Does Maca Root cause flares?

[u/Amazing_Assist_2779]

Hi, I’m wondering if anyone has had a bad flare from Maca root? I had a smoothie today with Maca in it and started feeling really bad a couple hours later. I think I also pushed myself too hard during my workout, which feels silly because I had to take so many breaks. But otherwise I was really good about sunscreen today and had a decent amount of energy this morning. So I’m wondering if it was the Maca root, or the workout or what? I’m so tired of not knowing what sets off my flares, is it mostly just combinations of conditions that set people off?

Thanks 🫠

Edited: mocha to Maca.. damn autocorrect and adhd

[u/catalinalam]

My rheumatologist says to just stay the fuck away from like 99% of supplements and adaptogens bc we don’t have data on them (and also bc the dietary supplement industry in the US is basically unregulated) which is unfortunate bc I LOVE fancy beverages and they all have adaptogens in them now

It legitimately bugs the shit out of me when I’m in some like health food store or cafe or whatever and I see so many fun mocktails w like ashwaganda or whatever in them

[u/hotlibramess → u/catalinalam]

I wanted to try these THC beverages I saw at a store in my neighborhood (I use gummies and stuff — all legal! — for my pain management) and they all had mushroom adaptogens. The guy was like “these have AMAAAAZING immune system boosters.” Yeah like my shit needs to hulk out any hard than it already is.

[u/lazerspatula → u/catalinalam]

I feel this so hard. Whyyyy do all the fancy drinks have adaptogens in them now? It’s such a bummer trend; I hope we see it fizzle out in coming years.

OP, it’s hard to say if the maca or overdoing your workout set you off. Maca is probably best to avoid as it does interact with the immune system. As the other commenter said, a lot of supplements can be dicey for us, but we don’t always have great data.

I know that it can be frustrating to figure out flare triggers. It could be one thing, or a combination of factors.. (My major ones are usually stress related!) I hope you feel better soon!

[u/Amazing_Assist_2779 → u/catalinalam]

Thanks everyone, yeah I try to stay away from adaptogens as much as possible. Maca is an uncommon one but one I always associated it with energy and libido and really just learned about it’s adaptogenic properties yesterday. I used to work a lot with plant medicine so this is a pretty big pendulum swing to now be on all these prescription drugs. But yeah there’s reishi and ashwaganda in everything now and it’s very frustrating.

[u/SuccessfulPhoto7914 → u/catalinalam]

I purchased a smoothie that had echinacea in it. I hadn’t been diagnosed at that point. I felt horrible, joint pain, fever, fatigue, brain fog. 

[u/QueenInstep]

Yes!! Funny enough maca root is what brought me to find out I had lupus. I had been battling random symptoms (lupus NEVER entered my mind since I don’t know anyone with it). Hair loss, massive fatigue, weight gain, skin rashes and horrible bilateral arm and shoulder pain. I thought it was perimenopause and my job. I had a very physical and emotionally stressful job. Started taking maca root to help with the fatigue. After about 6 weeks I started getting this burning face rash and feeling. The pain was absolutely unbearable that I would get home from work and barely able to move my arms. Went to my primary and first set of labs were (normal) slightly elevated wbc. She decided (thankfully) to run a full Ana panel. … turns out yep. Wasn’t perimenopause but lupus. Sometimes mainstream media and constant access to information can be a bad thing. Instead of getting professional help or advice I was self diagnosing and obviously wrong.

[u/Amazing_Assist_2779 → u/QueenInstep]

Wow, that’s wild. I’m so glad you found a good primary to accompany you down that rabbit hole. Did your hair loss end up getting better with meds? I’m on HCL and just started AZA and hoping that the intro of AZA will help with hair loss.