If someone is really burnt out in terms of adrenal fatigue would Maca be a good idea?
I especially need motivation + ability to experience pleasure. Any distinct effects on inflammation or blood circulation?
Maca helped me out with both motivation and anhedonia, but it also caused sleepiness. It's weird because Maca is supposed to increase energy and many people take it for just that. Another weird side effect I noticed is puffy nipples, almost like gyno. My nipples actually started protruding from my body and looked like I was developing man boobs. I was really worried about this so I stopped taking it. Now whenever I try taking Maca I notice the same change in my nipples starting on the second day.
Maca supposedly doesn't alter testosterone nor estradiol but could contain estrogen agonists that only act on specific parts of the body, like the nipples. Otherwise testosterone would decrease because estrogenic compounds decrease LH and FSH and Maca doesn't change those.
In terms of its mechanism of action, I think the two most important things Maca does is increase dopamine and norepinephrine and inhibit FAAH, which increases endogenous cannabinoids.
Maca has been consumed as a medical food in Peru for thousands of years, and exerts anxiolytic and antidepressant effects. Our present study aimed to evaluate the behavior and anatomical and biochemical effects of petroleum ether extract from maca (ME) in the chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) model of depression in mice. Three different doses of maca extract (125, 250, and 500 mg/kg) were orally administrated in the six-week CUMS procedure. Fluoxetine (10 mg/kg) was used as a positive control drug. Maca extract (250 and 500 mg/kg) significantly decreased the duration of immobility time in the tail suspension test. After treatment with maca extract (250 and 500 mg/kg), the granule cell layer in the dentate gyrus appeared thicker. Maca extract (250 and 500 mg/kg) also induced a significant reduction in corticosterone levels in mouse serum.
In mouse brain tissue, after six weeks of treatment, noradrenaline and dopamine levels were increased by maca extract, and the activity of reactive oxygen species was significantly inhibited. Serotonin levels were not significantly altered. These results demonstrated that maca extract (250 and 500 mg/kg) showed antidepressant-like effects and was related to the activation of both noradrenergic and dopaminergic systems, as well as attenuation of oxidative stress in mouse brain.
These results suggest the potential application of macamides isolated from Maca as FAAH inhibitors, as they might act on the central nervous system to provide analgesic, anti-inflammatory, or neuroprotective effects, by modulating the release of neurotransmitters.
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