Survival of the fittest
The word adaptogens comes from “to adapt,” to adjust. We know this from evolution: ‹Survival of the fittest› – the one who survives is the one who can adapt, who can adjust, best.
We need to be clear about one thing. We have bodies that evolved over millions of years. And our environment has changed so extremely over the last few centuries that our bodies have not yet been able to adapt to it sufficiently.
There was an industrial revolution, there was a digital revolution, and by now we have genetic engineering, cell phone radiation – there are so many things that affect our bodies that our bodies were not prepared for, that they have not yet adjusted to.
One possible result of this is that we may be a little confused and develop all kinds of illnesses. Perhaps adaptogens are one way to help the body adapt to these new environmental conditions. Because that is exactly what adaptogens do.
What are adaptogens?
Where does the term come from? – In the 1940s, there was a Russian scientist named Nikolai Lazarev who researched how soldiers could become more capable without suffering harm as a result.
He then identified several substances that possess these adaptive properties. For him, the criterion was that the plants should help the organism in a nonspecific way. They strengthen it generally. They help balance its hormone levels and strengthen its immune system; they simply help the body adapt better, perform better, have more strength, have greater endurance, recover more quickly from illness, recover more quickly from exertion, and so on.
Lazarev observed these properties in a number of plants. The best-known adaptogen is probably Korean ginseng; another, less well-known one is Siberian ginseng, and there is also Chinese schisandra, among others.
Superman through superfood?
Research lay dormant for a long time, and only in recent years has it been taken up again. This is because more and more people are looking for ways to strengthen themselves in the times we live in, when we are increasingly exposed to artificial stressors.
In American English, people often say ‹Superfood›. Of course, consuming it will not turn you into Superman overnight. As I have already said, the point is not to change everything completely overnight. Rather, it is about working on something gradually. It is something that builds up slowly.
That is why adaptogens are not like coffee, which you drink and then get a brief energy boost. Instead, they slowly and consistently provide the body with important resources, a health resource in the sense of salutogenesis.
Today, all kinds of plants are referred to as adaptogens. I think no supplement is as powerful and interesting as Pine Pollen tincture.
Not only because Pine Pollen contains all kinds of vitamins, minerals, and amino acids that are rarely found in such quantities and quality in our normal diet. But because it contains testosterone. Specifically, in the form of a phytoandrogen, that is, a purely plant-based hormone – whose bioavailability to humans is, incidentally, one of the most fascinating open questions in research. And that is exactly what makes it so interesting!
Is Pine Pollen an adaptogen?
Finally, a few words about the pine tree. Perhaps the special power of pine pollen is connected to the fact that the pine is a very ancient type of tree. Pine trees emerged around 150 million years ago, making them one of the oldest types of trees in existence.
Today, the pine tree is widespread throughout the world. There are more than one hundred different pine species, which have adapted to all kinds of climates around the globe: a living example of adaptation! Whether Pine Pollen really is an adaptogen remains for science to determine. In the meantime, I think I’ll go work out...
Learn more about the topic in our comprehensive Pine Pollen overview, and more generally in What is an adaptogen? Adaptation instead of constant stress.