What Are "Adaptogens" Anyway? (And Other Questions Answered)

Today’s almonds have been activated by:

⏰ IN A RUSH?

Today’s 30-Second Summary

If you don’t have time to read the whole email today, here are some key takeaways:

• Lower-back pain may be more common, but if you have mid-back pain, there are things that can be done for that too!

  • See today's featured video for a three-step approach to fixing it

• Adaptogenic compounds are substances that help the body adapt to stress, by adjusting the body's natural responses.

  • Thus, adaptogenic supplements can be contrasted with tranquilizing drugs that mask stress by brute force, for example.

• If you don’t consume enough fiber now, you might not be able to include it in your diet later!

  • This is because lower fiber intake has been tied to a higher risk for later inflammatory bowel disease (which in turn, makes the gut intolerant of fiber)

• Lion’s mane mushroom is a supplement we’ve featured before, for its benefits to neuron healing and regrowth, in the peripheral and central nervous system.

  • Today’s sponsor, Native Path, have launched a new product, Native Mind, that brings us high quality lion’s mane, along with three other herbal ingredients to support it (and nothing else added!)

Read on to learn about these things and more…

👀 WATCH AND LEARN

Exercises Against Mid-Back Pain

Today's video covers rehab exercises for mid back pain, which can be associated with a number of factors including stress, repetitive work, trauma and/or sustained postures:

Click Here If The Embedded Video Doesn’t Load Automatically!

Three-step restorative exercise menu:

• 0:43 | Myofascial release

• 2:16 | Mobilization

• 5:59 | Strengthening

❓ MAIN FEATURE

It’s Q&A Day at 10almonds!

Have a question or a request? You can always hit “reply” to any of our emails, or use the feedback widget at the bottom!

In cases where we’ve already covered something, we might link to what we wrote before, but will always be happy to revisit any of our topics again in the future too—there’s always more to say!

As ever: if the question/request can be answered briefly, we’ll do it here in our Q&A Thursday edition. If not, we’ll make a main feature of it shortly afterwards!

So, no question/request too big or small 😎

❝I tried to use your calculator for heart health, and was unable to enter in my height or weight. Is there another way to calculate? Why will that field not populate?❞

(this is in reference to yesterday's main feature "How Are You, Really? And How Old Is Your Heart?")

How strange! We tested it in several desktop browsers and several mobile browsers, and were unable to find any version that didn't work. That includes switching between metric and imperial units, per preference; both appear to work fine. Do be aware that it'll only take numerical imput, though.

Did anyone else have this problem? Let us know! (You can reply to this email, or use the handy feedback widget at the bototm)

❝I may have missed it, but how much black pepper provides benefits?❞

So, for any new subscribers joining us today, this is about two recent main features:

• Black Pepper's Impressive Anti-Cancer Arsenal

• Our Top 5 Spices: How Much Is Enough For Benefits?

As for a daily dosage of black pepper, it varies depending on the benefit you're looking for, but:

• 5–20mg of piperine is the dosage range used in most scientific studies we looked at

• 10mg is a very common dosage found in many popular supplements

• That's the mass of piperine though, so if taking it as actual black pepper rather than as an extract, ½ teaspoon is considered sufficient to enjoy benefits.

❝I loved the health benefits of pepper. I do not like pepper. Where can I get it as a supplement?❞

You can simply buy whole black peppercorns and take a few with water as though they were tablets. Your stomach acid will do the rest. Black pepper is also good for digestion, so taking it with a meal is best.

You can buy piperine (black pepper extract) by itself as a supplement in powder form, but if you don't like black pepper, you will probably not like this powder either. We couldn't find it readily in capsule form.

You can buy piperine (black pepper extract) as an adjunct to other supplements, with perhaps the most common/popular being turmeric capsules that also contain 10mg (or more) piperine per capsule. Shop around if you like, but here's one that has 15mg piperine* per capsule, for example.

*They call it "Bioperine®" but that is literally just piperine. Same goes if you see "Absorbagen™", it's still just piperine.

❝What do you mean when you say that something is adaptogenic?❞

Simple version: it means it helps the body adapt to stress, by adjusting the body's natural responses. Thus, adaptogenic supplements can be contrasted with tranquilizing drugs that mask stress by brute force, for example.

Technical version: adaptogenic activity refers to improving physiological stress resilience, such as by moderating and modulating hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis signaling, and/or by regulating levels of endogenic compounds involved in the cellular stress response.

Read more (technical version):

Effects of Adaptogens on the Central Nervous System and the Molecular Mechanisms Associated with Their Stress-Protective Activity

Read more (simple version):

European Medicines Agency's Reflection Paper On The Adaptogenic Concept

Enjoy!

📊 POLL

We turn the tables and ask you a question…

We’ll then talk about this tomorrow:

❤️ OUR SPONSORS MAKE THIS PUBLICATION POSSIBLE

Feel like your memory isn't as sharp as it used to be?

At 10almonds we've talked before about the benefits of lion's mane mushroom for nerve healing and regrowth, and yes, that goes for the CNS too. In other words:

It doesn't just help slow cognitive decline, it can help actively rejuvenate the brain.

Just one problem: it probably doesn't grow in your garden, and who knows what is a good source online? We do.

NativePath have as their "main thing" a policy of providing high-quality natural ingredients with very little (if anything) else added.

In this case, their Native Mind Organic Adaptogen drink has only four ingredients:

• Organic lion's mane mushroom (for cognitive health, immunity, and anti-inflammation)

• Organic rosehip fruit powder (for immunity, skin health, and healthy cholesterol levels)

• Organic rhodiola rosea root extract (for energy, mood uplift, and physical endurance)

• Organic peppermint powder (against nausea, for digestion, and also for flavor!)

*Use this to enjoy 52% off, and free shipping!

Please do visit our sponsors—they help keep 10almonds free

🌏 AROUND THE WEB

What’s happening in the health world…

• Lower fiber intake tied to higher risk for later inflammatory bowel disease

• GABA-modulating treatments could help tackle cognitive, affective symptoms associated with depression

• Researchers explore new nonaddictive means of fighting pain

• Consuming added sugars may increase risk of kidney stones

• Peppermint oil may be new option for pain relief after open heart surgery

• Simple interview technique could help detect early signs of dementia

• What actually is palliative care? And how is it different from end-of-life care?

More to come tomorrow!

📖 ONE-MINUTE BOOK REVIEW

Stolen Focus: Why You Can't Pay Attention, And How To Think Deeply Again – by Johann Hari

Having trouble concentrating for long periods? It’s not just a matter of getting older…

Johann Hari outlines twelve key ways in which our attention has not merely "wandered", so much as it has been outright stolen.

By whom? For what purpose? Obvious culprits include social media and outrage-stoking news outlets, but the problem, as Hari illustrates, goes much deeper than that.

He talks about how we cannot truly multi-task, and can only switch beween tasks, at a cost. And yet, the modern world is not at all friendly to single-tasking!

• We learn about how the working world has changed, and the rise of physical and mental exhaustion that has come with it.

• We learn about the collapse of sustained reading, that started well before the modern Internet.

• We learn about factors such as dietary shifts that sap our energy too.

…and more. Twelve key things, remember.

But, it's not all doom and gloom. There are things we can do to fight back. Some are personal changes; others are societal changes to push for.

The last part of the book is given over to, essentially, a manifesto (and how-to guide) for reclaiming our attention and thinking deeply again.

Bottom line: if you struggle with maintaining attention; this is a book for you. You might want to put your phone in a drawer while you read it, though 😉

Click here to check out Stolen Focus, and reclaim yours!

Wishing you a fulfilling and relaxing day,

The 10almonds Team