Stress and Adrenal Support
Cortisol is a hormone produced in the adrenal glands above your kidneys and unlike most hormones; its production and blood level do not decrease with age. When you’re effectively processing the amount of stress you encounter, be it physical, mental, or emotional, your production of cortisol during the day follows a curve with a peak in the morning and a dip at night. If the amount of stress you encounter increases to chronically unmanageable levels, your cortisol production increases, loses is balanced daily curve, and finally production begins to burn out.
Cortisol has important functions. It maintains an adequate blood pressure and primes your body for activity in the face of stress by increasing the blood sugar. If it does this for a short period of time, i.e., long enough for you to evade the stressor, it is beneficial to your survival. If, as happens in the modern environment, the stress is chronic, then your altered levels can cause many harmful effects: thinning of bones, immune system suppression, weakened muscles, fat deposition around the waist, and thinner skin. In addition, it can damage some neurons in the brain that are important for laying down new memories.
An important part of any age management program is to restore your cortisol curve to the youthful range. This is best accomplished by behavioral techniques such as reducing stress in your life, meditation, and moderate exercise. DHEA can protect your brain and your bones from the damaging effects of elevated cortisol levels. Short-term treatment in curve-mimicking doses may also be beneficial to allow your system to reset.
