Optimal estrogen levels are very important for mood, bone health, sex drive and function in both men and women
Benefits of optimal levels
- Keeps skin smooth and unwrinkled
- Prevents excessive hair growth
- Keeps the vagina moist
- Improves sexual desire
- Improves physical endurance
- Improves mood
- Keeps the eyes and mouth moist
- Increases happiness, enthusiasm, and zeal for life
- Helps prevent depression
- Prevents menstruation related migraines
- Reduces the risk of heart disease
- Helps prevent osteoporosis
- Improves brain health
- Improves joint health
- Supports a healthy immune system.
Symptoms of estrogen dominance for women
- Bloating and unexplained weight gain
- Swelling and tenderness in your breasts
- Fibrocystic lumps in your breasts, or breast cancer
- Decreased sex drive
- Irregular menstrual periods
- Increases symptoms of PMS
- Mood swings (irritability, depression, anxiety)
- Headaches
- Excessive acne
Symptoms of estrogen dominance for men
- Mood swings
- Acne
- Poor sex drive and function
- Excess body fat in the pecs, stomach, and lower body
- Difficulty building muscle
- Difficulty losing stubborn fat
Symptoms of low Estrogen for women
- Sex is painful due to lack of vaginal lubrication
- Increased urinary tract infections
- Irregular or absent periods
- Mood swings
- Hot Flashes
- Breast tenderness
- Headaches
- Depression
- Feelings of being discouraged
- Hair loss on the top of the head
- Wrinkles around the eyes and mouth
- Breasts will shrink or sag
- Loss of curves (Increase in estrone which takes away fat from the hips and moves to the stomach)
- Vaginal dryness
- Low sex drive and no desire to love
- Excessive fatigue
Symptoms of low Estrogen for men
- Abysmal sex drive and function
- Joint pain
- Depression
- Fatigue
- Shrinkage (No not referring to laundry)
Improving estrogen balance
- EC contains ingredients that block the conversion of testosterone to estrogen and improve the ratio of good to bad estrogens. Supports liver health and liver detox as well. EC info here
- Consume turmeric, green tea, cruciferous vegetables, vegetables, flaxseeds, hemp seeds,
- DIM improves the ratio of good to bad estrogens after testosterone has been converted to estrogen. It does not lower overall estrogen effectively and is not an ideal estrogen blocker.
- Calcium D-glucarate helps the liver clear out toxins and excess estrogens and mitigates reabsorption. 200mg to 500mg at bedtime.
- Kelp is high in iodine and helps improve levels of estriol the safest and healthiest estrogen
- Progesterone helps balance estrogen levels and addresses estrogen dominance
- Vitex is useful for women with PMS symptoms as it increases progesterone helps lower excess estrogen
- Alcohol consumption converts testosterone into estrogen
- Too much coffee increases harmful estrogen metabolites 4 and 16 hydroxyestrone. Avoid consuming more than five cups per day.
- Take 1-6mg of melatonin before bedtime to lower night time production of estrone
Reference Ranges
Estradiol
Men
7.6 to 42.6 pg/ml, ideal is 20-30 pg/ml
Women
Follicular phase 12.5 to 166 pg/ml
Ovulation phase 85.8 to 498 pg/ml
Luteal phase 43.8 to 211 pg/ml
Post menopause 5.0 to 54.7 pg/ml
Estrone
Men
less than 60pg/ml
Women
less than 200pg/ml
Sources
Dr. Nick Delgado lecture on estrogen dominance
The Hormone solution, Dr. Thierry Hertoghe
Traumatic Brain Injury, Dr. Mark Gordon
