Hi everyone, I want to ask for your opinion. I got results of my saliva cortisol tests and I need help interpreting them. I already bought Thorne Research Adrenal Cortex but I don't know how to use it and can't find any good source of information on that topic, I ordered the STTM book but shipping will take some time.
I switched to NDT from levothyroxine a few months ago and I got good results at first but I started feeling much worse when I started rising so I checked cortisol as I found out it may be a problem.
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eem505
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Which country is this set of results from, just out of curiosity? The ranges and units of measurement are completely different to those I've seen before. And to be honest the ranges are very, very wide which is strange given that the ranges are supposed to represent "healthy" levels in "healthy" people.
Looking at the first result for example, the top of the range is nearly 8 times as much as the bottom of the range. And to suggest that a patient with a cortisol level of 1850 pg/mL is just as healthy as someone with a cortisol level of 14570 pg/mL is just bizarre.
In the UK I've seen ranges where (for the first sample) the top of the range is 3.5 times the bottom of the range, which I find more believable.
The first sample was taken right after waking up, which was 7:30 am. Next one was 30 mins after waking up, next one 1 hour, next ones 2, 5, 8 and 12 hours. In total there as 7 samples.
The results was taken in German laboratory, it was recommended on the stopthethyroidmadness website so I thought it's a good choice but I see now the ranges are pretty strange.
Can I use my results across different ranges? Does my results say anything at all or should I retake the test?
you have a morning result (sample 1), you have a noon result (sample 3), you have an evening result (sample 5) but you don't have a bedtime result. And I don't know an optimal result for samples 2 and 4.
I could guess at the optimum result for sample 2 as being roughly halfway between top of the range and 75% of the way through the range i.e. approximately 90% of the way through the range.
I could guess at the optimum result for sample 4 as being roughly halfway between 75% of the way through the range and 50% of the way through the range i.e. approximately 62% of the way through the range.
Putting all this together :
Sample 1 : Optimal = top of range = 14570 ; Yours = 10869 ; You produce 75% of the cortisol that you should.
Sample 2 : Optimal = 90% of the way thru range = 9391 ; Yours = 1806 ; You produce 19% of the cortisol that you should.
Sample 3 : Optimal = 75% of the way thru range = 4458 ; Yours = 2799 ; You produce 63% of the cortisol you should.
Sample 4 : Optimal = 62% of the way thru range = 2963 ; Yours = 2667 ; You produce 90% of the cortisol that you should.
Sample 5 : Optimal = 50% of the way thru range = 1830 ; Yours = 6090 ; You produce 333% of the cortisol that you should.
Totals : Optimal = 33212 ; Yours = 24231 ; You produce 73% of the cortisol you should over an entire day.
Looking at the results above shows that you are suffering from a lack of cortisol most of the day to varying degrees, apart from in the evening. They suggest to me that your best time of day is likely to be mid-afternoon, and I wouldn't be surprised if you suffered with insomnia.
My results are just how you listed, it was also strange for me that there was no bedtime sample but they clearly said the last one should be 12h after waking up.
I think you need to take an adrenal glandular first thing in the morning, and you may need to take another dose around late morning, or early afternoon. Don't take glandulars after 1pm. The most popular ones I know of are Adrenavive glandulars. Previously people took Nutri-Adrenal and Nutri-Adrenal Extra (NAX), but for reasons I'm unaware of they have fallen out of favour. They were off the market for ages, but as far as I know are available again.
You'll have to ask people for their advice on Adrenavive glandulars - I don't know which one you ought to take - I haven't taken a glandular for about 5 years, so they are not something I'm familiar with. I know there are several strengths of Adrenavive available. And of course there are other brands, but I don't know which ones are good. Look at Amazon for adrenal glandulars and read the reviews. One thing to be aware of is that some glandulars may contain adrenaline which causes a problem for some people.
I notice this is your first post so there are no recent nutrient test results for me to look at. For practically everyone using this forum nutrient levels are almost never optimal. You would need to test the basics which get mentioned in many posts by SeasideSusie and SlowDragon . Avoid multi-vitamins and multi-minerals (although a good B Complex is essential). Look for links on the subject of adrenal fatigue supplements.
You really need to take a substantial amount of vitamin C per day, preferably a minimum of 2 g per day, but more if you can cope with it without getting diarrhoea.
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It is essential to reduce stress as much as possible and that includes physiological stress. So, keep nutrients optimal, but also work on getting your gut working as well as possible. Probiotics in high doses are good. You can make your own probiotics with food - things like water kefir, milk kefir and sauerkraut, for example.
Eat regularly, don't miss breakfast, eat enough protein and fat, and drink an adrenal cocktail every day (if you can). Do a search for "adrenal cocktail" recipes and pick the one that appeals to you. I couldn't stomach the salt myself, but do try to get some down you.
Avoid big spikes and drops in your blood sugar, if at all possible. Cutting down on heavy sugar intake and simple carbs intake would help.
scroll down to the section on "Adrenal Information" and read the links.
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If/When you do another saliva test, be aware that various supplements can affect the results - some things lower cortisol, and some will raise it - you have to find out which is which from the following lists.
When I did saliva testing I decided to continue taking my 5-HTP (an over-the-counter anti-depressant) even though I knew it affected cortisol. I did not think it would be to my advantage to stop taking it for two weeks and getting very depressed. I made a slight mental adjustment to my results to take account of the fact I didn't stop taking 5-HTP.
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Edit : I forgot to mention Dr Lam's adrenal fatigue site. drlam.com/
Click on the menu options at the top of the page and read the links that you think might help - specifically "About AFS", "Recovery" and "Complications".
With regard to taking glandulars, when you change your cortisol levels with supplementation earlier in the day it has a knock on effect later in the day. With luck your high cortisol in the evening will drop with the addition of the glandulars in the morning.
To test if that is the case you would have to do another test while you are taking the glandulars. When things seem to be working better, you could slowly wean off the glandular to see how you cope without it or with a lower dose.
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