Why Banana Bread Granola Is a Good Option for Adrenal Fatigue Sufferers

Today, it’s easy to argue that stress is everywhere. After all, stress can arise from relationships, financial issues, work, family life, and more. Allowing stress to completely take over your life can result in a significant decline in your overall health and may even cause adrenal fatigue. One of the best ways to prevent or relieve the symptoms of adrenal fatigue is by paying closer attention to what you eat, especially when it comes to snacking. It’s important to remember that what you eat should be properly nourishing your body. That’s why you need to eat foods that are packed with nutrition like this banana bread granola. It should also be noted that if you suffer from adrenal fatigue, eating banana bread in granola form is a much safer option for your adrenals than eating actual banana bread.

Importance of Snacking in Relation to Your Stress Response and Adrenal Fatigue

If you already suffer from Adrenal Fatigue Syndrome (AFS), nutritious snacks are vital to relieving many of the harmful symptoms. Small snacks in between meals can help provide your body with continuous sources of energy that will help keep your blood sugar levels more stable and prevent sugar spikes and crashes.

The best way to prevent the symptoms of adrenal fatigue from getting worse is by helping your body recover through proper sustenance and nutrition. Several functions in your body may have already become overworked. Moreover, you’re also more than likely dealing with significant hormonal imbalances.

Adrenal fatigue is a condition usually brought about by chronic stress. Your body is designed to handle stressful episodes by means of the NeuroEndoMetabolic (NEM) stress response system. The NEM stress response system is comprised of six interconnected circuits that work independently to produce the fight or flight response.

The adrenal glands—part of the hormonal circuit—are among the many organs that play a central role in the stress response. When any form of stress is detected, your adrenals immediately jump into action producing hormones such as adrenaline, norepinephrine, and the primary stress hormone cortisol. Norepinephrine and adrenaline are involved in bringing your heart rate up and making your breathing faster, and are also responsible for making sure your blood is being pumped more effectively throughout your body.

Meanwhile, cortisol is responsible regulating your heart rate and blood sugar levels, as well as maintaining proper blood vessel and heart function during times of stress. At the same time, cortisol neutralizes inflammation throughout the body by suppressing your immune system.

Typically, all functions and hormone levels return to normal the moment stress goes away. However, with chronic stress, your adrenals are forced to continue producing hormones until they can no longer meet the demands. This can result in overworked adrenals and hormonal imbalances, thereby triggering adrenal fatigue. At the same time, all other body functions relying on those hormones produced by the adrenals are also severely compromised, leading to further symptoms and stress-related illnesses.

Making sure to eat several times throughout the day can help fuel your body so your adrenal glands and other organs can also slowly regain normal function. Not only that, keeping your blood sugar levels in check can prevent hypoglycemia or low blood sugar levels since norepinephrine, adrenaline, and cortisol all play a major role in regulating your blood sugar levels.

Ideal Snack Foods for Adrenal Health

When it comes to eating a proper diet for adrenal recovery, it’s important to pay a close attention to what you put into your body. This means making sure that what you’re eating contains the vital nutrients your body needs to recover from adrenal fatigue.

For starters, it’s best to snack on a variety of nutritious whole grains that can help keep you feeling fuller for much longer throughout the day. Wholegrain snacks can provide you with a constant source of energy. Soaked raw nuts and seeds also make ideal snacks since they are easy to digest, therefore, their nutrients are more readily available for your body.

On the other hand, foods to avoid include anything that will further exhaust your adrenal glands, including processed foods, sugary snacks, and beverages with caffeine or alcohol. At the same time, you should be wary of eating foods that contain high levels of potassium.

This is because if you’re suffering from adrenal fatigue, your adrenal glands are weak leading to significantly lower production of aldosterone—the hormone responsible for regulating the fluids in your body. When aldosterone is in short supply, this can lead to an abnormal potassium and sodium balance in your body, which in turn, affects your body’s ability to retain water.

Critical Concerns About Bananas and Adrenal Fatigue

Bananas are particularly high in potassium and that’s why limiting your banana intake is advised if you’re suffering from adrenal fatigue.

One of the ways to effectively reduce the potassium content in bananas is by boiling them. According to a study conducted by researchers from the Makerere University College of Health Sciences in Uganda, this method is more effective in removing potassium than soaking bananas in cold water.

You could also limit your intake of bananas by taking just one piece and spreading it onto an entire batch of healthy granola.

Adrenal-Healthy Banana Bread Granola Recipes

Now that you know why it’s better to have banana bread as granola instead of plain banana bread, let’s learn how to make it from scratch.

Before you start making your first batch, keep in mind that it’s possible to have an allergy to bananas, oats, or any of the other granola ingredients. If you’re worried this may be the case for you, it’s best to consult with your physician first before introducing anything new into your diet.

That being said, here are a few adrenal healthy banana bread granola recipes you can try at home.

Healthy Banana Bread Granola

Ingredients A:

• 2 cups rolled oats
• ¼ cup unroasted/unsalted sunflower seeds
• ¼ cup ground flaxseed
• ½ cup chopped raw walnuts
• ½ tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp salt

Ingredients B:

• 1 medium ripe banana mashed
• 2 tbsp organic honey
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 large egg white

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.
2. Mix Ingredients A in a bowl and Ingredients B in another bowl.
3. Combine everything well then pour the complete mixture onto a large baking tray.
4. Spread the granola evenly and bake for around 25 minutes.
5. Let cool completely before storing.

Vegan Banana Bread Granola

Ingredients A:

• 3 cups rolled oats
• ½ cup pecans
• ½ cup walnuts
• 1 tbsp flaxseed
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tbsp cinnamon

Ingredients B:

• 1 medium banana mashed

Ingredients C:

• 1/3 cup agave syrup
• ¼ cup coconut oil

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to around 350 degrees F.
2. Mix Ingredients A in a bowl and set aside.
3. Heat Ingredients C in a small saucepan over medium to low heat until the mixture becomes runny. Take the mixture off the heat and add Ingredients B.
4. Mix all of the ingredients together and transfer to a baking sheet.
5. Spread the mixture evenly and bake for around 25 minutes. Let cool before storing.

Feel free to try any of these recipes for banana bread granola or you could also try other variations of these recipes by making some easy substitutions. For starters, try mixing in other nuts and seeds such as pistachios, Brazil nuts, almonds, cashews, hazelnuts, and sesame seeds. You could also substitute buckwheat flakes or quinoa instead of rolled oats.