest . . . If stress continues, your adrenals adapt to handle it by producing slightly elevated levels of hormones, particularly cortisol, in a kind of constant semi-alarm phase.” Wilson says that keeping the body in this state of prolonged biochemical readiness is what does the real harm, effectively becoming another source of stress.

“If stress persists beyond your adrenals’ capacity to maintain this higher function, or another stressful event occurs, your adrenals may eventually become depleted, leaving you in the more lasting let-down of adrenal fatigue and no longer able to respond adequately to stress.”

If that’s the case, what’s the answer? How can you avoid being swamped by stress? Instead of wilting under its life-sapping effects, how do you become more stress-hardy? Again, Wilson’s advice sounds like good common sense. Fresh, wholesome food (especially those rich in whole grains and omega three oils), no nasty additives, cut out the caffeine, and exercise regularly are some of his suggestions. Sugar, too, must go – it’s the real bête noire of the adrenal fatigue world. And perhaps unsurprisingly, Wilson adds that “the right supplements can make a world of difference”. Other practitioners say that even laughing a bit more can help.

It’s not surprising that people readily believe they’re suffering from adrenal fatigue syndrome, given that the list of symptoms is so long and diverse that almost anyone can identify with at least some of them. And that’s the risk, according to mainstream doctors – if you accept a medically unrecognised diagnosis from an unqualified practitioner, or worse still, self-diagnose on the internet, you risk leaving potentially serious conditions like fibromyalgia or depression unaddressed and untreated. Others are concerned that unproven herbal remedies designed for adrenal fatigue may themselves be harmful.

Whether you believe that adrenal fatigue syndrome exists as a discrete, identifiable condition or not, there’s no doubt that prolonged stress is bad for our bodies and minds. So even if you don’t accept the premise, the advice for the stress-ridden – eating well, exercising more, getting a good night’s sleep – is uncontroversially sound. Wacky-sounding supplements aside, that may be all we really need.

Adrenal Fatigue Syndrome: The symptoms

Feeling run down and stressed.

Craving sweet or salty foods.

Prone to infections and allergies.

Digestive problems.

Tendency to put on weight, especially around the waist.

Lightheadedness.

Insomnia.

Pre-menstrual syndrome.

Reduced sex drive.

Needing coffee or stimulants to get going in the morning.

Dry, thin skin.

Low body temperature.

Unexplained hair loss.