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Are you feeling vaguely tired, anxious, maybe stressed?
Mitch Hrdlicka/Getty Images
Dont blame current events or thelooming holiday seasonyour bodys stress response system is probably out of whack.
That all sounds great, but whatareadaptogens, exactly, and do they really do all these things?
Adaptogens are natural substances, typically derived from plants, that supposedly help the body counteract and adapt tostress.
And there are reasons to question whether chemicals that combat biological stress would be universally beneficial.
Take the chaga mushroom, an adaptogen Cole says will keep skin youthful.
Other recommended adaptogens have been studied in people but havent proven particularly effective.
For the adaptogen considered the most potent and famous, Dr. Axe, this is pretty disappointing.
(Russia also apparentlytestedRhodiola on their Olympic athletes.
I guess it wasnt as effective as steroids.)
The problem is, most of these decades-old Russian studies werent carefully controlled; many arent evenavailable todayto read.
Now, therearestudies that support the idea that adaptogens affect the biological stress response.
(Interestingly, many adaptogens are antioxidants.)
But recent research suggests that this simple narrative has flaws.
Tinkering with the bodys stress response could incitecancergrowth, too.
Yet several largeclinical trialsin people haveshownthat mega-doses of antioxidants actually induce cancer growth rather than curb it.
Look, Im not saying that adaptogens cause cancer.
Wasting money can spark anxiety tooso perhaps not buying adaptogens will ease more stress than buying them.
Melinda Wenner Moyer is a science and health writer based in New York.
She regularly contributes toSlateandScientific American.you’re free to find her onTwitterandFacebook.
