Stress-balancing Action of Adaptogens

We’ve all been there at least once. Whether it be a list of deadlines, a high-stakes presentation the next day, early morning travel, or a crying infant keeping you awake all night, we all have those 24 hours when our sleep is absolutely shot, and yet we have to make it through another challenging day. Nerves frazzled, we pour that morning coffee and hope for the best.

But what if there was an elixir, in pill or other forms, that actually helped restore our body to balance, bringing us down from the ledge of distress – something that actually would help de-stress the stressed?

Well, that something actually exists and comes in the form of adaptogens. Adaptogens, aptly named, are substances that have been observed to help the body adapt to stressors, be they physical, mental, or other challenges of endurance. Adaptogens have been observed to act on the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and exert regulating action on other key mediators of the stress response such as heat shock proteins, which are one of our body’s defence responses to stress.Heat shock proteins help to repair the damage to the proteins in our body which can occur with physical, mental, or emotional stressors.

Adaptogens are often considered rejuvenators or tonics (reflected in their Ayurvedic name Rasayana), but also can be regarded as nootropics, and regarded for their memory and cognitive-enhancing effects.4 Within this category we have the botanicals ashwagandha (Withania somnifera), the ginseng (Eleutherococcus senticosus and Panax quinquefolius to name a few), magnolia (Magnolia officinalis), and licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra) as well as many others. Other nutritional substances such as phosphatidylserine also can have an adaptogenic effect, affecting the cortisol response and physical or emotional changes that occur with stress.

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References:

[1] Panossian A, Wikman G. Evidence-based efficacy of adaptogens in fatigue, and molecular mechanisms related to their stress-protective activity. Curr Clin Pharmacol. 2009 Sep;4(3):198-219.
[2] Panossian A, et al. Adaptogens exert a stress-protective effect by modulation of expression of molecular chaperones. Phytomedicine. 2009 Jun;16(6-7):617-22.
[3] Feder ME, Hofmann GE. Heat-shock proteins, molecular chaperones, and the stress response: evolutionary and ecological physiology. Annu Rev Physiol. 1999;61:243-82.