Primary adrenal insufficiency is most often caused when your immune system attacks your healthy adrenal glands by mistake. Other causes may include: Cancer. Fungal infections.
The most common symptoms are fatigue, muscle weakness, loss of appetite, weight loss, and abdominal pain. Adrenal insufficiency can be caused by autoimmune disease or suddenly stopping steroid medicines used to treat other conditions, among other causes.
How do doctors treat adrenal insufficiency? Your doctor will prescribe hormone medicines to replace the hormones that your adrenal glands aren't making. You'll need higher doses during times of physical stress.
Low levels of cortisol can cause weakness, fatigue, and low blood pressure. You may have more symptoms if you have untreated Addison's disease or damaged adrenal glands due to severe stress, such as from a car accident or an infection. These symptoms include sudden dizziness, vomiting, and even loss of consciousness.
Too little cortisol may be due to a problem in the pituitary gland or the adrenal gland (Addison's disease). The onset of symptoms is often very gradual. Symptoms may include fatigue, dizziness (especially upon standing), weight loss, muscle weakness, mood changes and the darkening of regions of the skin.
If Addison's disease is left untreated, the levels of hormones produced by the adrenal gland gradually decrease in the body. This causes your symptoms to get progressively worse and eventually lead to a life-threatening situation called an adrenal or Addisonian crisis.
Although there's no cure, primary adrenal insufficiency can be managed effectively by taking cortisol and aldosterone replacement hormones, with the goal of stabilizing hormone levels and relieving signs and symptoms.
The adrenal fatigue theory suggests that prolonged exposure to stress could drain the adrenals leading to a low cortisol state. The adrenal depletion would cause brain fog, low energy, depressive mood, salt and sweet cravings, lightheadedness, and other vague symptoms.
Typically, the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal axis recovers after cessation of glucocorticoids, but the timing of recovery can be variable and can take anywhere from 6–12 months.
These may include mental or emotional stress, dehydration, infection or not taking your glucocorticoid medications as prescribed by your healthcare provider. Surgery and pregnancy may trigger an adrenal insufficiency.
Addison's disease can develop if your immune system attacks your adrenal glands and severely damages your adrenal cortex. When 90% of the adrenal cortex is destroyed, your adrenal glands will not be able to produce enough of the steroid hormones cortisol and aldosterone.
Specifically, vitamins such as magnesium, B and C can help prevent adrenal fatigue. Magnesium aids in calming and supporting the nervous system, improving your quality of sleep, reducing stress levels, and boosting energy production.
Adrenal insufficiency can be diagnosed by blood tests and special stimulation tests that show inadequate levels of adrenal hormones. Proponents of the adrenal fatigue diagnosis claim this is a mild form of adrenal insufficiency caused by chronic stress.
Treatment is tailored to the underlying cause and, in most cases, lifelong treatment is necessary. With appropriate treatment and a few added precautions, people with adrenal insufficiency can lead active lives and have a normal life expectancy.
ACTH Stimulation Test This is the most specific test for diagnosing adrenal insufficiency. Blood cortisol levels are measured before and after a synthetic form of adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH), a hormone secreted from the anterior pituitary, is given by injection.
Hair loss can be caused by an imbalance in hormone levels. Cortisol is one of the hormones often identified with hair loss.
“Eating foods such as processed meats, high sugar foods, caffeine and alcohol, which provide little nutritional value, have been associated with more psychiatric symptoms and can increase cortisol levels—our primary hormone responsible for stress,” she said.
As an adrenal cancer grows, it presses on nearby organs and tissues. This may cause pain near the tumor, a feeling of fullness in the abdomen, or trouble eating because of a feeling of filling up easily.