Protect Yourself: Rebalance Cortisol

by Henry Emmons, MD

[adapted from The Chemistry of Calm]

If you haven't read Part 1 of this series, head there first.  

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Take the Sting out of Cortisol

Do you long for a stress-free life? Do you wish that your stress hormones would go away and not come back? Actually, you wouldn’t want either of these, any more than you would want a life without pain.

No one wants to be in pain all the time, but to be unable to feel pain at all creates a nightmare of its own. Likewise, if you were unable to mount a stress response, if your body suddenly became unable to produce the stress hormones, your physiology would collapse.

Stress is not the problem. It is unremitting stress and a constantly elevated level of cortisol that create the problems and the consequences can be severe.

The effects of constantly elevated cortisol may include:⁵

• Weight gain.
• Insulin resistance or even type 2 diabetes.
• Elevated blood pressure and coronary artery disease.
• Memory problems, dementia, and other neurodegenerative diseases.
• Immune system problems which may impair your body’s ability to fend off diseases of all types, including autoimmune disorders and even cancers.

How to Balance Cortisol with Diet and Supplements

The ultimate answer to this risk is to bring stress and the stress hormones back into a normal, healthy range. Of course, highly stressful situations will still arrive uninvited. And if you've been overly stressed for months or years, it may take a long time to bring the stress response back into line. Meanwhile, it's crucial to protect yourself with the Resilient Diet.

The following supplements may also help:

• DHEA which tones down the effects of cortisol.⁶ 
• B vitamins to help keep “homocysteine” in check. You could try PureGenomics B-Complex.
• Antioxidants.
• Herbal adaptogens like rhodiola. You could try TruAdapt.

B vitamins support healthy neurotransmitter levels, energy production, and normal stress response. The activated B vitamins in Activate help when you can't process B vitamins from food (a common genetic variant).

TruAdapt

TruAdapt provides a unique blend of “stress-adapting botanicals” which help increase the body’s resistance to fatigue, improve attention and immune function and maintain balanced cortisol and DHEA levels.*

*Note: Some of the supplements discussed in this article can cause side effects, but many people tolerate them much better than prescription medications. They are generally considered safe, however, they should not be started without your doctor’s knowledge and supervision. If you are taking medication already, be sure to talk with your doctor before adding any of these items. If you are considering going off medication, remember never to stop your medication suddenly—always consult with your doctor about how to safely taper off any psychiatric medication. See terms. These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

RELATED ARTICLE

Anxiousness and Taurine Supplements 

Taurine is an amino acid that increases glycine and GABA to calm the brain (AKA ease anxiety). It also protects the brain by reducing the harmful effects of excess glutamate. I consider taurine when I see someone with mood instability along with anxiety, but it may also be helpful for anxiety alone. Read more.

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