Practicing the science of natural hormone replacement and balancing is a battle not only with conventional medicine theory and Big Pharma, but also difficult due to the perception of testosterone given by the media. How often have you heard the phrase “Testosterone Rage”? Or when there is a group of men gathered and acting or speaking in a very excitable manner, “There is too much Testosterone here?”
Well, here is a news flash. It is not testosterone causing these actions, (and I apologize to all the women who read this) but ESTROGEN.
Yes, it is Estrogen. Testosterone in the appropriate amounts actually causes men to be more calm, loving and caring. It promotes clearer thought process and tones down the irrational behavior of the misnomer ‘Testosterone Rage’. Naturally being a predominant hormone for males it promotes the male virility, but virility does not make irrationality. The key here is medically appropriate amounts of replenishment and driving down the estrogen levels in men. Most certainly excessive amounts of testosterone can cause adverse effects in many ways.
Men lose natural production of testosterone at various rates every year. When this occurs the production of estrogen occurs in its place causing a significant rise of the Estrogen level in men. Sorry to tell you guys, but we have estrogen just as women have testosterone. When this level gets too high in men it causes a variety of symptoms that really go unrecognized as connected to testosterone loss and estrogen gain. Estrogen is the volatile hormone. Just think of the irrationality and emotionality that women exhibit during their menstrual cycle or during the PMS period when estrogen production spikes high in women. Whew! We men have all had to deal with that. And women, unfortunately due to the lack of progressive thought in mainstream medicine and thanks to the Media you have to deal with this appropriately named “Male Estrogen Rage”!
1. Increased irritability, hence the so called ‘Testosterone Rage”
2. Man Boobs, gynecomastica.
3. Decreased libido, which causes more male irritability.
4. Night sweats or should I dare say “Hot flashes”.
There are also the medical effects of loss of bone density, weight gain primarily the ‘beer belly’, depression, sleep difficulties, loss of energy and motivation to name a few.
This connection is well known to those of us who practice hormone replacement, but not to the everyday Family Practice MD, and especially the media. The media would have no story if the headline read “Estrogen Rage Causes Man to Crash Truck into Ex-Wife’s House!” What?
The moral here, mainstream media is often wrong. It thrives on sensationalism. As far as Big Pharma’s connection, well, that is another whole blog entry. And when you hear the Testosterone Rage phrase or see it in action, ask the gentleman if he has had his Testosterone and Estrogen levels checked lately.
Just be sure to have an escape route planned if you do ask!
Terry R. Leder B.A.
Clinical Manager & Research
Pointe Medical Services/Live Well MD
What do you think about how the media seems to push the idea that if you take Testosterone then you will automatically get prostate cancer?
I feel that the culprit again is estrogen. I cannot help but think about the time in a man’s life when Testosterone is at it’s highest (late teens), and I have never known of a teen having prostate cancer.
You have hit the nail on the head! You are correct in your observation.
Research is telling us that the lack of testosterone and the subsequent gain of estrogens in men is one of the major culprits
in causing prostate cancer.
When testosterone production declines in men, estrogen production climbs. In particular the estrone form of estrogen.
Estrogens are also absorbed by men (and women) from plastics, additives in cosmetics, parabens, and many other enviromental sources.
When we treat men with testosterone replacement, estrogen levels are almost always high, so we treat to lower these levels as well.
Also, recent research is showing that “Testosterone Deprivation Therapy” which is commonly used in treating active prostate cancer
may not be the best treatment. This is still unclear.
Even better news is that more recent research in Europe is showing that testosterone replacement is protective from development
of prostate cancer.
One word of caution though, it is still unclear that treatment with testosterone replacement in “Active Prostate Cancer” is beneficial.
There still exists fear that this approach may fuel prostate cancer. More study in this aspect needs to be done.
The flip side is that after treatment of prostate cancer, testosterone replacement can be done and does become beneficial
just as before active cancer developed.