I’m 40 years old. I workout 5 days a week, 1 hour - 30 minutes weights and 30 minutes cardio. My diet is paleo mon-fri, but its extremely hard to lose bodyfat.
My friend(self-acclaimed guru) say’s my Test is too low and that I should use hcg and an anti-E (Arimidex) to raise it. He stated that Hcg would double my test. Is that true? I’ve tried Dhea, but it made my breast itch, which meant estrogen overload; that was with 5mg. My urologist said there isn’t an ethical doctor alive that would prescribe T to me because my levels are average for a 40 year old. The urologist also stated Dex wouldn’t do much if your T isn’t off the charts. Based on my blood work, is it my thyroid or my low T that’s the issue? Is Hcg a viable option long-term?
[quote]btdt wrote:
My urologist said there isn’t an ethical doctor alive that would prescribe T to me because my levels are average for a 40 year old. The urologist also stated Dex wouldn’t do much if your T isn’t off the charts. [/quote]
Fire your urologist and find someone who knows what they’re talking about. There are plenty of docs willing to raise a 40 year old males test to youthful levels (of which 433 is not). Also Adex addresses estradiol issues, not T issues. While the two are related, he is way off base in his statement. I have moderate T but very high E2 and am controlling it using Adex.
Typical idiotic responses from typical idiotic doctors. I really don’t know why they are paid so much.
Your ratio of E2 to T seems off. Elevated E2, but below avg T. Do you carry any extra weight around the mid-section?
your elevated E2 could be causing the feedback loop suppressing your T production since your LH numbers look good (from what I know, which isn’t all that much).
Not sure what HCG would do given that your testicles are receiving LH already, and HCG just mimics LH.
If you took Arimidex, that would lower your E2, which should in theory bump up your natural T production assuming no other underlying issue.
I was told that free T3 should be at 3.3 to 3.9 - so it does look like your T3 numbers are a bit low but not terrible and your TSH is not that high (relative to the ideal of .5).
It is usually best to try the least invasive option and then scale up from there.
Have you tried taking 50mg Zinc, 100mg Resveratrol, or other supplements that are thought to control or impact aromatase of T to E? some people see big bumps in T just be controlling E. lef.org has a great article just search for male hormone replacement.
It could also be a cortisol issue, lack of Vitamin D or ferritin/iron. Have you had those tested? You may want to try supplementing Vit D which 90-95% of people seem to need regardless of other issues they have.
VT is right. With your SHBG being that high your bio T is in the toilet. This is something we would consider to apply trt to due to the low bio T as well as the symptoms. Being a guy at your age screwing around with finding the cause would complement the treatment but probably would not resolve it. Looking at thyroid and adrenal would be complimentary to intiating TRT.
The main issue is to get you feeling better and to see where your other levels fall when you get properly tuned up. SOme times regulating T in older men kicks thyroid on for some reason. Vitamin D is important as it can help make HCG work better, but in your case TRT is the route that one should go along with balancing out other hormones along the way. You defintely have thyroid issues at hand that need to be addressed, but hitting TRT may resolve these issues or make your thyroid go lower. Time will tell. If you need a good HRT dr feel free to PM me with details.