Adrenal Fatigue - The 21st Century Epidemic.

By Shane


Are you constantly tired, easily fatigued and cranky?  Do you become hypoglycemic and light-headed when you go for too long without food?  Does it take you 10-20 minutes to gain the willpower in order to leave the comfort of your bed each morning upon waking?  If these symptoms sound familiar, you likely suffer from a condition known as adrenal fatigue, or adrenal insufficiency.  It is my firm belief that EVERYONE living in today's World suffers from some degree of adrenal fatigue.  That's right!  I said EVERYONE!  Read further in order to become better informed.

Location of the adrenal glands above each kidney.

In order to appreciate the importance of proper adrenal gland function, we must first understand the multitude of actions which our adrenals perform in our bodies on a daily basis.  Our adrenals produce a cascade of hormones which carry out varying functions in our bodies.  Some of the more important hormones which are produced by the adrenal glands are cortisol, dhea and cortisone.  When adequate production of these hormones decline, we start to suffer from all sorts of health maladies which are generally wrongly attributed to other causes. 

I like to the call the adrenals "The Forgotten Glands" because adrenal fatigue is never diagnosed by conventional doctors.  This is a shame since failure to treat the fatigued adrenals directly will lead to a incomplete recovery from most maladies.  There are many important functions in the body which decline if your adrenals become fatigued.

Unbeknown to most is the fact that most cases of diabetes are actually caused by weak adrenal function.  That's right.  A weak pancreas is not the number one cause of diabetes, weak adrenals are.  How does this happen?  First, severe adrenal depletion through improper living leads to a decline in the production of the essential hormone cortisol.  Cortisol is needed in proper levels in order to keep blood sugar levels from dropping too low.  When cortisol production decreases as adrenal function diminishes over time, an individual experiences a drop in blood sugar, also called hypoglycemia.  When a person experiences hypoglycemia, they consume an abundance of refined carbs and sugar in order to provide a quick boost in blood sugar levels.  The blood sugar stays up for 30-45 minutes, only to be followed by a quick drop back down to hypoglycemic levels.  You see where I'm going with this?  This hypoglycemic condition is a never-ending cycle that keeps on repeating itself until preventative action is taken.

What awaits you if you don't fix your adrenals!

"Hypoglycemia" is nothing more than a fancy medical term for pre-diabetes.  As an individual continues to satisfy his or her low blood sugar episodes with refined sugars and carbs, more and more insulin is secreted by the pancreas in order to clear the excess glucose from the blood stream.  As time goes on,  the insulin receptor cells in our bodies become less sensitive to the effects of insulin, hence the medical term, "Insulin Resistance."  The human body makes up for this desensitizing of insulin by ordering the pancreas to produce even more insulin.  Over time, the pancreas weakens and the over-abundance of insulin becomes so ineffective at doing its job that blood sugar levels stay high at all times, even after several hours of fasting.  All of this is precipitated by a reduction in the adrenal hormone cortisol!

Another major overlooked symptom of adrenal gland exhaustion is hypothyroidism.  The adrenal glands and thyroid glands are both interdependant on one another when it comes to proper functioning.  When you adrenal function declines, your thyroid function will also take a hit.  For many individuals, adrenal insufficiency will be THE PRIMARY cause of their hypothyroidism.  Such individuals could take all of the synthroid and synthetic thyroid hormone supplements that they want and still suffer from hypothyroidism.  In these cases, only treating the adrenal glands themselves will lead to a complete recovery of the hypothyroid condition.  One tell-tale sign of adrenal fatigue which often occurs in many who are receiving external hormone replacement therapies is a racing heart beat or heart palpitations.  If you are currently being treated with with either Synthroid or Armour Thyroid and experience such heart symptoms, you can count on the fact that you have an underlying adrenal insufficiency.  Treat the source, not the symptoms!

In my next article, I will talk about how our thyroid glands become fatigued to begin with, and how we can improve adrenal function through the use of smart supplementation and diet.  If you have not already done so, please read the two articles I wrote about Hypothyroidism and what you can do to improve the function of your Thyroid Naturally.  Stay Tuned!       


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