Guest Post: The Dangers of Estrogen Dominance in Men

The Dangers of Estrogen Dominance in Men

by Sean Ward

Males are biologically made to produce testosterone at a higher level than women. However, thanks to our modern society, and our tendency to adopt new trends without doing scientific research on them, the balance of hormones in the body has been affected.

We’ve written this article to help people like you understand why estrogen is important, but also to understand why too much of it is bad for your health. Hopefully, you’ll learn enough by the time you’re done reading this to make a good decision for your health.

The Importance of Estrogen in The Male Body

Just because estrogen is the ‘female hormone’ doesn’t mean that men don’t need a healthy supply of it. It regulates the growth of our bones and the way we process cholesterol.

It’s important that you maintain a fine balance of estrogen, because both too much and too little of it can cause a heck of a lot of problems for men.

Problems That Arise From High Estrogen:

• Estrogen increases the body’s stress hormone, also known as cortisol. Cortisol can lead to blood sugar problems, ultimately leading to diabetes, or other weight-related problems like obesity. Too much cortisol can also increase your desire for high carb, high calorie foods that can all contribute to these problems.

• Unhealthy levels of estrogen can have negative impacts on the sex drives of both males and females. It becomes much harder for men to achieve and maintain erections if their estrogen levels are too high, which can vastly impact their sex lives.

• High levels of estrogen can cause mental issues as well. If your estrogen levels are not balanced you may find yourself more prone to mood swings, depression and mania. Estrogen imbalances can also lead to difficulties with memory.

• Other side effects of too much estrogen include excessive weight gain, chronic fatigue and headaches, as well as urinary tract infections and loss of muscle mass.

• One of the most cumbersome factors of having too much estrogen is that it increases the size of the prostate. This significant increase in prostate size affects its function and ultimately increases the chances of developing prostate cancer.

So, what should I do if I have too much estrogen?

If you’re experiencing the symptoms above, don’t rush to assume that you have problems with your estrogen levels. There may be other causes of your symptoms.

However, if you’ve tried other alternatives with no success, or have noted a huge number of these symptoms present at the same time, it might be a good idea to consider trying to balance your estrogen levels.

There are several ways you can attempt to balance your estrogen levels. 

The first thing you should do is consider the reason your estrogen levels are imbalanced. The most common cause of estrogen imbalance is natural: as men age, their bodies produce much higher levels of aromatase. 

This enzyme is responsible for converting testosterone into estrogen – a perfectly normal process.

However, as men age, the levels of which testosterone is converted into estrogen often become higher than is necessary.

While it’s a good idea for men to consume healthy amounts of dietary fats to ensure their body can produce testosterone, body fat is another matter. Excess body fat results in the production of more aromatase, leading to higher estrogens – estradiol and estrone.

Too much of it will provide you with too much testosterone conversion and too much space to store your estrogen.

There are some nutritional options that you can opt for if you seek to reduce the levels of estrogen in your body. The two main nutrients are calcium-d-glucarate and diindolylmethane.

• Calcium-d-glucarate is a nutrient with many powerful benefits that include lowering the chances of getting cancer, helping your body process protein, and most importantly for us, removing excess estrogen from the body.

• Diindolylmethane (DIM) is a substance that’s naturally produced by the body when it consumes indole-3-carbinol which is a nutrient found in many vegetables, particularly in those of the cruciferous family.

• It is possible to directly supplement DIM through supplements you can purchase at your health food store or local pharmacy, but the most effective route is allowing your body to produce its own DIM by eating a healthy diet full of cruciferous vegetables.

DIM works wonders for maintaining the balances of estrogen and testosterone both.

Another great alternative for balancing estrogen levels is to supplement with a hormone known as progesterone. Progesterone helps the human body balance its estrogen levels and ensures that you don’t have either too much or too little.

It’s important to seek your doctor’s advice before starting any supplemental regime, but it’s particularly vital for you to consult a physician before starting to supplement any hormones.

Hormones have direct and powerful functions on many of your body’s systems and they can have plenty of effects, interactions, or conflicts with other supplements or conditions you may be taking.

It’s also vital to let your doctor know if you’re taking any other supplements, medicines, and even vitamins. These can all interact with new hormonal or other supplements.

In conclusion

Estrogen is a necessary hormone for both men and women. However, it’s important to make sure that you strike a fine balance of estrogen. This problem becomes very apparent in men who have too much estrogen, developing a condition known as estrogen dominance.

Estrogen dominance is a serious problem for both genders but the effects can be debilitating for men. The symptoms are diverse and severe and can impact every area of a man’s life – particularly his sex life.

There are various solutions available for balancing estrogen levels in the male body. Most of these solutions are simple cases of supplementing with the right nutrients or eliminating the wrong nutrients.  However, it’s important to remember that consulting your doctor should take precedence over any supplementation.

Estrogen dominance is a serious problem that shouldn’t be taken lightly, and we hope we have helped you learn something today.

By Sean Ward, Founder of Naturally Boost Testosterone, a men’s health blog dedicated to providing natural ways for men to boost hormone levels. Check out www.naturally-boost-testosterone.com to learn more about Sean and his work. You can also find him on Twitter, Pinterest and Facebook.

PS: Check out my Supplements Buying Guide for Men.