Ragland’s Adrenal Test

“In order to change we must be sick and tired of being sick and tired.” Author Unknown

In today’s high- stress world, it is not uncommon to find people with moderate to severly disrupted adrenal gland function. Since Adrenal glands are the stress glands of “fight and flight”, and since stress is such a part of daily modern life, it is easy to understand how millions of people can suffer ill health due to adrenal dysfunction.

The adrenals can overwork and underwork. Depending on the state they are in, you will experience different symptoms. Very often a person will start with their adrenals in overdrive due to stress, then burn them out into an underworking adrenal situation. But it’s not always that cut and dried, as a person might have a combination of symptoms.

Using postural test is an easy way know the integrity of the adrenal glands.

Step 1. For your baseline; take the systolic and diastolic blood pressure readings in a sitting position. It is preferable to have the cuff approximately level with the heart.

Step 2. Lie flat on your back and after several minutes take your blood pressure while you are in the supine position and record it.

Step 3. Leave the blood pressure cuff on your arm and immediately stand up. Take the blood pressure again as soon as you are standing and record it. Promptness in taking the standing pressure reading is paramount because the test is measuring a transitory event.

• Normally, the sitting to supine systolic reading will drop 6 to 10 mm from the sitting baseline.


• If the supine systolic reading increases more than 10 mm over the sitting baseline, this could be an indication of kidney issues.


• If your adrenal glands are working properly, you blood pressure (the systolic or first number) will rise of 6 to 10 mm from the supine to standing position.. If it drops five points or less, you are experiencing mild adrenal weakness. If it drops five to ten points, your adrenal glands are in worse shape. If it drops more than ten points, you are bordering adrenal failure. If it drops over 20mm it is considered chronic chronic fatigue. The greater the drop, the greater the degree of adrenal fatigue.