'Cause I'm Always Cooking Up Something! : )
Addressing Adrenal Fatigue
Low Salt Diet BAD for Your Health? Could Be…
0July 20, 2011
Dr. Jacob Teitelbaum (a recognized expert on fibromyalgia), has posted an interesting article, reporting on some studies linking low salt consumption to health problems.
We’ve all been told all our lives that too much salt is a bad thing. Experts are now saying: not so fast.
I blogged about my own dawning realization about the importance of salt here.
Here’s a quick quote from Dr. Teitelbaum’s article:
Most importantly, for people with CFS and fibromyalgia, restricting salt is a setup for crashing and burning, and is very ill-advised — especially in summertime, when you sweat and have more salt loss.
Salt restriction is also a terrible idea if you have adrenal exhaustion. How do you know if you’ve got that problem? The symptoms include intense irritability when hungry, low blood pressure, and a tendency to collapse physically, mentally and emotionally when you’re under too much stress. Salt supports the adrenals.
Read the full article here.
Awesome Energy in a Bottle: A Special B-Complex
4May 2, 2011
Country Life Coenzyme B Complex
Here’s a quick post about an awesome supplement for anyone who needs an energy boost (and who in 21st century America doesn’t?).
Add the extra benefits of boosted mood, better memory/mental clarity, and improved immunity, and you’ve got a winning combination.
We’ve all heard of the importance of taking a good B-complex vitamin and I’ve tried many, many different brands over the years. Unfortunately, almost all of them caused me to feel nauseated, no matter what kind of food I tried to couple with them.
So, I dedicated some time last year to find some alternatives. I started with Source Naturals Coenzymate B Complex
These worked GREAT and because they were sublingual (dissolved under the tongue), they bypassed the liver, allowing the B Complex to move directly into the bloodstream. This meant no more nausea! The downside was that since they had to be dissolved under the tongue, I found (to my dismay) that they stained my teeth. Even though they gave me more energy, it came at the cost of temporarily yellowed teeth. No go!
Then I found Country Life’s Coenzyme B-Complex Caps, thanks to the help of the generous reviewers at IHerb.com and Amazon.com
They worked GREAT for me. I took them for a good 6 months or so before it dawned on me that they might just help my husband with his longstanding fatigue problem. He took his first two on April 22 and has been feeling great ever since (it’s now May 2).
We shared some with some neighbors in their 70′s who were having some fatigue issues, and to our amazement, within a few hours of their first dose, they were feeling energized. SERIOUSLY energized. They spent the whole first day out in their backyard, doing yard work.
I can’t recommend this particular supplement highly enough. My husband has tried countless other forms of B-Complex vitamins that never, ever worked anything like these. The effects were potent and immediate.
One important point: unlike any other B Complex I’ve ever used, this one is DESIGNED TO BE TAKEN ON AN EMPTY STOMACH. We take 2, first thing in the morning, with a full glass of water, about an hour before eating.
Depending on your energy needs, you may need multiple doses a day or just a single capsule in the morning. The great thing about B vitamins is that they’re water soluble, so you really can’t easily overdose on them–your body will eliminate what it doesn’t need. Fat soluble vitamins, on the other hand (like A, D, and E) are stored in the body and it’s important that you exercise more caution.
What seems to make this particular form of B Complex so effective are the additional coenzymes that make the B Vitamins more bioavailable (absorbable by the body’s tissues).
Here’s the ingredient list, FYI, direct from the manufacturer–just click on the “View Product Label” link on this page.
Good luck; hope this helps you as much as it’s helped us; let me know how it works for you!
If you’ve never ordered from IHerb before, you can click on the green banner on the right side of the page and you’ll save $5 off your first order. Amazon
also has a great Subscribe & Save price on this supplement. Sign up for regular delivery (every month, 3 months, or 6 months) and it ships FREE.
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More Info about the value of taking a high quality B Complex:
Study shows B Vitamins reduce incidence of macular degeneration in women by 1/3
Study finds Vitamin B supplementation may delay onset of Alzheimers
B Vitamins crucial in helping alleviate depression and anxiety
[--Be sure to scroll down about 1/3 of the page; top of page of this particular blog post is FULL of Google ads]
Beating Burnout
0November 19, 2009
The Great Recession/Depression we’re in now is stressing people to the hilt, and I would be willing to bet that there are thousands of people suffering from Adrenal Fatigue right now.
Fortunately, if you catch it soon enough, you can make a complete recovery.
Just to be a good sport, I filled out Dr. Wilson’s questionnaires and scored myself, along with my husband. (See my previous post).
I am perfectly healthy now (I’m energetic and I run on the treadmill 4-5 times a week), but showed evidence of moderate Adrenal Fatigue about 2 years ago, according to the questionnaire and my own experience–I remember feeling terrible!
I made my own recovery in blissful ignorance; I never knew I had Adrenal Fatigue. How? By using exercise, supplements, Celtic Sea Salt, Vitamin C, healthier fats and oils, and a switch from coffee to green tea.
But I remember my exhaustion all too well–we had moved twice in one year and I was meeting article deadlines every week in addition to working with a nonprofit. I was stressed to the hilt and I began to suffer what I called “Burnout.” Everything became extremely difficult and I could NEVER get enough sleep. I would awaken at 4 AM, unable to sleep, even though I was very tired during the day. Researching topics for my articles became a painful, arduous process and exercise was impossible. I was shot!
I recovered gradually, by adding chelated magnesium to my evening vitamin routine, switching from coffee to green tea, and committing to 8 hours’ sleep. I also removed all fats from my cooking, except for three: cold pressed olive oil, unsalted butter, and organic cold pressed coconut oil. I ate out RARELY. I was soon able to exercise again and started walking on the treadmill, slowly, every other day. Gradually, my energy returned and I’ve felt great ever since. I now run on the treadmill 4-5 days a week and I thoroughly enjoy every day.
I’m hoping my husband will experience the same delightful recovery. His Adrenal Fatigue is much more severe than mine was, but, on the bright side, he has my sympathy and support because I understand just how bad he feels now.
I also know how great it feels to overcome Burnout and I KNOW he can do it!
I’m going to put together a post about the symptoms of Adrenal Fatigue so that you can recognize it in yourself or a loved one.
And here’s a link to Dr. James Wilson’s book on Adrenal Fatigue, available at Amazon:
Adrenal Fatigue: The 21st Century Stress Syndrome
If you’ve got it, treat it! More to come soon!
It’s Working! Adrenal Fatigue/Adrenal Insufficiency Treatment
0November 17, 2009
Okay, here we are, about 2 weeks after realizing my husband’s fatigue, inability to lose weight, and bloating issues (especially related to decaf coffee) SEEM TO BE related to “Adrenal Fatigue.”
This appears to be a rather prevalent malady in the U.S., due to our generally poor eating habits (too much fast food/packaged food), high stress lifestyles (my husband is a Type A++), and widespread sugar, nicotine, and caffeine addictions.
As I mentioned before, this realization of Adrenal Fatigue as a problem was precipitated by my husband’s extremely negative reaction to a low-salt (low sodium) diet. He became even more exhausted after we made some dietary changes that dramatically lowered his salt intake and I soon discovered that people suffering from Adrenal Fatigue actually need a HIGHER SALT DIET.
I purchased Dr. James Wilson’s book on Adrenal Fatigue at Amazon after thoroughly researching the reviews online. We filled out the various questionnaires and my husband scored in the severe range for Adrenal Fatigue. We are now following several of the suggestions in the book, as well as some suggestions from other sources.
Here’s a link to the book, FYI:
Adrenal Fatigue: The 21st Century Stress Syndrome
So, how is he doing? And what have we done?
Well, his energy levels are slowly restoring and he is feeling much better and is able to exercise on the treadmill again, which had become impossible with the low salt diet.
Here’s the plan we’ve executed, so far:
1. Eliminated/reduced the processed sugar in our diet (no cakes, cookies, ice cream, chocolate, etc.)
2. Eliminated caffeine completely.
3. Eliminated decaf coffee.
4. We’re eating small, well-balanced meals and snacks (containing carbs, protein, and fats), so that he is eating about every three hours, which helps keep his blood sugar balanced all day. This amounts to 3 meals and 3 snacks a day. Food is salted liberally with Celtic Sea Salt, which contains a high amount of trace minerals.
5. He spends 20-30 minutes on the treadmill every day.
6. He gets a minimum 8 hours of sleep every night. If possible, he sleeps in until 9 AM.
7. Supplements so far: 400 mg Magnesium at bedtime. AM regimen: 2 acidophilus pearls, and, starting yesterday (Monday, 16 Nov), 200 mg of Siberian Ginseng (Eleuthero) in the morning.
8. 4000 mg of Vitamin C, split into 2 doses, morning and mid-afternoon (about 3 PM).
9. Beginning this morning (Tuesday, 17 Nov), added a whole food liquid vitamin in the morning.
10. Continued our habit of drinking water all day long, about 6 12 oz glasses per day.
11. We’re taking time out to LAUGH, every day–(that’s my favorite part & the easiest to execute).
12. Drinks at least one cup of green tea each day, preferably in the AM.
His energy is definitely returning and we are very hopeful that he’ll soon be able to get his weight back under control. Recovery takes patience, as Dr. Wilson’s book stresses, since recovery from Adrenal Fatigue can take anywhere from 3 months to 2 years or more.
So far, so good. I’ll keep you posted on his progress!
Ack! I Precipitated a CRISIS…
1November 6, 2009
Well, here we are, further down the road and WISER.
In my first post on the blog, I mentioned that my husband was tired, bloated, unable to lose weight no matter what he did (read it here) and I had realized that it MIGHT be the sodium in his diet, since he was eating a high-sodium diet, rich in processed foods.
So, we restricted the sodium and he lost about 5 pounds in a week. Sounds good!
BUT: I didn’t have time to post this while it was happening, but my low sodium solution precipitated a crisis–he gradually… started…. to…. lose… ALL…. his…. energy…. After about 3 days, he started feeling really, really bad and couldn’t even do 10 minutes on the treadmill. And he was getting more tired and more exhausted by the hour. I seemed to be watching the life drain out of him by the minute. Checked blood pressure: okay but not great–a little elevated for him, but not bad. Checked blood oxygen (with an oxymeter)—it was low.
Then, he drank a cup of decaf coffee and bloated up like a human balloon. His stomach swelled like someone had pumped about 2 gallons of air into his belly.
The next day, helping a neighbor with a small project outside, he began to feel weak and tired, began sweating profusely and his skin was cold and clammy, even though the temperature outside was in the ’80s. He came inside. We put him under the cool breeze of a ceiling fan, he drank a glass of cool water, we took his blood pressure (still slightly elevated but not bad), and set to work to solve the mystery.
In a nutshell, after even more research, we have discovered what we now think is the root cause of his fatigue, inability to lose weight, the clammy sweating problem, the weakness and tiredness.
Cutting out the salt precipitated a crisis that lead us to our solution: he seems to have Adrenal Fatigue.
Since the salt worsened the fatigue, I Googled salt +fatigue and found our answer. Much to my amazement, I found that people who are experiencing adrenal fatigue issues (more about that later) require MORE salt than normal people. Not just a little more, but a LOT more. The typical person requires between 1200 and 2400 mg of sodium per day. Someone in adrenal fatigue can require anywhere from 2000 mg to 10,000 mg per day!
My conclusion is that my husband was self-medicating his adrenal fatigue issue by eating fast food (i.e. 2 Sonic Supersonic Breakfast Burritos each morning, for 3600 mg of sodium).
So, we fed him some salty food (his favorite Sonic burritos) and he bounced back IMMEDIATELY. He felt fine (although still a little tired); the crisis had passed. I kept researching & I’ll post more about how we’re working on this issue very soon.
Diagnosing Adrenal Fatigue
0November 6, 2009
Okay, now that the blog’s been updated with the events of the last week, I want to keep you with us in “real time” as we begin to address what appears to be my husband’s case of Adrenal Fatigue.
Since we discovered the salt/energy connection earlier this week, we’ve been moderating my husband’s diet to help him feel better. I’ve researched Adrenal Fatigue on the internet and found what appears to be THE exhaustive reference book for this issue (I read through a gazillion reviews on Amazon on various books). I thought this would be the best starting point for tackling this issue–I need to learn a lot, fast!
I ordered it from Amazon on Tuesday and received it yesterday afternoon; it is James L. Wilson’s Adrenal Fatigue: The 21st Century Stress Syndrome.
Here’s a link to it on Amazon; purchasing it through this link is a great way to help us support this site; we receive a small percentage of the sale and you get a great book–we both win!
Adrenal Fatigue: The 21st Century Stress Syndrome
I haven’t had time to read the book yet, but I have paged through it and it looks like a fantastic reference. The book appears to be thoroughly researched and contains an extensive bibliography. More to come soon!
First Steps to Addressing Adrenal Fatigue
0November 7, 2009
Here are the first steps we’re taking to clean up our diets, addressing my husband’s suspected case of Adrenal Fatigue:
1. Cut out all coffee (including decaf)
2. Cut out all sugar (ouch!)
3. Reduce, as much as possible, all refined carbohydrates (meaning packaged foods like crackers, chips, cereals, bread, etc.)
4. Drink (no kidding) slightly salted water (about 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon per 8 ounce glass) each morning on rising–this helps the adrenals rebuild & helps increase energy levels (“who’d a thunk it?”). If it tastes salty/yucky, you don’t need it. If it tastes slightly sweet/good, your adrenals need the salt. Adjust amount as needed.
5. Eliminate all sources of caffeine (including chocolate, my personal favorite)
6. Up the Vitamin C. We’ve been taking 2000 mg per day in the AM; book suggests a method for determining your needed amount; need to take Vit C at least TWICE a day. Since it’s a water-soluble vitamin, your kidneys excrete the excess Vitamin C & your adrenals need C to manufacture the valuable hormones they synthesize–I’ll share more detail later.
7. Eat a low glycemic, well-rounded diet with snacks throughout the day. Include protein, high quality carbs (as in vegetables) and healthy fats with each meal and snack. More detail later.
This is just our second day of this specific regimen, so presently we’re both pretty tired (withdrawals from sugar, coffee and chocolate–we’ve been through this before & know it will pass in a few days).
I also purchased this book by Dr. James Wilson to help us learn how to address Adrenal Fatigue:
Adrenal Fatigue: The 21st Century Stress Syndrome
Will post more soon….