AOR Ortho Adapt 637mg 120 caps. Ortho-Adapt is our premier adaptogenic formula. Includes porcine adrenal tissue and cortex to provide needed peptides and cofactors, along with Pantethine (the activated form of pantothenic acid (vitamin B5)), and botanical adaptogens. Supports the bodys ability to respond to stress with balanced, proactive energy (stage of resistance or adaptogenic phase) rather than alarm or exhaustion. Also available in a vegetarian formula.
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SUPPLEMENT FACTS:
Serving Size: 4 Capsules %DRI
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Adrenal Tissue (porcine) ............................. 250 mg *
Adrenal Cortex (porcine) ............................. 200 mg *
Vitamin C ................................................. 500 mg 555%
Pantethine ............................................... 200 mg *
Licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra)
extract (25 % glyzyrrhizin) ........................ 800 mg *
Siberian ginseng (Eleutherococcus senticosus)
extract (0.8% eleutherosides) ................... 200 mg *
Rhodiola (Rhodiola rosea) extract
(3% rosavins, 1.6% salidroside) ................. 150 mg *
Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera)
extract .................................................. 200 mg *
(2.5% withanolides, 0.1% sitoindosides)
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*Dietary Reference Intake not established.
Other ingredients: microcrystalline cellulose, cab-o-sil. Capsule: gelatin, and water.
Note: Herbal extracts will naturally vary in color from one batch to another.
AOR guarantees that no ingredients not listed on the label have been added to the product. Contains no wheat, gluten, corn, nuts, dairy, soy, eggs, fish or shellfish.
Suggested Use
Begin with one capsule daily with a meal, and increase to personal optimal level (up to four capsules daily) or as directed by a qualified health consultant.
Main Applications
As reported by literature:
Adaptogen
Adrenal Support
Source
Multi-Source.
Pregnancy / Nursing
No studies; do not take.
Cautions
Persons with high blood pressure, cholestatic liver disease, liver cirrosis, hypokalemia, hypertonia, or severe kidney disease should not take this product. May cause potassium loss with prolonged use or in combination with diuretic drugs; consult with your physician.
A good diet, regular exercise, a clean environment, and other good lifestyle habits can help keep your body healthy and thus ready for life`s challenges. And certainly, your genes and your upbringing play a big role in the way you handle the stress in your life. But science - often following clues left by the traditional medical practices of cultures living the demanding lives of hunter-gatherers or in extreme environments - has also identified key botanicals and nutrients that can help you to rise to the demands of life.
Adaptogens are substances that increase the body`s ability to dynamically shift gears when new demands are placed on us. Adaptogens mobilize our internal reserves strength, lessening the severity of the initial shock of the alarm phase which occurs as the body desperately tries to gear up to deal with a new threat. They also keep the body from overreacting to the stressor, thus avoiding, reducing, or delaying the exhaustion phase: the burnout that comes when the body`s resources are unsustainably strip-mined in response to stress. Instead, true adaptogens extend the poorly named phase of resistance, that golden zone in which the body`s energies and capacities are optimally mobilized to adapt to new challenges.
Adaptogens, then, are quite distinct from substances that address some specific threat to the body, such as chelating agents to deal with heavy metals, antioxidants to quench free radicals, or antidotes to biological poisons. Instead, adaptogens activate whole-body, nonspecific defenses, redirecting the body`s resources to provide energy for active engagement with all of life`s battles, from fighting sabre-toothed tigers, to handling long hours at work, to finding your way through grief or emotional chaos. Adaptogens must also be distinguished from substances like stimulants or steroids, which force the body down a rigidly defined metabolic path: instead, adaptogens work to enhance homeostasis, the ability of the body to adjust responsively to changes in the external environment in a way that maintains an ideal internal environment.
Orthomolecules Essential to Adaptive Response
Pantethine is the stable form of pantetheine, which is the activated form of pantothenic acid (vitamin B5). The biological purposes of pantothenic acid can only be fulfilled after your body converts it into Pantethine, which forms a key component of the critical metabolic factor coenzyme A (CoA). But unfortunately, your body`s biosynthesis of CoA can be limited by a feedback thermostat, which turns off the conversion of pantothenic acid into Pantethine as CoA levels rise - and unfortunately, in many people the thermostat is set too low, leaving you with inadequate Pantethine (and CoA) levels. Providing Pantethine directly lets you simply walk around this metabolic stonewall.
The importance of Pantethine to adaptive response lies in the essential role of CoA in the biosynthesis of key adrenal hormones involved in the body`s release of energy reserves in response to stress. People who are deficient in pantothenate rapidly develop symptoms that are all too familiar to people suffering with burnout: fatigue, listlessness, depression, headache, sleep disturbances, low immune function leading to more frequent colds and other infections, high blood pressure, and hypoglycemia.
Human and animal studies show that megadose pantothenic acid is more effective than adequate levels in both humans and animals at activating the adrenal glands and boosting adrenal hormone levels. But Pantethine is more effective than common pantothenic acid at supporting adrenal function, and can be critical if your conversion of B5 to Pantethine has been impaired or is set at a high threshold.
Vitamin C has long been known to be critical to the ability of your adrenal glands to respond to stress. Vitamin C is essential for adrenal stress hormone biosynthesis, and concentrations of vitamin C in the healthy adrenal glands are higher than in any other part of the body except the brain. When scientists subject living things to any of a wide range of stressors, one of the most well documented results is the rapid depletion of vitamin C stores, especially in the adrenal glands.
Human and animal studies show that high-dose vitamin C supplementation can help to modulate the impact of stressful conditions, preventing immune suppression and buffering the extremes of cortisol secretion.
Interestingly, studies also show that vitamin C and Pantethine work together in supporting adrenal function. For instance, animals deficient in pantothenate show disturbed vitamin C metabolism, and as the adrenals shrink they lose much of their vitamin C stores; and on the other hand, giving pantothenate-deficient animals extra vitamin C partially protects them against the ordeal.
Botanical Adaptogens
Rhodiola rosea is one well-studied adaptogen, which has received a lot of attention lately. Also known as Arctic Root or Roseroot, Rhodiola is an herb with a long history of use in the traditional medicine of Siberia, for adaptation to the rigors of life on the tundra`s of North-Central Asia. Its adaptogenic balancing properties were extensively studied in animals exposed to a wide range of stressors by scientists in the former Soviet Union; more recently, interest in the herb has jumped in the West, after several randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials documented the ability of standardized Rhodiola to enhance the body`s physical and mental work capacity and productivity under conditions of stress. Users find that Rhodiola is highly effective at helping with the psychological impact of stress, even as it enhances physical and mental endurance.
In one trial, 161 military cadets performing a 24-hour military exercise were randomized to receive either Rhodiola supplements or a dummy pill. At the beginning of the exercise, the cadets` mental performance and self-evaluated health and wellbeing were tested, and a general medical exam was performed. All groups began the study with very similar performance. At 0400 hours, the cadets took their capsules (Rhodiola or placebo), and were re-tested an hour later.
Rhodiola users experienced a pronounced anti-fatigue effect: while the placebo group was performing almost 10% sub par, the study found that cadets taking Rhodiola supplements actually experience marginally better performance than they do before the military exercise begins! There is also a tendency toward a better overall sense of health and wellbeing among subjects taking Rhodiola.
Standardized Rhodiola supplements have also been put to the test in physicians during two-week stretches on night duty and in students during final exams. These trials have confirmed the herb`s general anti-fatigue effect, showing that it improves tests of physical fitness, mental fatigue and neuromotor function under stress.
People who have tried this botanical report that they feel better on Rhodiola. The experience is described in terms of a continuous sensation of physical and mental relief from stress, and anecdotally the effect appears to be most pronounced in people who typically respond to stress with anger or feelings of helplessness. Animal studies have given us some clues to the neurochemical basis of these effects, including effects on the metabolism of the serotoninergic system, boosting brain levels of dopamine, acetylcholine, and norepinephrine, and apparently influences on the synthesis, levels, and/or activity of endorphins and enkephalins, since blocking the receptors for some of these feel-good peptides negates some of Rhodiola`s effects.
Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera), the so-called Indian ginseng, is actually not a ginseng species at all; and while it does provide powerful support against overwhelming stress, its effects are in many ways distinct from most other adaptogenic herbs. While most adaptogens primarily work by helping the body to mobilize and maintain the physiological response to stress, Ashwagandha appears to work first and foremost by reducing the stress-related excesses of the alarmed nervous system.
Several studies show that Ashwagandha is superior to Panax ginseng at helping animals and humans rise to adversity, such as forced swimming in cold water. Ashwagandha has broader effects as well. In one double-blind trial, 101 healthy men aged 50 to 59 were evaluated for various aging parameters over the course of a year. Increased red blood cell levels, greater libido, and lower erythrocyte sedimentation rate (a measure of chronic inflammation) were observed in the men who got Ashwagandha instead of the dummy pills. And remarkably, Ashwagandha prevents both over-activation and suppression of the immune system, strengthening the immune system under the yoke of immunosuppressive drugs yet protecting the body from inflammatory excesses.
Licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra) is the source of the phytochemical glycyrrhizin, which is partly converted in the intestine to the more active glycyrrhetic acid. Both glycyrrhizin and glycyrrhetic acid can activate the receptors for key adrenal hormones (mineralocorticoids and glucocorticoids) involved in mobilizing your energy reserves in response to stress. Glycyrrhetic acid also helps your body to keep these hormones in their more active forms, by inhibiting the enzymes (5-beta-reductase and 11-beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase) that degrade adrenal hormones into less active forms.
While some people can`t take this herb unless its glycyrrhizin has been removed (see cautions), the German Commission E monographs have established that for most people 200 mg of glycyrrhizin from licorice is a safe, effective dose, which helps the body to maximize the availability of the adrenal hormones necessary for the adaptogenic response.
Eleutherococcus senticosus, or Siberian ginseng, is another misnomer: as is the case with Ashwagandha, it is not a ginseng species at all. But its adaptogenic properties are, if anything, better documented than those of Panax ginseng itself. This botanical was long the juggernaut behind Soviet Olympic dominance, as well as being extensively exploited in the Soviet military and space programs. After an initial focus on Panax ginseng, Russian researchers shifted their attention to Eleutherococcus after comparative investigations and clinical experience revealed its superiority. Eleutherococcus lacks the side effects observed in some users of Panax ginseng, which overexcites some people and can ironically even cause them stress. Siberian ginseng also has a more global beneficial effect on the immune system than Panax ginseng, and its phytochemistry - and resulting benefits - is more reliable than its Panax namesake.
In a recent clinical trial, the effects of Eleutherococcus on physical performance and cellular defense were compared with those of Echinacea purpurea (using the standardized Madaus preparation approved as a drug in Germany). At the end of the study, people supplementing with Eleutherococcus enjoyed favorable changes in a variety of laboratory parameters, with no significant changes seen in the Echinacea users. The immunological tests were especially revealing - and surprising.
Eleutherococcus supplementers experienced a 16.45% increase in the maturation of their lymphocytes in response to an antigenic challenge, as compared to an almost negligible 2.29% increase in those using Echinacea. Eleutherococcus users also gained increases in their neutrophils` phagocytic activity (the engulfing and digesting foreign cells): both the number of cells engaged in phagocytosis under test conditions, and the mean number of bacteria phagocytized per neutrophil, were increased. No significant changes were seen in people supplementing with Echinacea.
Finally, on the physical performance tests, people taking Eleutherococcus supplements gained significant improvements in physical performance, increasing their VO2max by 0.26 L per minute (or 3.41 L per minute per kilogram of body mass), and the ratio of VO2max to heart rate. No significant change occurred in these parameters in the Echinacea group.
Adrenal Glandulars
Clinical experience has long endorsed the use of glandular extracts to support the activity of the target gland. Glandulars provide peptides and nutrient cofactors which are found in the gland itself when it is healthy and fully functioning, and which are required for the gland to carry out its biological functions.
Despite the widespread belief that such peptide cofactors would be destroyed by the digestive process, it`s now known the main route of absorption of amino acids is, in fact, by active transport in the form of peptides, rather than by totally breaking down proteins into individual amino acids. Evidence has also accumulated that many surprisingly large polypeptides and even proteins are directly absorbed by the gut. This is how protein allergens manage to find their way into the bloodstream, for instance. Other proteins known to be absorbed from the GI include lactoferrin (a relatively large (80 kilodalton) immune glycoprotein) and even ferritin (500 kD).
To eliminate any risk of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE/mad cow disease), adrenal glandulars may be porcine-sourced, in which case they may be absolutely guaranteed to be BSE-free. After extraction, the raw gland should be selectively pre-digested with enzymes and then subjected to ultra-filtration followed by lyophilization to preserve the integrity of the various components, and processed by a federally-inspected and -approved laboratory with expertise in handling glandular products.
Vegetarians, of course, will not use glandular extracts, but for most people needing more support for their adrenals, glandulars provide a time-tested way of providing key factors directly to the gland in a way that conventional, single nutrients or botanicals cannot.
References
Shevtsov VA, Zholus BI, Shervarly VI, et al. A randomized trial of two different doses of a SHR-5 Rhodiola rosea extract versus placebo and control of capacity for mental work. Phytomedicine. 2003 Mar; 10(2-3): 95-105.
Fidanza A. Therapeutic action of pantothenic acid. Int J Vitam Nutr Res Suppl. 1983; 24: 53-67.
Tarasov IuA, Sheibak VM, Moiseenok AG. Adrenal cortex functional activity in pantothenate deficiency and the administration of the vitamin or its derivatives. Vopr Pitan. 1985 Jul-Aug; (4): 51-4.
Bhattacharya SK, Bhattacharya A, Sairam K, Ghosal S. Anxiolytic-antidepressant activity of Withania somnifera glycowithanolides: an experimental study. Phytomedicine 2000 Dec; 7(6): 463-9.
Szolomicki J, Samochowiec L, Wojcicki J, Drozdzik M, Szolomicki S. The influence of active components of Eleutherococcus senticosus on cellular defence and physical fitness in man. Phytother Res. 2000 Feb; 14(1): 30-5.
O`Keefe MP, Scholz C, Campbell PS. Vitamin C attenuates the physiological response to stress. Book of Abstracts, 218th ACS National Meeting. 1999; 79.
Martinelli M, Abate G. The behavior of plasmatic corticotropin activity in subjects treated with high doses of a preparation of adrenal cortex extract. Minerva Med. 1970 Mar 17;61(22):1057-62.
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