We see a lot of people talking about drinking to control our cortisol. Is this a short-lived new trend?
Catherine Labonté
On social networks, Internet users extol the supposed merits of “adrenal cocktails”, also called “cortisol cocktails”. These are non-alcoholic drinks which are attributed the virtue of “regulating cortisol levels”. Cortisol – the stress hormone – is secreted by the adrenal glands. A few minutes after the adrenaline rush, it invades the body to help maintain an energy level high enough to escape or fight the stressor.
Rest assured: these cocktails do not contain cortisol, but rather a series of ingredients that vary greatly from one publication to another. There are cocktails that you make yourself, generally combining citrus juice (for vitamin C), coconut milk (for potassium) and salt. Some add cream of tartar, collagen or even magnesium.
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PHOTO TAKEN FROM THE INSTAGRAM ACCOUNT @GINABEEG
An influencer gives credit to the powder she sells.
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PHOTO TAKEN FROM THE TIKTOK ACCOUNT @CORTISOLMOM
An influencer claims to have lost 30 pounds thanks to a powder that “regulates” cortisol.
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PHOTO FROM THE TIKTOK ACCOUNT @LIV.INGWELL
An influencer extols the merits of a powder.
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PHOTO FROM THE TIKTOK ACCOUNT @MEAGANMUSES
An influencer extols the merits of a powder supposed to “reduce” cortisol.
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PHOTO FROM THE TIKTOK ACCOUNT @EBBYMOYER
An Internet user offers her own recipe, based on natural ingredients.
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PHOTO FROM THE TIKTOK ACCOUNT @MEGANSCOTTHEALTHCOACH
The three basic ingredients of the homemade cortisol cocktail recipe
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Influencers also promote commercial cocktails, made up of powders to dissolve in water, such as Happy Juice, sold at $164 for 30 servings. According to the website of the American company that markets them, these powders contain fruit and plant extracts, probiotics and prebiotics. “It’s clinically proven to reduce your tension, your anxiety, your stress,” promises Gina Beeg on TikTok, who assures that her cocktail also helps to manage your emotions, control your sugar level, sleep better and even lose weight. his “cortisol belly”.
Some argue that their cocktail increases cortisol levels, others that it decreases it, but most use vague terms (like supporting and balancing) and claim that these cocktails would invigorate “tired” adrenal glands.
” Anything “
At our request, researcher Sonia Lupien, director of the Center for the Study of Human Stress, watched a series of these TikTok videos. His verdict? “It’s nonsense,” she said, sighing. There is no basis for anything I saw. »
The origin of this trend dates back to the 1990s. Studies concluded that patients suffering from professional burnout or chronic fatigue did not produce enough cortisol. Clinicians said that it was therefore necessary to restore hormonal levels to regain balance, explains Sonia Lupien. From this emerged the concept of “adrenal fatigue” – a pseudoscientific term.
PHOTO ROBERT SKINNER, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Sonia Lupien, director of the Center for Studies on Human Stress at the University Institute of Mental Health of Montreal and full professor in the department of psychiatry at the University of Montreal
But there are two problems with this. First of all, your cocktail won’t increase cortisol, that’s for sure. And second, adrenal fatigue is not a medical diagnosis. These are people who got up one morning, who called it that, and who started selling anything.
Sonia Lupien
Hormonal systems are “extremely complex” systems, emphasizes Sonia Lupien. “It’s not as simple as: ‘you don’t have enough, I’ll give you some’,” summarizes the researcher. “And every time someone tells you that a product treats more than one thing – anxiety, depression, diabetes, I lost 30 pounds, it sure as hell isn’t true,” adds Sonia Lupien, who emphasizes that these problems often have physiological bases that are the opposite.
The “cortisol belly” exists. In times of chronic stress, the body stores abdominal fat, because it is easily accessible in the event of threat, explains Sonia Lupien, who finds it hilarious that a “cortisol cocktail” is presented as THE solution to this problem. “The last thing you want, when you have a cortisol belly, is to have cortisol administered to you! »
If we had to drink orange juice, coconut milk or all kinds of supplements to stress or distress, “we would never have survived the mammoths”, summarizes the researcher, who wants greater supervision of this misleading content .
Easy solution
In the PubMed search engine, we find studies that have measured the association between stress and anxiety (self-reported) and the intake of different minerals, plants or vitamins. This literature is not without interest, but these are small-scale studies, which may have biases, and whose results and parameters vary, explains Karine Paiement, dietitian-nutritionist and doctoral student in kinesiology at the University from Montreal.
PHOTO ALAIN ROBERGE, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Karine Paiement, dietitian-nutritionist and doctoral student in kinesiology at the University of Montreal
When we want to make more general recommendations, we want a lot of studies that come to a similar conclusion. We do not have enough data to conclude that this type of cocktail has an effect in reducing stress.
Karine Payment
The popularity of these cocktails demonstrates one thing: people are looking for ways to regulate their stress, and it’s quicker to down a cocktail than to take the time to meditate, take active breaks at work, cooking meals and eating them surrounded by people you love, or even looking for the source of your stress, summarizes Karine Paiement. “It’s the set of lifestyle habits that count,” she recalls.
For people who want to de-stress, Sonia Lupien has advice: go for a jog or a brisk walk around the block or – better – in a green space. “It’s going to have a bigger impact than your cocktail of stupidity that the lady is going to sell you,” she concludes.