Adaptogens and Resilience to Stress
- Jul 18, 2023
- 5 min read
Updated: Jul 24, 2023
As we have discussed in previous blogs, our body's stress reaction is an important reaction. If we weren't able to respond to stress by creating stress hormones, we wouldn't be able to fight infection or disease, or handle the challenges of our daily lives. Most of the emphasis in the literature has been on using strategies such as relaxation and exercise to "manage stress". Often, stress management strategies include trying to eliminate stressful scenarios or environments in our lives. All of those things make sense for helping us to avoid "taking up residence with chronic stress", but the reality is, our bodies do have to be able to deal with stress in order for us to function, and survive. And sometimes, we may have to deal with high levels of emotional or physical stress for long periods of time: caring for an elderly parent or child with a disability and multiple medical needs, or fighting a chronic illness ourselves. The question then becomes, "How do we help our bodies manage during these times of more intense, chronic stress that has the ability to impact our health so significantly?"
Since the mid 1900's adaptogens have been studied and recognized for their ability to help us handle stress in a functional way, and to be able to return to baseline (or homeostasis) more easily in order to give our bodies a break. Adaptogens, in general, are believed to help restore balance and homeostasis in all of our physiological functions and protect us from the adverse impact of stress. Adaptogens may also help us deal with stressors such as anxiety and fatigue.
Most adaptogens are natural herbs/plants/mushrooms which have been recognized since the mid 1900's as having potential to improve our resilience to stress. By the 1970's, synthetic adaptogens were developed and used widely in sports medicine to improve tolerance to exercise and enhance recovery. Many of those synthetic adaptogens have since been removed from the market due to adverse side effects.
Adaptogens are associated with a host of potential physiological benefits:
Here are just a few:
1. Improved physical and mental resilience: We cannot avoid physical and mental stress. It is part of the human experience. But adaptogens are believed to help us to ADAPT and respond in ways that keep us strong mentally and physically in the midst of stress.
2. Increased vasodilation: Some studies have found that adaptogens increase vasodilation of blood vessels. This means that more blood can deliver oxygen and nutrients to the tissues, and more blood can carry toxins and wastes away from the tissues.
3. Better control of blood sugar: Stabilizing blood sugars is one of the most consistent challenges that the body has to deal with on a daily basis. This is true both for diabetics and non diabetics. Adaptogens are believed to help the body control these levels more efficiently.
4. Decreased lactate dehydrogenase levels (LDH): LDH is an enzyme involved in creating your body's energy. It is found in almost all the body's tissues, including those in the blood, heart, kidneys, brain, and lungs. When these tissues are damaged (such as with cardiac disease, kidney disease, neuromuscular disease, etc.) LDH will be released into the bloodstream. High LDH levels indicate some degree of tissue damage. Adaptogens are believed to lower levels of LDH in the blood by helping the body manage the stressors which mediate the associated tissue damage.
5. Increased resilience to harmful chemical and biological agents: We are all exposed to harmful chemical/biological agents to some degree. Chemicals we use in our home or yard, plastics, cosmetics and baby products or maybe even things we are exposed to at work like airline fuel or military burn pits. These chemicals do stress the body and often produce a significant immune response. According to the Stockholm Environment Institute, we are exposed to approximately 350,000 chemicals, only a small percentage of which have been fully tested for safety. Adaptogens are believed to increase our resilience to these harmful chemical stressors.
The mechanism as to how adaptogens work seems to be complex and not fully understood, but there are several theories that may explain adaptogens' functions:
Nutrition: Natural Adaptogens, because they are components of plant/fungi material, are high in phytonutrients such as vitamins, flavonoids, lignans, and alkaloids. Phytonutrients, in general, are known to have anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidative properties. It makes sense, then, that adaptogens which are high in phytonutrients, by helping to keep the body's inflammation at functional levels, and fight the oxidative stress which is harmful to our cells, could be quite helpful in improving our resilience.
HPA Axis Function: Some theories suggest that adaptogens may improve resilience because of their effect on the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal ( HPA) Axis. This is the Neuro-endocrine system that responds to stressors in our lives. A simplified explanation of the HPA axis is this: when we are stressed physically or emotionally, the hypothalamus signals the Pituitary gland, which then messages the adrenal gland to release cortisol, the body's primary stress hormone. Cortisol then stimulates our fight-or-flight response to prepare us for action. When individuals live under high levels of repeated stress for long periods of time, this HPA axis can get fatigued out and begin to dysfunction. This dysfunction, at its most extreme, is associated with chronic fatigue, a condition in which the body has difficulty creating enough of a stress response to allow sufficient endurance for normal function. Adaptogens seem to "even out" the function of the HPA axis, and allow us to reset the system after a period of stress in order to return to balance or homeostasis.
Normalizing Hormone levels: Adaptogens are believed to help us normalize many hormonal levels: cortisol (which we discussed above); glucose (can help stabilize blood sugar); liver enzymes and blood lipids (like triglycerides and cholesterol); and nitric oxide (a hormone released to help dilate our blood vessels and improve blood supply to our tissues).
TAKE AWAYS:
1. We all deal with emotional and physical stressors on a daily basis. Sometimes, our stressors are high and do not resolve quickly. Adaptogens may be a reasonable option for improving our resilience in those times of stress.
2. Foods high in adaptogens can be added to the diet in certain herbs, mushrooms and berries. It is ALWAYS recommended that you discuss any use of adaptogen supplementation with your health care provider before beginning!
Disclaimer: This BLOG is for Educational Purposes, Only. This information provided is educational and informational in nature and is made only as general information. The information does not establish a patient-provider relationship, establish a standard of care, or offer medical, dietary, or therapeutic care, advice, opinion, diagnosis, or treatment. This information does not replace independent professional or medical judgment and should not be relied upon as medical, psychological, or other professional advice of any kind or nature whatsoever. This information should not be used for diagnosing or treating any mental or physical health problem or disease. You are solely responsible for any action taken based on your interpretation of this information and you are responsible for your own health care decision-making by obtaining any necessary consultations with appropriately licensed health care professionals such as physicians and psychologists.
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