Creative Health Writer
Consultant to Health and Wellness Industry offers sample Men's Health Information
(PRWEB) September 2, 2004
Prostate Problems and Elevated Estrogen
By Mike Menkes copyright August 2004
Men over age 45 are surprised to learn that estrogen, a "female" hormone, is also present in their bodies. Male estrogen is produced in very small quantities, as a by-product of the testosterone conversion process. This process is regulated by an enzyme called aromatase.
Balance vs. Imbalance
Balanced levels of estrogen encourage a healthy libido, improve brain function, protect the heart and strengthen the bones. Estradiol is the most potent estrogen of a group of steroids which includes estrone and estriol. Excessive estradiol levels can lead to the suppression and reduced activity of testosterone. Typically, men's estrogen levels increase with age, and it is not uncommon for a 59 year old man to have more estrogen than a 54 year old woman!
Obesity, pesticides, nutritional deficiencies, prescription medicines and excessive alcohol intake can all raise a man's estrogen levels. When this happens, men frequently lose muscle tone and gain body fat. The end results of high estrogen for men can include obesity, an enlarged prostate, diabetes and a higher incidence of heart disease and cancer.
Prevention of Prostate Cancer
"...studies have shown a strong correlation between consumption of cruciferous vegetables and a lower risk of prostate cancer. These vegetables contain glucosinolates, which during metabolism give rise to several breakdown products, mainly indole-3-carbinol (I3C),..." Induction of apoptosis in human prostate cancer cell line, PC3, by 3,3'-diindolylmethane through the mitochondrial pathway. http://www. ncbi. nlm. nih. gov/entrez/query. fcgi? cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=15328526 (http://www. ncbi. nlm. nih. gov/entrez/query. fcgi? cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=15328526)
Natural Prostate Treatment
"It is time to revamp the prostate cancer hypothesis. Orchiectomy (removal of the testicles) provided a prostate cancer benefit not because it removed testicular testosterone but because it lowered estradiol levels.
"The two most important factors in the underlying metabolic imbalance prostate (and all hormone-dependent cancers) are estrogen dominance and nutritional imbalance. Prevent these two factors and you will prevent the cancer. If the cancer is already underway, correcting the estrogen dominance will slow the cancer growth and prolong life. " Hormone Balance for Men: What your doctor may not tell you about prostate health and natural hormone supplementation. John Lee, MD http://www. johnleemd. net (http://www. johnleemd. net)
PSA Levels Not A Good Indicator of Cancer
"PSA level was also found to be not an especially good indicator of prostate cancer. If only PSA levels were used, 82 (17.3%) of the 473 cancers found by TRUS would have remained undetected. Moreover, among men with cancer and a PSA level of less than 4 ng/ml (usually considered a safe level), 42% of the cancers were termed minimal, 42% termed moderate, and 16% were advanced. " http://www. johnleemd. com/store/prostate_cancer. html (http://www. johnleemd. com/store/prostate_cancer. html)
Serum vs. Saliva Testing
"For reasons that escape rational thinking, conventional medicine persists in using serum tests rather than saliva tests. The results have been disastrous. When using hormone creams or gels, the hormone is absorbed through the skin and into the blood without first passing through the liver. Thus, they are essentially all absorbed in the “free” form. When given orally, they pass first through the liver and 90% of them become protein-bound. For this reason, transdermal dosing is at least 10 times more efficient than oral dosing.
"If one uses serum testing to measure the blood levels achieved by transdermal dosing, the test will fail to measure all the hormone carried by red blood cells. As a consequence, physicians are apt to greatly over-dose their patients.
"When using saliva testing, it is found that the transdermal dose of testosterone when treating someone with testosterone deficiency is only 0.25-0.5 mg in women, and 1-2 mg in men. As the New Yorker article indicated, the transdermal doses of testosterone ranged from 5 mg to 100 mg a day. The same is observed in estrogen replacement therapy – the doses are generally all greatly excessive. The same hormone that brought good health without side effects when in normal endogenous levels will bring on very bad side effects when given in grossly excessive doses.
"The problem is not the hormone, per se, the problem is the dosing." http://www. johnleemd. com/store/male_hormone. html (http://www. johnleemd. com/store/male_hormone. html)
Conclusion
Testosterone Enhancement or Estradiol Reduction?
Prior to enhancement with testosterone products, reduction of confirmed elevated estradiol levels, via saliva testing, appears to be the more logical approach. Indole-3-Carbinol has shown to be a safe, effective and inexpensive non-prescriptive course of action.
Indole-3-carbinol is a negative regulator of estrogen: Induction of apoptosis in human prostate cancer cell line, PC3, by 3,3'-diindolylmethane through the mitochondrial pathway. British Journal of Cancer. 2004 Aug 2. http://www. ncbi. nlm. nih. gov/entrez/query. fcgi? cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=15328526 (http://www. ncbi. nlm. nih. gov/entrez/query. fcgi? cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=15328526)
Mike Menkes, LMT, is a health writer, product formulator and former nutrition advisor to TAEBO's nutritional line.
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