Avocado-The Stress Busting Fruit!

Ever get the feeling that life just kind of takes over? Well that's what the last couple of months have been like for me - lots of surprising adventures - and with all the excitement comes a bit of stress. Although the kind of stress I'm referring to is positive, it still takes a toll on our health.

When we are stressed, two little glands - the adrenal glands - are greatly affected. The adrenal glands are small organs that sit on top of each kidney. These glands are very responsive to any kind of physical, mental and/or emotional stress. So whether we are feeling anxiety, pain, fear, frustration or anger - these powerful little glands are stimulated to secrete hormones called adrenaline & cortisol. These stress hormones are also known "flight or fight' hormones.

From an evolutionary stand, short-term release of flight or fight hormones is extremely healthy. In fact, we need them to survive. For example, back in our hunting and gathering days when we were suddenly confronted by a ferocious bear, we needed these stress hormones to give us an extra boost of energy to escape. The adrenaline caused our hearts to beat faster so that glucose could be carried to our muscles to be used as energy to run faster, while at the same time our breathing would increase to supply oxygen to our brain so we could plan the best route to safety. Once we were out of danger, these hormones were no longer needed and stopped being secreted.

In today's fast-paced society stress in unavoidable. We are constantly bombarded with daily stressors - financial pressures, deadlines, traffic jams and the like. Then add to this mix, living with a chronic disability or health condition and the pain, social, physical & attitudinal barriers that often go with them and you have another source of constant stress.

The potential problem for people with disabilities is that chronic stress puts our body's into a constant 'fight or flight' mode. This in turn can cause these two little adrenal glands to become overworked, undernourished & exhausted. Eventually, this can lead to our adrenal glands becoming under-active, which makes us vulnerable to a host of other health problems such as;
* fatigue
* headaches
* recurrent infections
* weakened thyroid gland
* weakened immune system
* increased the risk of disease such as high blood pressure, diabetes and cancer

Therefore, we must ensure that we are getting the essential nutrients needed in our diet to keep our adrenal glands healthy. So what are they? B-vitamins and Vitamin C are certainly the most important, as they are necessary for adrenal function. Furthermore, these vitamins are depleted when we are under stress. Potassium is another key nutrient that helps restore adrenal function.

Avocado, a creamy, rich fruit that is abundant in the Spring and Summer, is a great adrenal booster! It includes all of these essential adrenal nutrients and so much more, including high fibre and healthy fat!

So start slicing this stress busting fruit in your sandwiches or salads, make a delicious guacamole dip, or create a hearty Smoothie by blending it with 2 cups of apple juice.

And remember, next time life seems to be spinning out of control, sit back and enjoy an avocado and just feel your stress melt away.