Estrogen dominance is a major hormonal problem for women and is now being identified as a hormonal problem for men as well. Most people have excess levels of estrogen that are created by various metabolic processes. These harmful estrogens accelerate the aging process; worsen prostate disorders, hair loss and sexual dysfunction.
Fatty tissues composed of adipose cells loaded with aromatase enzymes that convert testosterone to estrogen and excess estrogen in the blood can cause a major imbalance of estrogens as compared to testosterone for many men and women. Excessive levels of unmetabolized estrogen (Estradiol, Estrone and 16 alpha hydroxyestrone ?16OHE can be measured by a simple urine test) in your blood and tissues cause you to gain fat, lose muscle, and can also affect sexual performance and/or enjoyment.
Fat cells store large quantities of aromatase, an enzyme that creates estrogen. The higher your percentage of body fat, the more estrogen you may produce, causing you to create more fat cells, which in turn creates more estrogen, and so on. In addition, this potent form of estrogen signals the pituitary gland and the male testes to secrete less luteinizing hormone (LH), significantly slowing testosterone production.
Worse yet, the presence of high levels of estrogen increases the production of a protein called “sex hormone binding globulin” or SHBG, which competes with testosterone at the actual receptor sites, rendering testosterone literally impotent. Estrogen causes the liver to produce more of the carrier proteins that bind up testosterone so that there is less free, unbound testosterone. Free testosterone is the only active form of testosterone because it can easily cross into the brain, muscles, sex organs, and fat cells.
Free testosterone makes up only 2% of the total testosterone in men and less in women. Low levels of free testosterone in men increases body fat, reduces sex drive, worsens depression, and can cause erectile dysfunction. This becomes a vicious cycle because depressed men have poor self-esteem, become stressed, eat more, gain more weight and decrease their initiation of sex with their partner.
Premature aging in men is called Andropause associated with depressed male hormones. Excessive levels of estrogen is the main culprit in Andropause and is the body?s main signal to increase the production of binding proteins (SHBG), causing a further deficit of free testosterone.
Excessive levels of estrogen in men occurs under the following circumstances: obesity, excessive alcohol use, smoking, and exposure to xeno-estrogens (pesticides in the environment). Pesticides are most concentrated in meats and dairy products that are loaded with chemicals that mimic estrogens.
All of these factors that worsen the ratio of testosterone allowing estrogen to dominate can accelerate premature aging and health decline which could include: hair loss. Some studies suggest that even hair loss and baldness may be associated with high-fat diets that stimulate the overproduction of testosterone, which is converted to bad estrogen. DHT often sited as the bad guy in hair loss is only part of the picture. In fact, testosterone actually can assist or enhance hair growth on top of the head provided the estrogen levels are management. In the ideal situation, Testosterone is in the highest concentration, followed by DHT, which might make up close to ? to 1/3 the total androgen load, and estrogen will make up the lowest portion of concentration. However, when estrogen increases too high, the testosterone receptors are blocked by the estrogen, and testosterone will be crowded out. This leaves the door open for DHT to take the dominate position. An androgen must be present for a man to be a man. In this case you don?t want it to be DHT, it must be testosterone, with estrogen brought back down to safe levels.
Over half of all men past the age of fifty have enlarged prostates, which can be signaled by hesitancy at the start of urination, increased frequency and decreased force and flow of urination. In a study to determine the cause of impotency in men done at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), it was found that impotency was mainly due to high estrogen levels. According to another study done on 320 men in New England, men who had been surgically treated for severely enlarged prostates had higher estrogen levels and lower testosterone levels than men with normal prostate glands.
In a Japanese study, Dr. Suzuki and his team of researchers, reported that men with the least prostate enlargement had higher levels of testosterone! Additionally, men whose prostates were enlarged had higher levels of estrogen. The scientists in this study concluded that bad, unmetabolized estrogen levels are highly correlated with prostate size and volume. Unfortunately, the need to reduce "bad estrogen’ is the opposite of what most physicians have been taught. Many urologists are incorrectly treating patients with prostate disease by suppressing testosterone and increasing estrogen.
Understanding bad and good estrogens metabolism
Nearly 55% of sex hormone metabolism from DHEA, testosterone, estrogen, and pregnenolone eventually ends up as either a good type of estrogen metabolite called 2-hydroxyestrone (2OHE), or a bad type of estrogen metabolite called 16-alpha hydroxyestrone (16aOHE). There are over 40 estrogen metabolites (created from metabolic processes), yet because they end up in directed pathways and hydroxyestradiol eventually converts to hydroxyestrone, it is sufficient to just measure the good type (2OHE) and the bad type (16aOHE).
The presence of bad estrogens can be discovered in blood and single morning collection urine lab tests. A more comprehensive evaluation of the various estrogen metabolites is most accurately determined from a 24-hour urine collection and testing as part of an extensive panel on the major hormones. Both men and women should have their levels monitored for all of these hormones (especially estradiol and 16aOHE) if they want to avoid the complications associated with high levels of estrogen.
How To Get the Most Benefit from Testosterone without the Negative Effects from Excess Estrogen
The ideal solution in controlling estrogen dominance is to metabolize estrogen levels with natural phytochemical herbs from vegetable extracts. Diindolylmethane, which is derived from broccoli, cauliflower, kale, bok choy, brussel sprouts, etc., is considered to be the most active cruciferous substance for promoting beneficial estrogen metabolism. Diindolylmethane helps increase the ratio of “good” estrogen, which has a unique ability to bind blood proteins (SHBG), leaving greater levels of free testosterone. Diindolylmethane also dramatically decreases “bad” estrogen.
This ingredient DIM, along with Chrysin from the passion flower, when added to a liposome cream is best for athletes, bodybuilders or anyone who wants to have a lean, hard, strong body, especially men taking testosterone replacement or women taking estrogen replacement. The use of these protective products may dramatically reduce the risk of prostate cancer by up to 41% in men and the risk of breast cancer and cervical cancer in women.
Indole-3-carbinol (I3C) is another extract of vegetables that has proven to be beneficial in the metabolism of estrogens. Indole-3-carbinol in capsule form works best if there is sufficient hydrochloric acid in the stomach to convert to the active form of diindolylmethane in the body. Diindolylmethane may prove to be more effective than Indole-3-cabinol; however it is acceptable to use both.
A diet and natural herbs may prove to be safer and certainly more cost-effective than the use of drugs such as Arimidex (anastrozole). With natural methods, there appears to be reduced body inflammation and less free radical damage along with a reduction in estradiol and estrone usage. This incredible discovery has led us to encourage physicians and clients to add these important substances from phytochemicals and herbs to their patients? daily supplement and hormone regime.
A Whole Food Diet to Regulate Estrogen
A diet high in vegetables and fruit with concentrated herb extracts, in combination with an intense exercise program, can help you manage bad estrogen while making you look and feel youthful again. Many of these special phytochemicals are found naturally in raw brassica cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, kale, cabbage, brussel sprouts, cauliflower, bok choy, turnips, rutabaga, mustard and kohlrabi; however, most people do not consume the necessary two pounds of raw cruciferous vegetables a day to get the needed benefit.
We have found that a time-saving system to consume significantly more vegetables employs the use of a simple blender. We recommend that you combine the vegetables that have a mild taste, along with some tasty high-fiber fruits such as berries or pears. Use water rather than juice as your base, along with frozen fruit and vegetables to give the drink a smoothie texture. In addition, it is likely that most people will need to supplement their diets with concentrates from DIM-diindolylmethane, and other important natural phytochemicals.
Grapefruit may inhibit the liver’s ability to break down estrogen, but broccoli and cauliflower stimulate the burning off of extra estrogen, and red grape skin extract, resveratrol, improves the liver P450 system to effectively remove excess estrogen. Vegetables, like bell peppers and fruit rich in vitamin C-complex reduce the aromatase enzyme responsible for converting too much estrogen from testosterone.
More doctors are starting to ignore advertisements to use synthetic hormones by pharmaceutical companies and are instead allowing their patients the safer alternative of hormones derived from plants, wild yams, or soy products. There has been some negative press about soy products related to brain function. One study suggested a brain function decline in those using the most soy; however, in comparison to meat and animal product consumption and the high incidence of stroke that leads to dementia or loss of brain function or memory, I believe the choice of soy and vegetable products over meat is better.
DHT can help control estrogen
According to anti-aging specialist, Dr. Thierry Hertoghe: Dihydrotestosterone (DHT) needs to be in balance with testosterone. Edmond De Vroey, M.D., founder of Longevity Institute, has been using DHT gel for over 20 years, and has found that he can maintain healthy prostate and low prostate specific antigen (PSA) levels by applying it to his skin. He has also found that DHT applied directly to the skin does not convert to estrogen, which is a major benefit. Unlike most androgens or testosterone preparations, DHT decreases estrogen levels. This will allow people who tend to create too much estrogen to get the benefits of androgen therapy without the common side effects. Dr. Ron Rothenburg, a UC San Diego professor, and myself feel that sexual and strength- enhancing benefits from the use of DHT is not as pronounced as with testosterone combined with herbs that metabolize estrogens.
In a clinical study by Dr. Wang and colleagues reported in JCEM 83: 2749, 1998, it was shown that DHT improved total androgen (male sex hormones) levels while significantly decreasing the estradiol levels within 14 days. Estradiol is considered the most dominant estrogen circulating in the blood, and if elevated, it can block the benefits of testosterone. DHT cannot be aromatized into estradiol; therefore, it can provide beneficial androgen replacement for testosterone deficient men while avoiding the side effect of gynecomastia (enlarged fatty breast tissue in men). Dr. Eugene Shippen has also sited studies that prove testosterone and its more powerful derivative, DHT, can actually protect the prostate.
A study using DHT gel reported by a researcher in Germany named Schaison in 1990, showed that in patients with hypogonadism, appropriate virilization was attained, muscle mass increased and sexual function improved, without an increase in prostate size. In the Annuals Medicine, 25 1993:235, a researcher named De Lignieres found that older men age 55 to 70 years of age gained improved sexual function and a 15% decrease in prostate size over the course of two years by using DHT gel.
It is important to be sensible about your dosages of testosterone or DHT. The product you use should have a ratio of three or four parts testosterone to one part of DHT. If you use androgen replacement, be careful to watch for signs of excessive DHT levels such as oily skin, acne, excess hair growth, being too aggressive, or being overly sexed. Some bodybuilders and athletes have abused testosterone by injecting high dosages of the synthetic form, and they have been tested with levels over 2,500 ng/dl total testosterone and along with DHT levels over 1,000 ng/dl. The use of testosterone cream, gel, or a testosterone patch rotated to different hairless areas of the body, along with the concentrated source of saw palmetto, beta sistosterol, avoids the problem of excessive increase of DHT.
The real problem is high estrogen, not testosterone or DHT
A study conducted by a University of Southern California (USC) medical team found 8 out of 27 high-risk men taking the drug Proscar developed tumors within one year, despite having 67% lower DHT levels. I propose the real problem is not DHT; it is high estrogen levels in the prostate. Proscar lowers the DHT too much and can cause impotency, whereas the beta sistosterol in saw palmetto proved to be twice as effective in restoring urine flow in men with enlarged prostate, without the side effects of impotency. This is because beta sistosterol inhibits androgen receptor binding, while finasteride (Proscar) only reduces 5 alpha reductase. Even though Proscar reduces DHT concentration in the prostate by 80%, it only decreases the prostate size by 18%. Over 63% of men experience no improvement in symptoms using Proscar, even after being on the drug for a year, and over 5% of Proscar users suffer decreased libido, impotence, and ejaculatory disorders.
Testosterone Replacement Therapy to reverse aging
Aging is the most common cause of lowered testosterone levels. As men age, most develop hypogonadism, which is a male condition where the testicles aren’t able to produce enough testosterone. Women can have a similar problem since production of testosterone from the ovaries also declines with age. Men and women who are past the age of 30, and have low free and total testosterone levels, should ask their doctor about testosterone replacement therapy.
The solutions for testosterone replacement therapy includes injection, pellets, oral tablets, or cream. Injections of testosterone are one way to make up for the decline in testosterone, but this form of replacement must be monitored closely because the levels can rise too high and then drop too low. Also, people build up a tolerance to high dosage testosterone injections, so they must cycle off the injections by going completely off testosterone for 4 to 8 weeks every 6 to 12 months. This usually returns sensitivity to the benefits of testosterone. Gels, creams, and natural herbs lower estrogen and release free testosterone, mimicking the body’s needs at proper low dosages, and because of this, cycling becomes almost unnecessary when using these products.
It is important to remember that patients using testosterone injections (testosterone enanthate or cypionate) are using unnatural synthetic molecules of testosterone that have been altered by pharmaceutical companies in order to create lucrative patents. Although these unnatural, synthetic testosterones will restore male function, libido, and muscle density, they can leave metabolites, which are altered, synthetic hormones not normally found in nature. If this type of testosterone replacement is used for many years, most likely it will lead to long-term side effects.
Pellets of testosterone implanted into the abdomen or hip have been more effective than injections in maintaining steady levels with good results, but one reason you may not want the implants is that they have to be surgically inserted every 1 to 3 months. Many people do not like the discomfort of even a minor surgical procedure, so this method would be a definite inconvenience.
We suggest you avoid pills for synthetic testosterone and oral steroids because they can cause acne, excessive hair growth, elevated liver enzymes, and liver toxicity. This happens because the pill must be a strong alkaloid to get past the liver, and this has damaging long-term effects. Also, the amount of testosterone absorbed orally is so low that it requires multiple daily doses, further aggravating the toxicity problem.
The best way to take testosterone is in a cream, gel, or patch with 100 to 300 mg per gram for men, and 2 to 6 milligrams per gram for women. Your first month’s prescription might be at the higher dosage to overcome any severe deficiency. When strength, muscular mass, sex drive, energy, and mental focus return after the second or third month, you can either maintain the higher dosage or reduce the dosage just enough to sustain benefits.
High dosage testosterone (synthetic steroids) can increase the thickness of the blood because hematocrit and hemoglobin blood counts increase. Use of the cream can avoid this problem since there is rarely an increase in blood counts. Overuse of the synthetic testosterone that creates excess estrogen conversion can also cause gynecomastia (enlarged, fatty breast tissue) in men. Some men use drugs like Arimidex to reduce or block estrogen, but Arimidex is expensive and can have side effects if used long term. Too much testosterone from injections can be a problem for women as well, causing masculine side effects. It is for these reasons that testosterone is a prescription-controlled substance.
The number one reason why women can benefit from the addition of natural testosterone is to enhance sexual function and extend youth. Women who complain of fatigue, low libido, diminished well-being, bone loss, or PMS were given testosterone gel with excellent results. During a two-year period, the increase in testosterone, DHT, and estrogen helped post-menopausal women restore sexual drive, frequency of sexual fantasies, satisfaction, and pleasure.
When using the transdermal cream I developed called ?Strength Energy,? men should rub the cream into the neck, chest, crease of the arm, inner thigh, or top of the feet after showering, in the morning and before bed. Men can also rub the cream into the scrotum area, and women can rub it into the external genitalia area for maximum results. The thin skin of the genitalia area allows the absorption rate to increase by 10 times, but this should only be done two or three times a week to avoid too high of an increase in DHT. For women, the skin with the least fat closest to the blood vessels, such as the neck and the bend of the inside arm opposite the elbow, or behind the knee provide increased absorption. Quality of life can be improved within a few months when the cream is applied to various parts of the body five to seven times a week.
Your anti-aging doctor can prescribe this “natural” testosterone from a compounding pharmacy. We believe it is best to monitor levels with quarterly blood tests and or urine tests for testosterone (free unbound and total) to be sure you are in the ideal range. If you have trouble locating a physician knowledgeable in the use of natural hormones