Dear Ed,

I think my adrenals and hypothalamus usually get fewer stressful stimuli from the peripheral nervous system, partly because I stumbled onto a low-chronic-pain regime for myself a few years back. I don't have to revert strictly to that diet except when at risk for stress.

My low chronic pain diet Avoids include:

--caffeine - stimulates nerves, dumps calcium
--"four legged" animal fats - can end up as nasty prostaglandins and arachidonic acid, which are MAJOR pain chemicals in the peripheral nervous system.
--members fo the Nightshades (tomatoes, cayenne, eggplant, tobacco) - don't know what mechanism might be, probably the alkaloids, but not everyone aches from tobacco smoke like I do!
--high acid items like spinach, pineapple,lemon juice - mechanism not known
--carbonated anything - ditto
--alcohol and sugar - overwhelm the liver metabolism, leaving stress hormones free to escape back in the bloodstream, instead of being destroyed normally

So in times of stress that lead me towards:

++Herb teas steeped for only a few minutes, if needed; eg. licorice, american ginseng, or ginger
++EFAs from evening primrose oil, flaxseed oil, canola, olive.
++multiple vitamins& minerals, including the B's, to keep up with the drain from my system.
++a variety antioxidants like garlic, quercetin that grab free radicals

So far so good. However, I am adding milk thistle to the daily repertoire, as it has a good track record of healing and protecting the liver.

And of course, learning to be pro-active in dealing with potentially stressful situations is the best.
Legend has it that the Chinese symbol for 'crisis' is a combination of the ideograms 'challenge' and 'opportunity'.

Joan, type-O