What is an Adaptogen?

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We’ve recently been hearing quite a buzz about Adaptogens, but ancient healing practices like Ayurveda and Traditional Chinese Medicine have utilized these amazing herbs for thousands of years. The job of these Adaptogens, in essence, is help the body negate the destructive effects of stress and respond by alleviating its effects.  Every day we deal with stress of some sort, and we mostly feel it on an emotional level. It causes us to become easily bothered, get defensive, feel tired and run down, or cause us to eat our feelings. Me, personally, I’m an angry eater, along with a boredom eater, a lonely eater, and a happy eater. Yes, I am always working on that…. So how do I handle stress naturally?Read on to see my list of highly recommended Adaptogens.

 

An item is considered an Adaptogen if it can be defined by three factors:

– Safe with no significant side effects or contraindications.
– Utilize a general, nonspecific action to improve resistance to stress.
– Have a balancing, normalizing effect on body functions, regardless of the origin of disruption or the direction of the homeostatic disturbance.

These were outlined by Donald Yance, CN, MH, RH (AHG) in his book “Adaptogens in Medical Herbalism”. You can check out more information here adaptogensbook.com

 

Top 4 Adaptogens You Should Be Taking

 

Rhodiola

Is used to regulate cortisol, popularly known as “the stress hormone”. The reason it has made the top of my list of best Adaptogens is for its multitude of benefits, but primarily its antidepressant properties. Studies show it interacts with Serotonin precursors and 5-HTP within the brain, both of which promote feelings of general wellbeing.

 

Growing up in New Jersey, I‘ll never forget one winter as a teen where it was cloudy for some 23 days straight and I thought I was going to die and never see the sun again. As it turned out, I had SAD, or Seasonal Affective Disorder, basically a mood disorder which made me want to crawl into bed and hibernate like a bear all winter.….Fast forward to today, where I’m living a solar powered life in beautiful sunny Florida.

Nevertheless, I still take Rhodiola for host of other benefits as well, including memory enhancement, muscle recovery, better sleep. It boosts the immune system, suppresses the growth or cancerous cells, and helps protect our liver from toxins. And to top it off, it is said to activate our fat burning by releasing fat from adipose tissue so it can be used as energy! If you’re not into taking supplement as pills, you can drink this as a tea, which I always enjoy after a long day to help me unwind.

Holy Basil

Rather than take this as a supplement, I like to use it as a fresh ingredient in my soups and salads. It’s simple to grow and is commonly seen throughout Thai and Vietnamese cuisines. Chicken soup has always been my family go-to when feeling sick, but over the years I have gravitated towards a steaming giant bowl of Pho. Head over to my Pinterest page for a quick and easy Chicken Pho recipe.

In Ayurveda, it is known as the “Mother Medicine of Nature” and “The Queen of Herbs,” and is revered as an “elixir of life”. Holy Basil to me feels like the Khaleesi of the herbal world with all those powerful names =) Known commonly as Tulsi, it’s powers as an adaptogen is best noted for its broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity, but it combats and alleviates anxiety and possibly depression.

Ashwaganda

Rooted in thousands of years of Ayurvedic medicine, it’s my personal favorite. If I had to incorporate just one of these Adaptogens, this is it. I buy this one from Amazon LINK…since it has the addition of Black Pepper EO, which helps increase absorption in the body. Many herbalists recommend it often for balancing anxiety and exhaustion, since it helps to increase stamina and physical endurance. This root very rich in antioxidants, which fight free radicals as well as strengthening the immune system. It is helpful with high blood pressure, and enhances the function of adrenal and endocrine systems. Ashwaganda is also widely used for its anti-aging properties. More great information on its uses can be found here herbslist.net

 

Reishi Mushroom

Known as the “Mushroom of Immortality” I can’t help but think of Super Mario Brothers, but this little guy in real life packs some serious immune boosting powers.

Not only does it cover all of the basic jobs of an adaptogen, but it also has been shown to lower blood pressure in people not responding to traditional medications. Reishi also reduces cholesterol, acts as a sleep aid, protects your liver…the list goes on. These little fungi are great for women, especially for balancing hormones, cause we all get a little crazy sometimes, like every, single, month, like, clockwork. Check out this woman’s experiment after she added this to her own regimen for a month. mindbodygreen.com

Of course you could add in Reishi mushrooms as a capsule or pill, but I like to do things a little differently.  So I recently tried this Reishi Hot Cocoa product from Four Sigmatic.  I love it because it’s made with cinnamon, and my all time favorite spice, cardamom, setting it apart from all the other boring cocoa options. Plus, I never feel guilty sipping this on my couch after a long day, cause I know it’s crazy good for my body. Since I love to constantly expand my brain, I also signed up for their course on functional ‘shrooms at the Mushroom Academy. Stay tuned for details on this crazy fungi class, as I unravel its mysteries for myself, and pass on the good stuff to share with you.

 

 

 

http://www.herbwisdom.com/herb-rhodiola.html

http://adaptogensbook.com/
http://www.herbwisdom.com/herb-rhodiola.html

http://www.herbslist.net/ashwagandha.html

http://www.dragonherbs.com/
https://us.foursigmatic.com/
 http://www.dragonherbs.com/