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Health See other Health Articles Title: 7 Adaptogenic Herbs or Adaptogens that Help Reduce Stress 7 Adaptogenic Herbs or Adaptogens that Help Reduce Stress By Dr. Josh Axe, DC, DMN, CNS January 20, 2018 Natural medicine has long appreciated the benefits of herbs and food as medicine. One such example of this is adaptogenic herbs, or “adaptogens.” There is a good bit of science behind the benefits of adaptogen herbs that I’ll share with you, all of which deal with their impact on the stress response. As you probably know, your body is built to release the hormone cortisol to respond to stress, but elevated cortisol levels over long periods of time and chronic stress can affect every physiological system in your body, including your thyroid and adrenal glands. Cortisol is also known as the aging hormone. When cortisol levels rise, you experience the “fight or flight” response, which stimulates your sympathetic nervous system and your adrenal glands. When this occurs, there is a decrease in your digestive secretions and an increase in blood pressure. In normal life, you experience this response, your body and brain respond to the stressor, your cortisol levels even back out and your body adapts back to normal. However, people who experience the fight-or-flight responses on a regular basis, many times a day, may experience a state of constant stress, which can burn out your adrenal glands, stress your digestive tract and cause you to age more rapidly. Some people at the highest risk for this include young parents, university students and primary caregivers, like nurses or family members who care for invalid relatives or patients. Long-term, chronic stress leads to adrenal fatigue and even more potentially dangerous problems, if left untreated. While most researchers and doctors agree that an approach to reduce chronic stress is many-layered, I believe that one powerful approach to naturally relieving stress as well as reducing long-term cortisol levels is by using adaptogenic herbs. What Are Adaptogens? Phytotherapy refers to the use of plants for their healing abilities. Adaptogens are a unique class of healing plants: They help balance, restore and protect the body. According to naturopath Edward Wallace, an adaptogen doesn’t have a specific action; it helps you respond to any influence or stressor, normalizing your physiological functions. (2) The term of adaptogenic herbs or substances was first recorded in 1947 by N.V. Lazarev, a Russian scientist, who used it to describe this non-specific effect that increases the body’s resistance to stress. Defined by two other Russian research scientists in 1958, adaptogens “must be innocuous and cause minimal disorders in the physiological functions of an organism, must have a nonspecific action, and usually [have] a normalizing action irrespective of the direction of the pathological state.” (3) This effect has been observed in animal studies, finding that various adaptogens have the ability to create this generally increased tolerance to stress. (4) In his book Adaptogenic Herbs, certified herbalist David Winston gives a list of 15 recognized adaptogens. Today, I’ll discuss the seven I believe to be most beneficial as part of a stress-relieving lifestyle (in addition to other natural stress relievers). Please note: I am reviewing evidence on individual adaptogenic herbs, not combinations of them often marketed as cortisol blockers. Top 7 Adaptogenic Herbs 1. Panax Ginseng Benefit-rich ginseng is one well-known adaptogen, and Asian ginseng (Panax ginseng) is considered by many to be the most potent. In humans, Panax ginseng has been shown to successfully improve subjective calmness and some aspects of working memory performance in healthy young adults. (5) Another study on ginseng in 2003, this time in rats, observed that Panax ginseng reduced the ulcer index, adrenal gland weight, blood glucose levels, triglycerides, creatine kinase (an enzyme that points to stress- or injury-related damaged of the circulatory system and other parts of the body) and serum corticosterone (another stress-related hormone). The scientists came to the conclusion that Panax ginseng “possesses significant anti-stress properties and can be used for the treatment of stress-induced disorders.” (6) Interestingly, multiple studies on Panax ginseng have found that it doesn’t directly alter cortisol levels, at least in the short term, but does affect various other stress response systems, such as blocking ACTH action in the adrenal gland (a hormone that stimulates production of glucocorticoid steroid hormones). (7) Just one dose of Panax ginseng showed a 132 percent increase in working capacity in a rat study published in 1988. (8) Saponins found in ginseng may affect the monoamine (neurotransmitter) levels in mice in which stress was induced, reducing the amount of noradrenalin and serotonin released as part of the stress response. (9) A 2004 lab study in the Journal of Pharmacological Sciences confirms that, in a lab, the effects of ginseng seem to be particularly motivated by their saponin content. (10) This red ginseng also has antioxidant effects (in a lab), has been found to improve mood and mental performance in small studies, may reduce fasting blood sugar levels and may even aid newly diagnosed diabetic patients in losing weight. (11, 12) In regards to the “cognitive-enhancing” benefits sometimes seen with Panax ginseng, a Cochrane review in 2010 found “a lack of convincing evidence” to prove it increases cognition in healthy patients, and “no high quality evidence” about its efficacy in dementia patients. (13) Another Cochrane-style review of ginseng studies claimed its benefits were not “established beyond reasonable doubt” for “physical performance, psychomotor performance and cognitive function, immunomodulation, diabetes mellitus and herpes simplex type-II infections,” and found “promising results for improving glucose metabolism and moderating the immune response.” (14) This review also did not rate or compile evidence on the stress-relieving qualities of Panax ginseng, although some studies on psychomotor performance attempt to encapsulate such findings. Cochrane and similarly styled reviews only examine evidence from “gold-standard” research (randomized controlled trials, or RCTs), which are lacking for Panax ginseng. What does all this mean? For ginseng, it means that there are some initially promising results about the way this adaptogenic herb may affect stress responses in humans, but more solid research must be done to confirm the preliminary results. Anecdotal evidence including reports of individuals taking this in supplement form who claim it has helped them to focus or improved general well-being, but these should not be viewed as scientific evidence. (15) There are a number of adaptogens referred to as ginsengs that aren’t technically ginsengs, but keep in mind that they may or may not have similar composition or effects. 2. Holy Basil Also called tulsi, holy basil is known in India as the a powerful anti-aging supplement. Holy basil benefits have long been an integral part of Ayurvedic medicine to treat a large number of conditions, such as “infections, skin diseases, hepatic disorders, common cold and cough, malarial fever and as an antidote for snake bite and scorpion sting.” (16) In recent years, researchers around the world have investigated the impact of holy basil on the body. Specifically, multiple studies have been conducted in mice and rats to observe its anti-stress activity. A January 2015 study in humans tested the cognition-enhancing benefits holy basil is thought to have, and found that reaction times and error rates improved compared to placebo. (17) One reason holy basil may be effective in improving stress response is the presence of three phytochemical compounds. The first two, ocimumosides A and B, have been identified as anti-stress compounds and may lower blood corticosterone (another stress hormone) and create positive alterations in the neurotransmitter system of the brain. (18) The third, 4-allyl-1-O-beta-D-glucopyronosyl-2-hydroxybenzene (say that five times fast!) is also able to lower stress parameters in lab studies. (19, 20) There is also evidence that holy basil may help to prevent recurrence of canker sores, which are thought to be induced by stress, as well as other types of ulcers, such as gastric ulcers. (21, 22, 16) In addition to these stress-related benefits, holy basil may potentially help to lower blood pressure, reduce seizure activity, fight bacteria, kill certain fungi, combat viral infections, protect the liver, promote immune system function and reduce pain response. (16) However, most of these have not been studied extensively and are in their infancy, as far as research goes. Post Comment Private Reply Ignore Thread Top • Page Up • Full Thread • Page Down • Bottom/Latest
#1. To: BTP Holdings (#0)
I also have kratom, oil of wild oregano, garlic oil, cbd oil, and ceylon cinnamon in my supplement tool chest.
“The most dangerous man to any government is the man who is able to think things out... without regard to the prevailing superstitions and taboos. Almost inevitably he comes to the conclusion that the government he lives under is dishonest, insane, intolerable.” ~ H. L. Mencken
I have a bottle of Mediterranean Oregano oil here that I take once a day. There is a shop here that sells vapor cigs along with CBD oil and Kratom. I just do not have the cash to get the CBD oil and Kratom. I have never smoked so no interest in vapor cigs. ;) "When bad men combine, the good must associate; else they will fall, one by one." Edmund Burke
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