IGF-1/Milk/Estrogen

[dpdr]

Hey misterE

Last week I took my doctor to measure levels of DHT and Testosterone, and they have low, This means that I have high levels of Estrogen in my body ? My doctor said that is not good for man to have Testosterone levels low

 

[OverMachoGrande]

Hey misterE

Last week I took my doctor to measure levels of DHT and Testosterone, and they have low, This means that I have high levels of Estrogen in my body ? My doctor said that is not good for man to have Testosterone levels low

Q. "Does this mean that I have high levels of estrogen in my body?"
A. Not necessarily… it all depends on S.H.B.G._____if S.H.B.G. is low, then yes, you would have high estrogen levels, if your S.H.B.G. is normal, then you would just have low testosterone, low D.H.T. and low estrogen.

Quote: "My doctor said that it is not good for a man to have low testosterone levels"

This is pretty much true, it's ideal to have high testosterone and high S.H.B.G., which would mean that testosterone is "in the driver's seat", instead of estrogen or D.H.T.

Remember that ratios are much more important than levels! Have your doctor check your S.H.B.G. and have him check your estradiol/D.H.T. ratio.

 

[BoilerRoom]

first of all topical IGF-1 can grow hair or start hair loss ? some one say Increased levels of Insulin Growth Factor-1 (IGF-1) have been correlated to vertex balding

I've seen this mentioned before on but have never even remotely seen any evidence to back this up.

 

[OverMachoGrande]

first of all topical IGF-1 can grow hair or start hair loss ? some one say Increased levels of Insulin Growth Factor-1 (IGF-1) have been correlated to vertex balding

I've seen this mentioned before on but have never even remotely seen any evidence to back this up.

Maybe this will help.


Vertex balding, plasma insulin-like growth factor 1, and insulin-like growth factor binding protein 3.
Platz EA, Pollak MN, Willett WC, Giovannucci E.

Department of Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

BACKGROUND: A recent report suggested that men with vertex balding have higher levels of plasma insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1). The association of its major carrier protein, insulin-like growth factor binding protein 3 (IGFBP-3), with male pattern hair loss has not been examined. OBJECTIVE: We evaluated the relations of plasma concentrations of IGF-1 and IGFBP-3 with vertex balding in middle-aged and elderly men. METHODS: Participants were 431 male members of the Health Professionals Follow-up Study who responded to a question in 1992 on their hair pattern at 45 years of age and who were 47 to 81 years old when they provided a blood specimen in 1993-1994. Odds ratios (ORs) of vertex balding associated with IGF-1 and IGFBP-3 were estimated from logistic regression models mutually adjusting for each other and controlling for age at blood draw. RESULTS: Of the 431 men, 128 had vertex balding at age 45. Compared with men who were not balding, for a 1 standard deviation increase in plasma IGF-1 level (72.4 ng/mL), the OR for vertex balding was 1. 31 (95% CI, 0.95-1.81). For a 1 standard deviation increase in plasma IGFBP-3 (957 ng/mL), the OR for vertex balding was 0.62 (95% CI, 0.44-0.88). CONCLUSION: Older men with vertex balding have lower circulating levels of IGFBP-3 and higher levels of IGF-1 when controlling for IGFBP-3 level.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10827403

 

[OverMachoGrande]

Read this article (below) by hero John McDougall, who advocates a diet centered on starch.

It has long been rumored that the levels of the muscle building hormone, testosterone, are raised with meat-eating. However, recent research comparing people following various diets has found vegans (no animal products) have 8% more testosterone than lacto-ovo-vegetarians, and 13% more than people on the standard Western diet (with meat and dairy).22 (Fortunately, this extra male hormone is kept safely bound with a protein to prevent over-stimulation of the tissues, including the prostate.) So, if not testosterone, then what in the meat-eater’s diet could possibly be growth-stimulating?22-23

There may be some truth that eating all that protein stimulates muscle growth.24,25 Protein raises insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) in the human body, stimulating the growth of muscle and all other tissues. Meat-eaters are found to have 9% higher levels of IGF-1 than vegans.22 People eating dairy and eggs (lacto-ovo-vegetarians) have 8% higher levels.22 Unfortunately, IGF-1 also stimulates the growth of cancer of the breast, prostate, lung, and colon by stimulating cell proliferation and inhibiting cell death – two activities you definitely don't want when cancer cells are involved.26,27 Eating all that meat and those dairy products could make bigger muscles – but, how often do athletes think about the effects on their health? Beauty is more than skin deep – for sure. And ugly goes clear to the bone.

22) Allen NE. Hormones and diet: low insulin-like growth factor-I but normal bioavailable androgens in vegan men. Br J Cancer. 2000 Jul;83(1):95-7.

23) Raben A. Serum sex hormones and endurance performance after a lacto-ovo vegetarian and a mixed diet. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 1992 Nov;24(11):1290-7.

24) Holmes MD. Dietary correlates of plasma insulin-like growth factor I and insulin-like growth factor binding protein 3 concentrations. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2002 Sep;11(9):852-61.

25) Nilsen TI. Adult height and risk of breast cancer: a possible effect of early nutrition. Br J Cancer. 2001 Sep 28;85(7):959-61.

26) Yu H. Role of the insulin-like growth factor family in cancer development and progression. J Natl Cancer Inst. 2000 Sep 20;92(18):1472-89.

27) LeRoith D. The insulin-like growth factor system and cancer. Cancer Lett. 2003 Jun 10;195(2):127-37.

 

[OverMachoGrande]

soy milk doesn't raise igf does it? it comes from beans, there are no added hormones to it.....

Yea, but nearly all if not all the soy in america has been genetically modified....
So who knows what changing the structure of the bean may impact in what way, it's a gamble

Watch "Food Inc."

or read "The Food Revolution" by John Robbins

 

[guitar66]

soy milk doesn't raise igf does it? it comes from beans, there are no added hormones to it.....

Yea, but nearly all if not all the soy in america has been genetically modified....
So who knows what changing the structure of the bean may impact in what way, it's a gamble

Watch "Food Inc."

or read "The Food Revolution" by John Robbins

+1 Food Inc is an outstanding movie.

there is plenty of written evidence that suggests diets low in dairy and red meat are better for you. However, if this is not convincing enough, this film is likely to help persuade you....

 

[hudsonhawke]

I've been taking flaxseed oil capsuals and nothing else for 3 months now.

It could be stablising my hair, it's difficult to tell. Though when I take the hair and nails suppliment along side it I notice the quality of my hair declines for some reason.

Also I'm not on any meds or anything, but I've been getting more pimples as well as watery semen. Is this a side effect of the flaxseed??

 

[Brains Expel Hair]

How are you going to both recommend that someone cuts down on their insulin production while also mainly starch? I think you're missing the key reason insulin is produced in the first place.

 

[KANGA]

Hmm... I've been eating much more cheese, cottage cheese and whey protein the last few months and my hair is thinning at an alarming rate... coincidence?

Now, my dilemma here is my buddy has a worse diet than I do... but intakes basically the same milk protein amount I do... :dunno:

 

[2tall]

MisterE- Im gonna give the beta-sitosterol a try too. I was just about to order some propecia and give it a second try at a low dose, but i figure I'll give this a try first. I got the same stuff you use, some ground flaxseed, started nizoral regularly a month ago, and take a multivitamin that has 15mg of zinc.( as zinc oxide). hope thats the right stuff. Ill keep everyone posted.

 

[Hoppi]

I've been taking flaxseed oil capsuals and nothing else for 3 months now.

It could be stablising my hair, it's difficult to tell. Though when I take the hair and nails suppliment along side it I notice the quality of my hair declines for some reason.

Also I'm not on any meds or anything, but I've been getting more pimples as well as watery semen. Is this a side effect of the flaxseed??

Focus on the lignans, that's what I would do. I'm sure flax seeds have other benefits (such as the omegas) but overall it's SDG or 7-HMR lignans which will stimulate more SHBG and mop up your free testosterone

Apparently curcumin is also like gold dust, but without much first hand research into it I can't give a huge analysis either way!

As for the IGF-1 thang... I dunno. I think it's best to give the liver as easy a time as possible. If the liver is churning away produce loads of insulin, IGF-1 and fat, and chugging through bad food, it's unlikely to keep it's SHBG levels stable.

Also, apparently the thyroid affects this as well so I'm going to check my thyroid ASAP using a simple test.

So yeah, lots of lignans and a perfect diet! hehe

 

[Hoppi]

How are you going to both recommend that someone cuts down on their insulin production while also mainly starch? I think you're missing the key reason insulin is produced in the first place.

Yeah I didn't fully get this one either, I'd love to hear the explanation

I also thought that starch, carbs, sugar, gluten, ANYTHING which spikes insulin and churns fat is BAD news for your liver and your hair.

But, I'm open to be proven wrong

 

[Brains Expel Hair]

I also thought that starch, carbs, sugar, gluten, ANYTHING which spikes insulin and churns fat is BAD news for your liver and your hair.

But, I'm open to be proven wrong

YOU'RE WRONG! Well only slightly...

Starch is glucose and only glucose, it's actually just massive strands of glucose connected to glucose connected to more glucose and depending on the source it will have different amounts of 1,4 and 1,6 bonds which will determine both it's mouth feel properties as well as it's digestibility properties. Things like baked potatoes and white bread are ridiculously simple starches and will cause blood glucose levels to spike dramatically initiating the insulin reaction. Also things like genetics will determine how many enzymes your body produces to break down the starch into maltose/glucose molecules. More complex (less easily quickly digested) starches such as is found in quinoa, brown rice or other whole grains will exhibit a much lower glycemic load.

Not all grains are evil and many provide a good source of multiple vitamins and fiber. For more info on this simply search for glycemic index and glycemic load charts online.

 

[Hoppi]

You're so smart man! Plus I really like how some real constructive conversation is coming out of this - I have been learning so much recently!

And watching my hairline creep forward is one of the most satisfying things ever hehe ^_^

But yes thank you I will look into that! - So the trick is to eat things with the more complex starches as opposed to the simple ones, when starch is to be in your diet?

 

[Jacob]

Focus on the lignans, that's what I would do. I'm sure flax seeds have other benefits (such as the omegas) but overall it's SDG or 7-HMR lignans which will stimulate more SHBG and mop up your free testosterone

You're learning unk:

 

[Hoppi]

Focus on the lignans, that's what I would do. I'm sure flax seeds have other benefits (such as the omegas) but overall it's SDG or 7-HMR lignans which will stimulate more SHBG and mop up your free testosterone

You're learning unk:

Jacob!!

I was ALWAYS talking about lignans! The only difference is that now I'm talking about HMR instead of SDG! See my thread

And yes you were the first one to mention HMR to me! But yeah! I think you know what I'm getting at here!

 

[Brains Expel Hair]

Nutrition is a part of my field so I kinda have to try and know about it.

Starch is going to be in your diet no matter what (assuming you eat more than just meat all the time) as it's basically the plant version of glycogen (animal's storage molecule). But yes, when you are going to eat a heavy carb food, make sure it's complex as hell so that your body takes a long time getting all that glucose into the blood stream. This insures that your liver doesn't have to jump into overdrive right off the bat and leads to much smoother cellular metabolism.

My original comment in this thread however was really in frustration with seeing yet another person advocating a low fat diet for men which I think based on current nutritional knowledge is an outdated fad.

 

[Hoppi]

Isnt low fat quite good as well though? I thought it reduced sebum... I dont know what else but also milk increases IGF-1 which many say also decreases SHBG (which I'm sure you know about, but yeah!)

That's interesting about the complex carbs! I'm looking forward to if they make a nutrition sub-forum, as with all this talk about what its good to cut down it can be hard to work out what we CAN eat! lol

I think it would be great to make a thread where we put together possible meals that we feel are appropriate, and share ideas! Hell it might even be quite enjoyable! hehe

 

[Bryan]

Things like baked potatoes and white bread are ridiculously simple starches and will cause blood glucose levels to spike dramatically initiating the insulin reaction.

"Ridiculously simple starches"? Huh? What does THAT mean?

Also things like genetics will determine how many enzymes your body produces to break down the starch into maltose/glucose molecules. More complex (less easily quickly digested) starches such as is found in quinoa, brown rice or other whole grains will exhibit a much lower glycemic load.

The complexity of carbohydrates has little or nothing to do with how quickly it breaks down and forms blood sugar. Famous examples of that are complex starches like potatoes and bread, which actually have higher glycemic indexes than common table sugar.