I recently had a friend say that she was questioned in a mothers group whether adrenal fatigue is actually real. She asked me if there was any peer reviewed research on the subject.
Well of course if you are someone who suffers with adrenal fatigue then you will of course know that it is VERY real!
It’s true that mainstream medicine is slow to catch up with the concept of adrenal fatigue and if you go and search for research articles titled ‘adrenal fatigue’ you will only find a few.
However there are lots of studies associated with adrenal health and all of the complexities surrounding it such as in issues with cortisol patterns (the key adrenal stress hormone that becomes compromised with poor adrenal health).
If you know a bit about adrenal fatigue then you might also know that the issue is not just with the adrenal glands directly but with the communication system that operates hormone production known as the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis.
There are many different studies that look at the HPA axis as it has commonly been associated with many conditions such as chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, and irritable bowel syndrome.
Adrenal fatigue is not just a simple issue but can cover a spectrum of issues associated with hormone imbalance and collectively there is combined research to show how it affects people.
Unfortunatley it is always going to be the same when it comes to mainstream medicine because most medical practitioners and researchers aren’t putting all the dots together. But there are people such as Dr James Wilson and Dr Lam who have spent many years working with patients and know that this condition is very real.
Anyway, enough said. Here is a list of just a few peer reviewed research studies in this area.
10 Peer Reviewed Research Studies on Adrenal Fatigue
You can look all these up in peer reviewed journals and there are many more as well.
- Wilson, J. Clinical perspective on stress, cortisol and adrenal fatigue. Advances in Integrative Medicine 2014;1:93-98.
- Head et al. Nutrients and Botanicals for the treatment of stress, adrenal fatigue, neurotransmitter imbalance, anxiety, and restless sleep. Alternative Medicine Review, 2009 (14(2);115-140.
- Scott et al. Differences in adrenal steroid profile in chronic fatigue syndrome, in depression and in health. Journal of Affective Disorders. 1999;54:129–137.
- Lineke et al. Meta-analysis and meta-regression of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis activity in functional somatic disorders. Biological Psychology 2011; 87: 183–194.
- Jurena M. Early-life stress and HPA axis trigger recurrent adulthood depression.
- Tsigos et al. Hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis, neuroendocrine factors and stress. Journal of Psychosomatic Research. 2002;53:865– 871.
- Herman et al. Neurocircuitry of stress: central control of the hypothalamo–pituitary–adrenocortical axis. Trends Neurosci. 1997;20:78-84.
- Powell et al. Unstimulated cortisol secretory activity in everyday life and its relationship with fatigue and chronic fatigue syndrome: A systematic review and subset meta-analysis. Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2013;38: 2405—2422.
- Eek et al. Cortisol, sleep, and recovery. Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2012;37:56—64.
- Kudielka et al. Why do we respond so differently? Reviewing determinants of human salivary cortisol responses to challenge. Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2009;34;2—18.
So I hope that clears up any confusion and proves that adrenal fatigue is very real.
Adrenal Fatigue Articles
Want to find out more about it? These articles may be of interest to you.
- What is adrenal fatigue?
- What tests to get for adrenal fatigue?
- Adrenal fatigue diet
- Top 10 questions about adrenal fatigue
- Adrenal Fatigue Handbook
Take care
Jedha
Nutritionist & Health Coach
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