Why Many Men and Women are Estrogen Dominant?
There is a silent epidemic in this country, allowing many men and women to become estrogen dominant. We are exposed to exogenous estrogen daily. It’s in the food we eat, many products we buy, plastics, creams we use...it’s getting into our blood and causing serious side effects.
Men normally have some estrogen, just as women have small amounts of testosterone. When estrogen gets too high in men or women it causes an estrogenizing effect, such as increased weight gain and especially the spare tire around the middle. It can cause fatigue, moodiness, increased emotional stress, and causes the face to look puffy. In men, prostate problems and even male breasts can occur.
Men have to have the right levels of free testosterone and minimal amounts of estrogen or they manifest the many symptoms we have discussed and many more like loss of emotional drive, a softening of their muscle mass, loss of sexual desire and function.
When you eat meat, unless it is raised organically, you’re probably consuming estrogen. Ranchers are allowed to place pellets containing estrogen into the ears of their cattle to “fatten them up.” Every time you eat a burger, steak or roast from these animals, you’re likely getting the estrogen that the animal was fed.
Industry is a major source of contaminants. Hundreds of chemicals are put into everyday products that mimic the female hormone estrogen. That is, their structures mimic or look very similar to natural substances. This allows these chemicals to trick our body, be picked up by our receptors or docking stations, and enters into our blood.
A very short list of where some of these chemicals are coming from is: detergents, shampoos, deodorants, perfumes, colognes, cosmetics, hair sprays, moisturizers, vinyl flooring, garden hoses, inflatable toys, pesticides, fertilizers and plastics, like plastic bags and water bottles.
We need to first be aware of and avoid contamination the best we can. Secondly, we need to use the nutrition - like vegetables and some fruits- that research has shown to protect us. For example, the crucifers, which include broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, and cabbage, have the best track record.
There are compounds found in cruciferous vegetables that turn the “feminizing” estrogen into a better version such as 2-hydroxyestrone. Some of the best researched are indole-3-carbinol (I3C), diindolylmethane (DIM) and sulforaphane glucosinolate. (SGS).
Studies published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute and the Journal of Endocrinology have demonstrated the ability of I3C and DIM to turn the “bad” estrogen into a neutral metabolite and assist the body in clearing excess estrogen. Over 200 publications worldwide have discussed sulforaphane and its beneficial effects.
Healthy estrogen metabolism is also very helpful to allow a better testosterone to estrogen ratio, which should be at least 4:1 in men. 8:1 would even be better for all of the good effects of testosterone in the male. Remember estrogen dominance causes increased fat in females and males. That is why farmers and ranchers use it.
Besides diet, I use several XYMOGEN products:
OncoPlex - which contains 30 mg of Sulforaphane Glucosinolate (SGS) (also called glucoraphanin) per capsule
OncoPlex ES - which contains 100 mg of Sulforaphane Glucosinolate (SGS) per capsule
TestoPlex - A synergistic blend of antioxidant-rich nutrients with green oat extract, Nettle extract, Sea Buckthorn and mungbean sprout powder. This has been found to be helpful in increasing the free testosterone by freeing up serum-bound testosterone.
I have also found the heavy metal and toxic halogen protocols helpful in hormone balance. This is a critical link to health and wellness. Please come to a Xymogen/Brimhall Seminar soon and let’s put the pieces together for YOU.
Yours in Health and Wellness,
John W Brimhall, BA, BS, DC, FIAMA, DIBAK