Mercola.com:
Your adrenal glands are each no bigger than a walnut and weigh less than a grape, yet are responsible for one of the most important functions in your body: managing stress.
Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is a serious medical condition that can easily be overlooked because it mimics so many other disorders.
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Why is this posted as a news story on a political news site?
This is a pseudo-science mumbo jumbo site that just happens to sell products specifically for this "ailment" which all respectable doctors who actually went to medical school will tell you outright is simply _bullshit_.
"Adrenal fatigue" is the new "fad" everyone seems to have these days - and is never diagnosed by a real medical professional, but rather is always diagnosed by someone who just happens to specialize in it, and just happens to sell a "remedy" for it.
Well welcome to the living section, home of so called "alternative medicine" (pseudo-scientific woo). Check your critical thinking at the door.
I've been saying this for years about the adrenals. Doctors never even consider them, unless they actually stop functioning like in Addison's disease. The adrenals are the "fight or flight" endocrine glans and the stresses of our society wear them right out. They were evolved when stress in the human primate was relatively low
I've been paying attention to the nutrients which support the adrenals for years. but, now I do specific things just for the little buggers and when I forget, i always feel worse; no energy and in the dumps physically.
Scoff, oh ye of little faith, but doctors don't know everything, esp western doctors who, if there isn't a pill to take or lots of money to be made...ignore it.
We of little faith scoff at ye of little evidence, because you make important decisions about health and safety on the basis of, well, nothing. No-one will object to you taking your nutrients, but how do you know that they "support the adrenals" as you put it?
Western Medicine certainly knows it doesn't know everything, but that doesn't mean you get to fill the gaps with made-up things.
"Adrenal Fatigue" blah, blah, blah..... More pseudo-scientific mumbo jumbo. How does one diagnosis this??? Does one go to a "practitioner" with some fancy schmancy little device that, lo and behold diagnoses anyone with fatigue with the dreaded "Adrenal Fatigue" and then prescribes some over-priced potion that just so happens to "cure" this dreaded disorder. What ever happend to Lyme Disease, Systemic Yeast or other "epidemics". Most fatigued folks that I see are overweight, over-stressed people who never exercise and many times smoke. No surprises here. Sorry, the Acai Berry Juice won't cure what ails you.
A whole load of pseudo-medical mumbo jumbo. Ha your fill and transfer your money to some one else so long as it makes you feel good.
What's missing from these boards is Critical thinking.
Exactly, well said.
our beloved dog passed away 3 and a half weeks ago from what I suspect was undiagnosed canine Addison's disease.
this malady was long thought to be uncommon, if not rare; now the veterinary thinking is that it's actually fairly common but under-diagnosed.
the symptoms are vague, and only blood tests and careful testing are definitive
I wish I had been more aware of the symptoms; it's quite treatable.
Thank you so much for this interesting article. It is so refreshing to see different points of view and different medical ideas all in one place. I know that there are a variety of ways to get a degree in the health field and I love that the Huffington Post is brave enough to look at alternative medicine and its professionals as a source of useful information.
Thank you Huffington Post and keep up the great work!
Be careful; a few months ago, someone was shilling colloidal silver, and someone else megadoses of Vitamin D, both potentially dangerous. Do educate yourself and don't take anyone's word for anything without checking, especially if they are trying to sell you something
Exactly!
The charlatans are everywhere.
Why is HP posting a website that advertises for profit products?
For profits!!!!!!
any carbonated drink will sap your adrenals. even bubbly water. its ruined my diet 7up habit
It seems like the people who are knocking this actually didn't read the article. It is a good article, makes sense, and is filled with valuable, practical and safe advice. If the information in this article can help someone get better, that is great.
It makes sense that in our over stressed society we are going to see signs that the body can't keep up. Just because Western medicine doesn't have a label for things before they become a disease doesn't mean that conditions that need lifestyle modification aren't present.
Thanks for publishing this HuffPo!
Cosign.
I have read the article. There is no condition known to mainstream medicine known as "adrenal fatigue". He cites no credible articles, except the Mayo Clinic website, which speaks only to Addison's disease (Which _does_exist).
This article says to _me_ "If you feel stressed then buy stuff off me". The made up stuff about the adrenals gives some spurious verisimilitude. As things stand, though, if someone were to accuse him of making all of the content of the article up, (except for the existence of Addison's disease, of course), I don't see how he could argue it in any credible way.
Buying stuff ffrom him may make you feel better, but the only credible mechanism is the placebo effect.
His basic suggestions do NOT cost anything. The suggestions have mostly to do with diet, sleep, and an energy tapping technique (which does not cost anything to learn!). He also recommends if necessary to consult a doctor. Yes, you have the option to get his nutrition book, but so what? There is good information to be gleaned without buying anything. And besides, nobody is forcing anybody to buy anything; it's always a choice, so what?
If someone reads the article and it helps them to eat better, pay more attention to stress and sleep, good for them.
So what if mainstream medicine doesn't recognize it. It takes them a long time to catch up. There was a time when mainstream medicine didn't believe nutrition had anything to do with cancer prevention, that it was the alternative medicine people's "junk science." Now they're all over it.
I welcome different points of view presented here and I'm glad Huffington Post at least brings things for us to consider. I don't agree with all things posted in Living, but so what? I try to keep an open mind and don't freak out if someone else has a different opinion.
I know that I can feel my adrenaline pumping when I feel stress. It doesn't seem that far fetched that if that happens excessively, my adrenal glands might be a little compromised. Not diseased, but compromised. I am interested in optimal health.
You might like to read this link to Mayo clinic posted earlier.
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/adrenal-fatigue/AN01583
To all who did not read the article but felt compelled to disparage it anyway:
It is a good article. We are ratcheting up our stress-levels in this culture to such a degree that our biological systems can't keep up.
Meditation helps for VERY well documented reasons. Excessive exercise is a problem. Not for everyone, but many complain about this malady. It is NOT in their heads and they need to live differently than this culture is forcing them to.
No it's not!
Your statement "Excessive exercise is a problem" I have to disagree with. The the LACK of exercise is the problem.
Look up "Cortisol" and its effects. You are behind the latest data. Exercise is of course good, since we don't work in the fields anymore and have to apply movement to our live. But as with so much in our culture, we over-do it. We create a type of stress and our weight, instead of meeting our even moderate goals, we plateau. Ask any fitness buff.
Read before you opine.
This seems to be an example of an invented "syndrome" unrecognised by actual doctors, and not in any medical book, which has come into existence to justify someone's miracle treatment.
Well, if you understand Traditional Chinese Medicine they would say that the body is in a dry, hot condition and any strong emotions cause a wind in the body that aggravates the condition.
Didn't that describe every condition at one point? I laughed at a fairly recent piece of news that lauded the "discovery" of a new species of rat in Laos. When I asked a Lao friend if she knew about it, she said "We have always eaten those". Just because it hasn't been officially "discovered", recorded or classified doesn't mean it doesn't exist or isn't real.
You're using a logical fallacy:
1. Condition X has not been identified.
2. Condition Y had existed for a long time before being identified.
3. Conclusion: Condition X exists.
Sometimes an empty box is just an empty box.
Didn't read the article, looks sponsored - BOOO!
Unfortunately the HufPo living section has become a snake pit of pseudo-scientific woo and quackery selling snake oil and giving out advice based upon anecdotal evidence and testimonials.
sad
It's truly so.
CS- (MD)
I'm also finding it odd that this is posted as a news article. According to the mayo clinic's website:
"Adrenal fatigue is a term applied to a collection of nonspecific symptoms, such as body aches, fatigue, nervousness, sleep disturbances and digestive problems. The term often shows up in popular health books and on alternative medicine Web sites, but it isn't an accepted medical diagnosis."
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/adrenal-fatigue/AN01583
Agreed. This smacks of pseudo-science.
I just did a quick read of the profile that this guy provided on his website and then did a quick google search of him. He has been warned by the FDA at least two times to quit marketing HIS nutritional products in a manner that violates the federal food, drug and cosmetic acts. He is also listed on the QUACKWATCH website. From the little I have read about the fine doctor in twenty minutes he would be one of the last people I seek for medical advice! Although he does make some valid statements about health issues he also makes false claims. I must point out the even a broken clock is correct two times a day.
http://www.quackwatch.org/
Enough said
Seriously, if only PuffHo would take the same 20 minutes of investigation before attempting to further confuse and dupe their readers with such nonsense..... But I guess there may be ties to the pharma industry and any snake oil salesman with enough cash and charisma.
So glad to see this issue presented here. I struggled with fatigue for years and doctors couldn't give me a reason or help. I researched the adrenal fatigue issue and was able to find a holistically-minded doctor to look a little deeper. A lot of these suggestions in this article I incorporated and they made a huge difference.
I find it kind of odd that this is posted as a news story. It links to a newsletter on the web page of a doctor.
One look at the credentials of the wellness editor here will explain it all.
http://www.publiusforum.com/2009/05/04/huffington-post-presenting-fake-doctors-as-experts/
Thanks for the link; I've suspected as much for some time.
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First Posted: 09- 5-09 04:40 PM | Updated: 09- 5-09 04:52 PM