Posted by BarbaraCat on July 6, 2002, at 1:16:02
In reply to Re: I have Cushing's (too much cortisol), posted by katekite on July 2, 2002, at 21:41:09
Yes, I have some herbal suggestions:
- Licorice (the root, not the candy) helps adrenal burnout, an elevated cortisol level malady. Wise Woman Herbals makes a very good liquid syrup brand. Use with caution if you have hypertension.
- DHEA taken in a.m. can help also in that it helps to regulate the diurnal cycling between DHEA/cortisol surge. But a test should first determine if levels are low.
- Siberian ginseng, a great stress adaptogen. Primarily Siberian (eleuthero), although American is OK, just more energizing. Korean (panax) and Chinese are way too speedy and counterproductive for this kind of health issue.
- Maca, a rainforest herb, which seems to regulate all hormone levels. I've been taking it for a few weeks and really like it. It gives me a nice clear and calm energy that supposedly is cumulative. We'll see.There's a saliva test that measures both cortisol and DHEA levels over a 24 hour period. It's alot more sensitive than the blood test and it also looks at DHEA levels. Most of us over 40 have low DHEA and this can contribute to feeling very lousy. A company that does the testing (usually ordered by a naturopath or nutritionally savvy MD)is Metametrix. They have a web site at metametrix.com that y'all might find informative. - BCat
poster:BarbaraCat
thread:111175
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20020628/msgs/111547.html