Adrenal fatigue is a health disorder that can affect anyone who experiences persistent or severe physical or emotional stress. The result of persistent adrenal fatigue can be an erosion in the body’s ability to fend off a variety of short-term and long-term health problems.

According to Paul Ratté, ND, an assistant professor at Northwestern Health Sciences University, “the adrenal glands are imperative in dealing with emotional, physical and internal stress. Adrenal glands release cortisol, which is a steroid hormone that reacts to stress. Cortisol is generally high in the morning and low at night.” Ratté, who treats patients in Northwestern’s Natural Care Center at Woodwinds, notes that adrenal glands help us adapt to our environment by creating a fight or flight response. With adrenal fatigue, the adrenal glands are failing, affecting the ability to adapt.

Addison’s disease and Cushing’s syndrome are two conditions related to adrenal fatigue. Cortisol levels are extremely low with Addison’s disease and extremely high with Cushing’s syndrome. Adrenal fatigue is frequently undiagnosed in the medical profession.

Anyone can suffer from adrenal fatigue in his/her lifetime. An illness; life crisis; or continuing difficult situation can drain the adrenal resources of a person. There are, however, factors that make one more prone to adrenal fatigue.

Ratté says that stress is the biggest factor that makes us more susceptible to adrenal fatigue. The adrenal glands mobilize the body’s response to every kind of stress (whether is physical, emotional, or psychological) through hormones that regulate energy production and storage, heart rate, muscle tone, and other processes that enable one to cope with stress. With adrenal fatigue, glands function, but not enough to maintain a healthy homeostasis. Over stimulization of the glands caused by either a very intense single stress or a combination of repeated stresses causes the regulatory hormones to be diminished, and can reduce the body’s ability to stay healthy. Certain lifestyles such as poor diet, lack of physical activity, substance abuse, too little sleep, and too many pressures also play a part.

“Sleep is vital to preventing adrenal fatigue; however many people process their stress while they sleep,” says Ratté. “Balanced blood sugar; regular physical activity; and stress management also prevent it.”

Signs and symptoms of adrenal fatigue include dizziness; craving of salt; a burst of energy at night between 8 p.m. – 9 p.m.; and poor sleep/restless mind.

According to Ratté, ways to treat adrenal fatigue include:

• Balance blood sugar;
• Eat small frequent meals: about five meals per day;
• Eat meals high in fat and protein early in the day; and meals low in fat and protein later in the day; eat a sandwich for breakfast and cereal at night; and
• Different dietary supplement programs, based on the severity of the adrenal fatigue, are suggested in Adrenal Fatigue by James Wilson, DC, ND, PhD.

For additional resources, visit http://www.nwhealth.edu/nns, a Web site focusing on natural approaches to health and wellness hosted by Northwestern Health Sciences University.

Editor’s note: The Natural News Service is a public information program provided by Northwestern Health Sciences University. If you choose to use this release, please attribute the information accordingly. The University offers a wide array of choices in natural health care education including chiropractic, Oriental medicine, acupuncture, and massage therapy. The University has 900 students on a 25-acre campus in Bloomington, Minn.