Acupuncture and Functional Testing – Part 2 Thyroid & Adrenal Tests
Thyroid and adrenal problems are almost epidemic in our modern society. I frequently see clients with ‘burnout’, extreme fatigue and underactive thyroid function – many of them are taking thyroid medications and still feel awful! Adrenal fatigue is not really recognised by doctors: they only consider adrenal problems if you suffer Addison’s disease, a condition causing little or no cortisol (one of your main adrenal hormones) to be produced. In reality, chronic stress is pushing many people onto the spectrum of adrenal fatigue and causing adrenal hormone imbalance. How do adrenal hormones work? Adrenal glands produce adrenaline – your ‘fight or flight’ hormone – and cortisol. Cortisol levels are naturally high first thing in the morning (they peak...
Acupuncture and Functional Testing – Part 1 Digestive Health
As I discussed in my previous post ‘Nutrition and Acupuncture – A Powerful Team!’ I enjoy working in collaboration with Sally Duffin, a Nutritional Therapist based in York. As part of her service she offers various functional tests to help clients discover the underlying causes of their health conditions. These tests include: Gut health tests: stool tests are helpful for examining the range and types of gut bacteria and whether overgrowth of ‘unfriendly’ microbes is contributing to symptoms. Thyroid tests Adrenal function tests Hormone balance tests Digestion is one of my key areas of specialist interest and I see many clients suffering with IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome), constipation, diarrhoea, abdominal pains, excessive wind and uncomfortable...
