Estrogen: How to Balance Hormones with Proper Food & Vitamins- Thomas DeLauer
How do we balance estrogen and testosterone in our bodies and how do we know which estrogens are good or bad? You can check out more at [ Ссылка ]
Estrogens are a group of hormones present in both women and men. Functions include:
Puberty changes in women
Fertility
Plays a role in controlling cholesterol levels
Helps bone health
Affects the brain, including mood
Also affects the heart, skin and other body tissues
Affects heart and blood vessels
In males, the maturation of sperm and labido maintenance
Estrogen is produced by the ovaries, fat tissue, testis and adrenal glands. There are three kinds of estrogen:
Estradiol - the primary kind of estrogen found in women during their fertile years
Primarily produced in the ovaries, but also the placenta and adrenal glands
Excess estradiol is implicated in many diseases, such as cancers and fibroids
Found in both women and men
Estriol - the estrogen associated with pregnancy
A waste product of estrogen metabolism
Estrone - the estrogen produced postmenopause
Produced in tissues throughout the body, mainly fat and muscle tissues
Known as the weakest form of estrogen
Found in both women and men

Estrogen levels change: Throughout the month when fertile, with peak estrogen in the middle of a woman’s menstrual cycle, signalling ovulation, and the lowest levels while bleeding. Estrogen levels drop after menopause. Problems can arise when your body produces too much or too little estrogen
Too little - symptoms:
Women
Irregular periods
Mood swings
Loss of sexual desire
Trouble sleeping
Hot flashes
Headaches
Men
Excess adipose tissue around the midsection
Low sexual desire

Too little causes:
Anorexia
Extreme exercise
Medications
Hypogonadism
Post-childbirth

Too much - symptoms:
Women
Irregular periods
Weight gain
Fatigue
Low sex drive
Depression and anxiety
More intense premenstrual pain
Cysts
Men
Erectile dysfunction
Female characteristics, such as breasts
Prostate enlargement and cancer
Low sex drive
Depression
Fatigue
Weight gain

Too much causes:
Obesity
Puberty
Diabetes
Pregnancy
High blood pressure
Ovarian or adrenal gland tumors
Medications
When estrogen is broken down through aerobic metabolism, it can be broken into “good” or “bad” estrogen metabolites. The good metabolites, 2-hydroxyestrone (2-OHE), are estrogen antagonists. They have high antioxidant activity, providing protection for the heart and brain. The bad metabolites, 16-hydroxyestrone (16-OHE), are estrogen agonists. They have been implicated in causing cancer and weight gain. Therapies that increase the 2-OHE:16-OHE ratio are thought to decrease the risk for a number of estrogen-responsive cancers. Natural compounds found in food have been founds to be antiestrogenic and thus are being further explored to discover how to capture these benefits for possible cancer prevention and treatment.
DIM (Diindolylmethane)
DIM is a stable compound derived from the plant indole I3C (indole-3-carbinol) found in cruciferous vegetables.
Dietary indoles found in cruciferous veggies such as broccoli and cabbage, have been found to exhibit chemoprotective and chemotherapeutic properties against many cancers.
Its benefit has to do with hormone balancing. I3C has been found to decrease estrogen signaling and alter estrogen metabolism, leading to a reduced production of “bad” estrogen metabolites. DIM consumption has been linked to an increase in the production of the “good” estrogen metabolites and thus a resulting decrease in the production of the “bad” estrogen metabolites.
-Increases the 2-OHE:16-OHE ratio
One study on women with thyroid proliferative disease (TPD) found that supplemental DIM enhanced estrogen metabolism in such a way as to act as a dietary antiestrogenic supplement and in this way may decrease the likelihood of women to develop TPD.
DIM has other hormone balancing properties and can contribute to more balanced hormones.
-This more beneficial hormone balance can lead to a healthier metabolism
The hormonal balance influence of DIM also positively impacts testosterone. For men, this estrogen metabolism has the added benefit of freeing up testosterone in the body. Free testosterone is important for mood, energy and labido.
References:
1. What is estrogen and what does it do?
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2. Estrogen: how does estrogen work?
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3. The testes glands
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4. DIM modulates estrogen metabolism in patients with...
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5. DIM and genistein decrease the adverse effects of estrogen…
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6. All about DIM
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