Adrenal fatigue often results from chronic stress and is incredibly common. Practice a gentle yoga style to help restore function in these endocrine glands.

The adrenals are glands near the kidneys that produce numerous hormones, including the sex hormones and cortisol. Because cortisol plays a large part in how the body deals with stress, the adrenals can become fatigued when you are under significant stress.

If you have ever been under stress, you probably know that it has a negative effect on your body. But just how it affects your health is a matter of debate. Alternative health practitioners believe that chronic stress taxes the adrenal glands, creating a condition called adrenal fatigue or insufficiency.

Most conventional doctors don't believe that adrenal fatigue actually exists, according to MayoClinic.com. Many alternative practitioners, however, diagnose adrenal fatigue in people who have several non-specific symptoms, including fatigue, weight loss, body aches and skin rashes such as hives.

Adrenal fatigue is not a validated medical diagnosis, but rather a theory that has gained traction among some health-care practitioners.

Taking nutritional supplements is a common component of an adrenal fatigue recovery program. Among these supplements, bovine supplements -- consisting of extracts of dried adrenal glands derived from cows -- are ones that people with adrenal fatigue turn to quite commonly.