The adrenal glands produce hormones
to help regulate metabolism,
the immune system, blood pressure,
and they respond to stress.
So there's no question,
they play an important role in keeping us healthy.
Today, we're talking to registered dietician nutritionist,
Kristen DeAngeles,
to find out how good lifestyle habits
can help support the adrenal system.
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Kristen, let's start by defining exactly
what the adrenal system is
and what it does in the body.
- The adrenal system,
we have to think of it
as almost like our response to stress.
All of that our brain takes in,
and then it sends a message.
The hypothalamus is the main messenger system
that sends to the pituitary,
that sends to the adrenal glands,
which sit on top of the kidney
and produce our main stress hormone cortisol.
The adrenal glands also produce other hormones.
The main one that we'll talk about however, is cortisol.
We needed it, we don't want too much,
we don't want too little
and it varies throughout the day,
which is known as the circadian rhythm.
- What is it when you have adrenal fatigue?
Is it adrenal dysfunction?
- So I actually prefer the word adrenal insufficiency
or adrenal hypo or hyper functioning.
Now what that's referring to,
are my adrenals pushing out too much?
Too much cortisol that main stress hormone,
or is it under functioning
or adrenal hypo function in the sufficiency of not enough?
When you said fatigue,
it may be someone who's feeling exhausted.
Can't wake up in the morning.
They're feeling aches and pains.
They have inflammation, water retention.
All of that could be that insufficiency
where on the flip side
and they're feeling anxious all day long,
but then when they get to the nighttime
and they can't go to sleep,
that would be more of a state of hyper activity.
- All right Kristine let's talk nutrition.
How can what we eat affect our adrenals?
- So I always like to start with the three macronutrients
when it comes to balancing the adrenal system.
The first is carbohydrates,
having adequate fibers in your diet,
going to nourish the adrenals.
Secondly, protein.
Protein is going to balance out the carbohydrate
or the fiber,
which is going to help with blood sugar balance
which is very important
for reducing inflammation in the body.
Protein also contains B vitamins.
So B vitamins are great for nourish from the adrenal system.
So the third macronutrient
would be our healthy fats of course.
So avocados, olive oil,
again, the wild caught fatty fish,
which just gonna be rich in our omega three
anti-inflammatory fatty acids.
It's really important for cell to cell communication
which is a wonderful for the adrenal system.
- What kind of foods should we avoid?
- Anything that causes inflammation in the body.
Foods that cause inflammation
would be things like processed foods, added sugar.
- And what about lifestyle habits.
What can we do every day to help support our adrenal system?
- It's walking.
Walking outside, that is going to help
to ground us, center us
and reregulate and balance our central nervous system.
So walking 20 to 30 minutes outside.
A couple other things, meditation, mindfulness practices,
how you start and how you end every day,
is going to affect how you feel in between.
The most important thing to think about
with the adrenal system, is what can I say no to?
How can I do less?
Because that's really the state that we're in,
a state of doing too much
and that's when the adrenal system starts to go on overdrive
and causes a cascade of negative effects.
- Great information,
Kristen, thank you so much for joining us.
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or expert advice,
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