Your adrenal glands are two tiny pyramid-shaped pieces of tissue situated right above each kidney. Their job is to produce and release, when appropriate, certain regulatory hormones and chemical messengers.

Adrenaline is manufactured in the interior of the adrenal gland, called the adrenal medulla. Cortisol, the other chemical from the adrenal gland, is made in the exterior portion of the gland, called the adrenal cortex. The cortex also secretes androgens, estrogens, and progestins. Cortisol, commonly called hydrocortisone, is the most abundant -- and one of the most important -- of many adrenal cortex hormones. Cortisol helps you handle longer-term stress situations.

In addition to helping you handle stress, these two primary adrenal hormones, adrenaline and cortisol, along with others similarly produced, help control body fluid balance, blood pressure, blood sugar, and other central metabolic functions.

In the heightened nervous state of adrenal burnout, the body overproduces adrenaline, cortisol and other stress hormones. Constant stress and poor nutrition can weaken the adrenal glands. Eventually, this causes the adrenal glands, the front line in the stress reaction, to show wear and tear and become depleted. This frequently leads to impairment in the thyroid gland, which can cause a further decline in energy level and mood and is one of the reasons why many people have thyroid glands that don’t work well.

When stress continues over prolonged periods of time, the adrenal glands can deplete the body's hormonal and energy reserves, and the glands may either shrink in size or hypertrophy (enlarge). The overproduction of adrenal hormones caused by prolonged stress can weaken the immune system and inhibit the production of white blood cells that protect the body against foreign invaders (in particular lymphocytes and lymph node function).

Adrenal dysfunction can disrupt the body's blood sugar metabolism, causing weakness, fatigue, and a feeling of being run down. It can also interfere with normal sleep rhythms and produce a wakeful, unrelaxing sleep state, making a person feel worn out even after a full night's sleep.

Common Causes of Adrenal Stress

• Anger
• Fear / Worry /Anxiety
• Depression
• Guilt
• Overwork/ physical or mental strain
• Excessive exercise
• Sleep deprivation
• Light-cycle disruption
• Going to sleep late
• Surgery
• Trauma/injury
• Chronic inflammation
• Chronic infection
• Chronic pain
• Temperature extremes
• Toxic exposure
• Malabsorption
• Maldigestion
• Chronic illness
• Chronic-severe allergies
• Hypogycemia
• Nutritional deficiencies


Testing for Adrenal Health

In order to determine the health of your adrenal glands you need to have a simple blood, urine, or saliva test performed by your practitioner. Cortisol levels can be checked by blood or throughout the day by a saliva test. DHEA, and Epinephrine, are some other indicators of adrenal function.

Associated Symptoms and Consequences of Impaired Adrenal Functioning

• Low body temperature
• Weakness
• Unexplained hair loss
• Nervousness
• Difficulty building muscle
• Irritability
• Mental depression
• Difficulty gaining weight
• Apprehension
• Hypoglycemia
• Inability to concentrate
• Excessive hunger
• Tendency towards inflammation
• Moments of confusion
• Indigestion
• Poor memory
• Feelings of frustration
• Alternating diarrhea and constipation
• Osteoporosis
• auto-immune diseases/hepatitis
• Lightheadedness
• Palpitations [heart fluttering]
• Dizziness that occurs upon standing
• Poor resistance to infections
• Low blood pressure
• Insomnia
• Food and/or inhalant allergies
• PMS
• Craving for sweets
• Dry and thin skin
• Headaches
• Scanty perspiration
• Alcohol intolerance

Treatment

Lifestyle changes such as:

Eating steadily, all day long. Skipping meals is one of the worst things you can do for your body. When you're hungry, your blood sugar drops, stressing your adrenal glands and triggering your sympathetic nervous system. That causes light-headedness, cravings, anxiety and fatigue. Another drawback to skipping meals: The resulting low blood sugar can affect your ability to think clearly and shorten your attention span.

Skipping breakfast is particularly bad, as it is a sure fire way to gain, not lose, weight. If you start each morning with a good breakfast and "graze" healthfully every two to four hours, your blood sugar will remain steady throughout the day. You'll feel more rested and energetic.

Eat protein with every meal. Eat Complex carbohydrates such as brown rice. Avoid sugar, junk food, white pasta, white rice, white bread.

Absolutely NO Caffeine. Coffee/Sodas over stimulates your adrenals and they deplete important B vitamins.
Coffee does not give you energy; coffee gives you the illusion of energy. Coffee actually drains the body of energy and makes you more tired, because of vitamin and adrenal depletion.

Exercise to relax. Walking, Yoga, deep breathing, meditation, or stretching. No vigorous or aerobic exercise, which depletes the adrenals.

Avoid alcohol, processed foods, and tobacco. Nicotine in tobacco initially raises cortisol levels, but chronic use results in low DHEA, testosterone, and progesterone levels.

Reduce stress; learn relaxation techniques such as deep breathing, visualization, progressive muscle relaxation.

Helpful Supplements
The use of small amounts of natural adrenal hormone (hydrocortisone) to bring slightly low adrenal function up to its proper normal daily range is often helpful.
Take a daily multivitamin to provide nutritional support to the adrenal gland.
Vitamin C 1,000-3,000 mg a day
L-Theanine 100-400 mg a day
Pantothenic Acid (Vitamin B5) 300 mg a day
Licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra), no more than 1000 mg of glycyrrhizin

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Cataract is a disease of the eye wherein the natural lens that lies at the back of the iris and pupil become cloudy. The lens functions like a camera lens, which focus light into the retina at
the rear of the eye. The lens also regulates the focus of the eyes, which allows people to see things visibly both close up and far away. The lens is generally composed of protein and water. The protein is set in an accurate way that maintains the lens to be clear and allows light to pass in it more difficult to see.

Researchers are increasing extra insights regarding the causes of the particular types of proteins to gather together in unusual means that cause the cloudiness of the lens and cataracts. The latest findings suggest that fragmented edition of the proteins combine with standard proteins, distracting normal function.

There are three types of cataracts:

- Sub capsular cataract - it begins at the rear of the lens. People having diabetes, high farsightedness, or those people taking high dosage of steroids might build up sub capsular cataract.

- Nuclear cataract - this cataract develop inside the nucleus and it develops due to regular changes in aging.

- Cortical cataract - it is formed in the lens cortex, slowly lengthens its spokes coming from the exterior of the lens into the middle. Plenty of diabetic persons build up cortical cataract.

A cataract begins out little only and initially has small effect in the vision. The one with cataract can notice the blurring of vision a little, similar to staring through hazy bit of glass or looking at an impressionist painting.

Cataracts may create light coming from the sunlight or from lamp that is too glaring or vivid. You may also observe when you drive at night times; you will notice the incoming headlights to be more glaring than before.

If you observe that you have cataract, see an eye specialist for an examination to be sure.

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Hair loss is a common problem for millions of people worldwide. While some people suffer from permanent hair loss, others can still find remedies to save theirs. There are numerous products available
to treat hair loss or to simply make it grow faster. In order to select a treatment regimen, it is essential to understand what has caused your hair loss, and the natural process that hair goes through when it grows. It is also important to point out that your hair does not need to be falling out before you seek treatment for fuller, longer hair.

The hair on your scalp has two phases. When your it is growing it is in the anagen phase, which typically lasts two or three years. During this phase your it will grow just under a half an inch, or 1 centimeter, per month.

Between the anagen phases your hair has natural resting phase, called the telogen phase, which generally last only three to four months. It is normal for your scalp to shed 50 to 100 hairs a day, but in comparison to the 100,000 hairs on the scalp, this rate of hair loss will not cause a noticeable change in the thickness of your hair.

Hair loss can be caused by a variety of factors, including genetic factors such as pattern baldness, lupus, or autoimmune disorders like alopecia areata. Hair loss can also be triggered by stress and tragedy, which can cause hair follicles to prematurely enter the telogen phase and be spontaneously ejected from the scalp.

There are several external causes of losing hair and thinning as well. Excessive or aggressive styling causes traction alopecia. Products that scar hair follicles will make them fall out, and because the follicle is scarred, it will not be able to re-grow. Hair loss occurs when someone is malnourished, which is why people with eating disorders generally have unattractive hair. Many medications cause hair loss, most notably chemotherapy, used to treat cancer. Hormones and hair pulling disorders can also be the culprit.

Products available to remedy hair thinning come in different forms. The most common treatments are found as either a vitamin or a cream or lotion, which is applied to the scalp. Hair growth diets can be found online, and focus mainly on combating malnutrition. There are also treatments that surgically remove follicles from one area and place them in a different area in order to fill in balding areas.

An effective vitamin should contain zinc, iodine, and Essential Fatty Acids, also known as EFAs. These ingredients are found naturally in food, which the body needs to perform hundreds of essential functions, including growing your hair.

The problem with this is the processed foods and poor eating habits of today often do not provide these ingredients in high enough concentrations. Simple blood tests done by your doctor can determine if these issues could be causing your hair loss.

Topical hair growth lotions help stimulate follicles that may have fallen into the telogen resting phase for any of numerous reasons. There are several brands of topical hair growth foams, and even some that has been FDA approved in America to re grow hair. This method is generally viewed as the easiest, and so it is a good starting point, but do keep in mind that some causes of hair loss are permanent and can not be reversed by any vitamin or topical foam.

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