The adrenal glands are located in the lower back area and sit on top of the kidneys. As part of the endocrine system, they manage the body's stress by producing stress hormones. It is important to keep these small but powerful glands healthy, because the adrenals can become overburdened, leading to a condition called adrenal fatigue. Maintaining a healthy diet is one of the key lifestyle practices necessary for keeping adrenal glands healthy and to recover from adrenal fatigue. Certain vitamins from food and nutritional supplements are especially supportive to the adrenal glands. Consult a health practitioner for information on which nutritional supplements would be a good support to your adrenal glands.
Vitamin C
Vitamin C is the most critical vitamin to the adrenal glands, as the adrenals concentrate high amounts of vitamin C. When your body is under stress, it rapidly uses much more vitamin C than normally. In supplement form, vitamin C is available in tablets, capsules or powder. Taking this vitamin as a powder in water can be a good option for people who have adrenal fatigue, because with adrenal fatigue can come digestive challenges. Powdered vitamin C is much easier to digest than capsules or tablets are. If you have adrenal fatigue, you will likely need about 1,000 to 5,000 mg of vitamin C per day. It is best to spread your daily dosage throughout the day.
Vitamin E
Vitamin E is another important vitamin for supporting the adrenal glands. According to "Adrenal Fatigue: The 21st Century Stress Syndrome," if you take a vitamin E supplement for your adrenals, it should be in the mixed tocopherol form and should be high in beta-tocopherols. The amount you need per day varies depending on the healthy of your own adrenal glands, but if you have adrenal fatigue, you might need about 800 IU of vitamin E daily. Because vitamin E is a natural blood thinner, work closely with your health practitioner when taking this vitamin, especially if you take a prescription blood thinner.
B Complex
B complex includes multiple individual B vitamins that support the adrenal gland. B complex includes thiamin, or vitamin B-1, riboflavin, or vitamin B-2, niacin, or vitamin B-3, vitamin B-6, folic acid, vitamin B-12, biotin, pantothenic acid, or vitamin B-5, inositol and choline. Some B complex types are labeled as being stress B complex; these can be beneficial because they tend to contain higher dosages of the individual B vitamins. They also often include vitamin C.
Vitamin B-5
All the B vitamins in B complex provide support to the adrenal glands, but B-5, or pantothenic acid, is especially critical because it is important in energy production and severe energy depletion and lethargy can come with adrenal fatigue. You many want to take B-5 as an individual supplement along with B complex. According to Wilson, people who have adrenal fatigue usually need about 1,500 mg per day of vitamin B-5. The amount of B-5 you need varies based on whether your adrenal glands are healthy or fatigued.
References
- "Adrenal Fatigue: The 21st Century Stress Syndrome"; James L. Wilson, N.D., D.C., Ph.D.; 2001
- Dr. Rind: Adrenal Support Recommendation Sheet
- Dr. Lam: Comprehensive Adrenal Fatigue Article
- Natural Ways: Adrenal Weakness
- "American Journal of Clinical Nutrition"; Human Adrenal Glands Secrete Vitamin C in Response to Adrenocorticotrophic Hormone; Padayatty SJ, et al.; July 2007
- "Prescription for Nutritional Healing"; James F. Balch, M.D. and Phyllis A. Balch, C.N.C.; 1997
