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Has anyone used licorice to balance cortisol? What was your experience?
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Guess I'd better research all these effects first.
EXCESSIVE ingestion of licorice may result in sodium and water retention, hypertension, hypokalemia, and suppression of the renin-aldosterone system.1 , 2
...He was admitted to our clinic to be evaluated for possible mineralocorticoid excess due to factors other than aldosterone. Further history taking, however, revealed that he had been eating 60 to 100 g of licorice candies, each weighing 2.5 g (Panda, Vaajakoski, Finland), daily for the past four to five years...
Stewart et al.4 have proposed that licorice acts by inhibiting Cortisol oxidase, a component of the widely distributed 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase system that converts Cortisol to cortisone, producing a state of apparent mineralocorticoid excess similar to that in children with 11/3-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase deficiency5
Epstein et al.9 studied several subjects with a history of chronic licorice ingestion and found that the renin-aldosterone axis was suppressed while the subjects were taking licorice, but normal function resumed within two to four months after licorice was discontinued.
Licorice-Induced Hypermineralocorticoidism
http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJM199110243251706#t=article
I have experimented with licorice to temporarily get some more energy, as I have had low numbers of cortisol in all tests . I did it as licorice blocks the break down of cortisol which makes it last longer in the body.I use a blend that has licorice sometimes, to block cortisol. Cortisol seems to have a pretty adverse effect on me.
I don't take it regularly, and don't need to. Definitely one of those things where I take it when I get a particular symptom-picture or need a little 'extra' help, rather than something I do every day. If I do try to 'up' it when I'm not feeling those symptoms, it actually makes me feel a little wors
I´m not quite sure yet as I have the CYP3A4 that slows down the metabolism of 50-60% of all drugs, including cortisone. Having this CYP should be enough to get adverse reactions if you don´t lower the dosage. If I have the SNP´s mentioned in the study as well, then I think I have to be really cautious and to get a doctor´s help with a plan for emergency.If you react badly to cortisol now, then you are likely in the subset.
We talked about how it is a cortisol blocker. Often, when something fits into the same receptor as something else, it provokes an effect that is similar to that chemical. However, the intensity of that effect may be much decreased.
If your cortisol is low, it may help by filling some cortisol receptors and provoking a gentle effect. Too much may produce the 'adrenaline crash' you're describing, [B]@The Chronicals[/B] . ME patients seem quite sensitive to small shifts that wouldn't perturb the system of a healthy person.