The Road to Better Health

By Tamela Thomas, Wellness Manager

It's hard to imagine a more perfect provider of naturopathic services for the Washington Athletic Club Membership than Dr. Bill Caradonna.

Not only is Dr. Bill genuinely passionate about the work he does, he has the added benefit of having been a pharmacist for many years before becoming a naturopathic doctor, or ND.

This experience puts him in the unique position of being able to help our Members who might be looking to cut back or eliminate medicines for lifestyle diseases—medicines they may be expected to take for the rest of their lives. Younger and younger people are finding themselves on "lifetime" medications. Our Members want to learn more about holistic ways to treat chronic diseases and health problems.

In this month's article, Dr. Bill gives us perspective on the importance of the adrenal system, and the downhill spiral that can take place when we don't take early action to fortify it.

Please know that the Wellness Center is here to help you. Let us partner with you as you navigate the road to better health.

I've Got [Adrenal] Rhythm ...

Who Could Ask for Anything More

By Bill Caradonna, RPh, ND

Managing your body's reactions to stress can improve your sleep, energy, blood sugar balance, weight loss, memory and mood—and make you feel like DANCING again ...
It's a common belief that our lives today are much more stressful than those of years past. However, the early caveman being chased by a saber-tooth tiger might disagree. Luckily, our bodies have long contained a built-in "fight or flight" response for when we need an extra burst of energy.

The caveman was equipped with this ability to respond to stress as a survival mechanism—and so are we. This energy boost comes from adrenaline, or epinephrine, which is produced by the adrenal glands.

Not only are the adrenals there for us in times of need, but they also provide a daily energy cycle by producing cortisol. Normally, this adrenal output starts around 4 am, peaks at 8 am, tails off throughout the day, and becomes low at night so that we can sleep. When this rhythm is disrupted, it is difficult for us to maintain our energy, sleep well, keep our blood sugar balanced, avoid excess weight gain or keep a stable mood.

Our bodies were not built to tolerate chronic stress

Stress isn't always bad. Positive stress creates achievement such as through mental activities or athletic competition. But when stress becomes chronic, significant problems can occur. Chronic stress causes the adrenals to overwork, first producing high cortisol levels in our body for an extended period of time. Without sufficient adrenal support in these periods, adrenal fatigue occurs. During these periods, DHEA and sex hormone production is lowered, and digestive efficiency suffers. Chronically increased production of stress hormones is likely to lead to fatigue, insomnia, hypoglycemia and diabetes, poor memory, depression, high blood pressure and heart disease, obesity, muscle wasting, osteoporosis, decreased skin healing and regeneration, decreased immune function, and increased susceptibility to infections, allergies and other degenerative diseases.

Inadequate sleep

Quality sleep is defined as falling asleep easily, staying asleep, sleeping deeply and waking up refreshed. Today in developed countries, adults sleep about seven hours a night, down from nine hours in 1910. An adequate amount of sleep is as important as an adequate amount of exercise. Sleep onset difficulties are often blamed on Thomas Edison. The development of artificial light negatively affects the pineal gland's production of melatonin, the body's primary sleep inducing chemical. Sleep rhythm is especially disturbed in shift workers, on-call doctors and parents of young children. This can result in seriously impaired functional abilities. Sleep interruption or early morning awakening is often due to the adrenal glands producing high cortisol levels at the wrong time due to overcompensating for chronic stress exposure. Also, low blood sugar episodes can occur in the middle of the night, triggering the adrenal glands to wake you up.

People with depression often have early morning awakening. After a period of poor sleep we often need loud alarm clocks to wake up—jolting the adrenals into action—which actually exacerbates the problem in the future. In addition to contributing to adrenal fatigue, chronic sleep loss itself could decrease growth hormone production. Growth hormone deficiency is associated with reduced muscle mass and strength, increased fat tissue, weakened immunity to infection and other declining health conditions. Also, chronic sleep loss can reduce the capacity of even young adults to perform basic metabolic functions such as processing and storing carbohydrates or regulating hormone secretion. When a lack of sleep raises levels of certain adrenal hormones, inflammatory cytokines increase. These have been linked to numerous degenerative diseases including cancer, cardiovascular disease, rheumatoid arthritis, osteoporosis and neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's disease.

Don't touch that donut

When our adrenals are overworked, we often crave sugar or refined carbohydrates as an energy source. When our blood-sugar levels then rapidly increase, the pancreas dumps insulin into the bloodstream to bring the level down. This often creates overcompensation, and the insulin will lower the blood sugar level too much. We then feel hypoglycemic—fatigue, irritability, headache, immediate hunger, etc. This causes the adrenals to produce extra cortisol as a stress response to try to create fuel for the body through alternate biochemical pathways.

We then surf the sugar wave all day, cycling through these energy highs and lows. To put it bluntly: high levels of insulin and cortisol results in more fat being formed and stored. Trying to lose weight without correcting these imbalances can be very difficult. And too much of this sugar rollercoaster can cause the pancreas to wear out and stop producing sufficient insulin, causing diabetes.

I have one nerve left and you are standing on it

Because Americans are often short of sufficient sleep and have poor dietary habits, we often compensate for our resultant fatigue with an increased intake of caffeine. While caffeine often gives us a short-term boost by stimulating the release of norepinephrine, it does not nourish the adrenals. The false "up" that caffeine provides can also cause a dip "down" later. Having another cup of coffee or can of soda is not the answer. This nervous system over-stimulation often increases anxiety reactions. Caffeine use can also make it difficult to fall asleep because the nervous system is still too revved up, no matter how fatigued we might feel. Vitamin B₁₂ can be useful here because it can relieve fatigue by supporting the nervous system, and normalize circadian rhythms, thereby allowing people to enter sleep without stress or tension.

Getting your rhythm back, even if you have two left feet

Naturopathic medicine has many tools to help you regain your hormonal rhythm. First, some testing might be necessary to identify your imbalances so they can be corrected. An Adrenal Stress Index test identifies your DHEA status and cyclical cortisol levels by collecting saliva samples throughout the day. If nighttime cortisol is high, certain herbal and nutritional products can be used to lower it, giving you a better opportunity for a good night's sleep. DHEA can be supplemented (best monitored by a physician) to improve energy.

Eating correctly to avoid hypoglycemia is a cornerstone of treatment. The WAC Nutritionist can provide dietary guidance for this, as well as weight control issues. Certain supplements can also be used to help maintain blood sugar balance initially, until the body returns to balance. Exercising for at least 30 minutes every day can help regain healthier sleep habits. However, remember that it's best to not exercise in the evening, close to bedtime. Also, give yourself 30 to 60 minutes to wind down from daytime activity before bedtime in order to cue your body that it's time to settle down for the night.

Resistance training has been shown to lower elevated fasting insulin levels, which must be monitored with a blood test. The WAC has extensive workout facilities and personal trainers to guide you in this.

Acupuncture treatment and naturopathic herbal and nutritional products are also helpful in repairing and rebuilding normal adrenal function. B₁₂ injections are often an effective shortcut to better energy, sleep, mood and memory for many people. These services are available through the Wellness Center.

You could be snapping your fingers and tapping your feet to better adrenal rhythm in no time!