It’s not easy being a working parent – balancing a full-time career, family life, and everything in between. That’s why Thorne has formulated trusted supplements for stressed parents to help renew a sense of balance and provide stress relief.

Juggling an endless to-do list often leaves parents tired, rushed, and stressed out. While we all experience stress in our day-to-day lives, we all do not experience stress in the same way. At Thorne, we don’t believe in a one-size-fits-all-approach to reduce stress, because different supplements for stressed parents work in different ways.

For some working parents, stress messes up the sleep cycle, zapping daily energy and leaving individuals feeling more burned out in the long run. Eventually, a lack of sleep can lead to symptoms like brain fog – a noticeable sign that your lifestyle and diet need an upgrade. For others, stress affects our mental health and the ability to focus, making it harder to complete a daily task or remember a daily responsibility.

Overall, long-term unchecked stress can have serious negative impacts on an individual’s well-being and mental health. One example is that stress often leads to unhealthy behaviors as a coping mechanism, manifesting in the form of overeating (especially junk food), skipping meals, self-medicating with alcohol, smoking, wakefulness at night, and irritability, to name a few.

Increased stress also leads to increased levels of cortisol. In turn, a consistently elevated level of cortisol can have a negative impact on the immune system, blood pressure, blood sugar, ability to lose weight, and much more.

For working parents seeking additional support to help reduce stress and regain balance, these nutritional supplements for stressed parents can help you create a self-care routine that puts your health first.

1. Ginseng Plus: Immediately elevates focus during times of stress

A botanical used for thousands of years to support well-being, ginseng has adaptogenic benefits for the brain and body. Thorne’s Ginseng Plus is formulated to support those who experience excessive stress – like working parents – with added nootropics to enhance mental clarity when you’re on the go, from the home to the office to the kids’ after-school football practice.*

Thorne’s Ginseng Plus uses Korean red ginseng roots, cultivated using sustainable growing and harvesting techniques. The result is a ginseng extract that is especially rich in rare ginsenosides, the most important compounds in ginseng for promoting vitality.* 

Caffeine-free Greek mountain tea and lion’s mane mushrooms complete this scientifically formulated supplement that immediately elevates focus after one use. When taken daily, Ginseng Plus builds the body’s resilience to stress and enhances memory, no matter how busy the family schedule gets.*

2. PharmaGABA: Acts like a brake on stress*

When the body’s nerves fire too fast, it can produce several uncomfortable symptoms, such as restlessness, irritability, and sleeplessness. Thorne’s PharmaGABA – which uses a natural source of GABA – acts like a brake to benefit stress relief.*

Studies have shown that the natural form of GABA in Thorne's PharmaGABA decreases the brain's stress related beta-waves and increases the production of alpha-waves, creating a profound sense of physical relaxation while maintaining mental focus.1 In another study, when individuals in a smoking cessation program were given PharmaGABA, they experienced a decrease in salivary cortisol.

What is GABA, exactly? It’s gamma-aminobutyric acid, and it acts as a calming neurotransmitter in the body. While many GABA supplements use synthetic GABA, Thorne’s PharmaGABA formula uses natural GABA produced via a fermentation process that utilizes Lactobacillus hilgardii, the same probiotic bacteria that is used to ferment cabbage, radishes, and other vegetables in the preparation of the traditional Korean dish known as kimchi.

Why does that matter? In an unpublished head-to-head, double-blind trial of natural PharmaGABA vs. synthetic GABA, the synthetic GABA did not demonstrate the same positive effects as naturally sourced GABA.2

3. MemoractivTM: Promotes mental focus*  

From life's biggest moments to the little things, the unique nootropic Memoractiv can help working parents stay focused. Memoractiv contains botanicals and nutrients that support cognitive function and mental focus. Ingredients such as ashwagandha, Bacopa, and Ginkgo phytosome provide support for healthy cognitive function, along with supporting creativity and motivation.* 

In addition, because many working parents spend long hours in front of blue-light emitting computer screens, Memoractiv contains Lutemax® 2020 – a clinically studied ingredient that supports eye health by enhancing the ability of the eyes to filter blue light.*

Memoractiv also acts like your morning cup of coffee because it contains a unique form of sustained-release, low-dose caffeine combined with pterostilbene to promotes alertness and concentration. The sustained-release form provides a continual low dose of caffeine throughout the day to help keep you focused and concentrating.*

4. ResveraCel®: Supports health aging and cellular energy production*

ResveraCel is Thorne’s exclusive healthy aging formula that supports cellular energy production with nicotinamide riboside (NR). NR is the precursor to the coenzyme NAD+ (nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide), an important factor in converting food into cellular fuel. Because NAD+ levels naturally decline with age, the NR in ResveraCel promotes an optimal level of NAD+, which in turn increases cellular energy production.*

ResveraCel also contains additional ingredients that promote a healthy aging process, such as resveratrol, which mimics the effect of calorie restriction by activating the sirtuin group of proteins (the proteins involved in regulating cellular processes, including the aging and death of cells).*

Quercetin phytosome also enhances sirtuin activity. Research indicates that it slows the breakdown of resveratrol in the body. Betaine provides premier support for methylation, a crucial body process that contributes to the health of the heart, blood vessels, brain, nervous system, and liver.*

Don't forget to measure your stress levels

If you are a working parent who finds it harder to stay focused during the day, or you feel more tired than usual, then you should ask yourself if these issues are related to stress. Thanks to Thorne’s at-home cortisol test, getting answers to these questions is easier than ever.

Thorne’s Stress Test measures two primary markers of stress – cortisol and DHEA. Testing to measure your cortisol and DHEA levels will give you a better understanding of how your body is managing stress, and if you need to do more to manage it effectively. You should consider testing if you:

  • Feel tired but wired
  • Can’t wake up without strong coffee
  • Crave sugar, especially late in the day
  • Get sick when you are under stress
  • Feel irritable or anxious
  • Are constantly “stressed out”

To see the stress test in action, listen to this episode of the Thorne Podcast, or read the case report of Elizabeth, a working mom with two children, and her experience taking the test and receiving personalized recommendations.

References

    1. Abdou AM, Higashiguchi S, Horie K, et al. Relaxation and immunity enhancement effects of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) administration in humans. Biofactors. 2006;26(3):201-208. doi: 10.1002/biof.5520260305. PMID: 16971751.
    2. Unpublished data provided by Pharma Foods International LTD., Kyoto, Japan.