Testosterone Question

[shemp]

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post stuff you eat every day. do you smoke pot?




Does this affect Test levels? If so, how?

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doesn't regular pot smoking decrease sperm count? I just figured <sperm would go along with <test.

probably some studies that would back that up I'm pretty sure.

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I hate to even think about how many research opportunities I've let slip through my fingers.

[J.R.]

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3. New study finds pot doesn't lower testosterone

A new study by Dr. Robert Block at the University of Iowa disputes the commonly held notion that marijuana alters the level of testosterone and other sex hormones.

The study contradicted a widely publicized 1974 study by Dr. R.C. Kolodony, which reported decreased testosterone levels in men who smoked marijuana chronically.

The U. of Iowa study found that chronic marijuana use had no effect on testosterone, luteinizing hormone, follicle stimulating hormone, prolactin and cortisol in men or women.

Noting that six other studies had failed to show lowered testosterone levels in men, Dr. Block concluded: "It appears that marijuana, even heavy use of the kind that's typical in the United States, doesn't alter testosterone levels."

However, he cautioned that heavy use might have other adverse effects, including "possible effects on reproductive function and mild, selective cognitive impairments associated with heavy, chronic use."

Block's study is published in Drug and Alcohol Dependence, Vol. 28: 121-8 (1991).

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THC has some effect on sperm, but is is apparently not because of an effect on Ttestosterone levels.

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Smokers Have Lower Total Sperm Count
Men who smoke marijuana frequently have significantly less seminal fluid, a lower total sperm count and their sperm behave abnormally, all of which may affect fertility adversely, a new study in reproductive physiology at the University at Buffalo has shown.
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"We don't know exactly what is happening to change sperm functioning," said Burkman, "but we think it is one of two things: THC may be causing improper timing of sperm function by direct stimulation, or it may be bypassing natural inhibition mechanisms. Whatever the cause, the sperm are swimming too fast too early." This aberrant pattern has been connected to infertility in other studies, she noted.

Further research in the andrology laboratory showed that human sperm exposed to high levels of THC displayed abnormal changes in the sperm enzyme cap, called the acrosome. When researchers tested synthetic anandamide equivalents on human sperm, the normal vigorous swimming patterns were changed and the sperm showed reduced ability to attach to the egg before fertilization. Only about 10 laboratories in the U.S. perform this array of sperm function tests.

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[Jeff W]

What is your Free T level (and the normal range too)? IIRC, Free T is a more important than Total T. Obese men esp. can have ~normal Free T and below normal Total T. Also, what is your Estradiol level?

If I were you, I'd go on an extended low cal diet before I messed with Hormone Replacement. Fat aromatizes testosterone to estradiol--causing low T levels even if you're producing enough and high estradiol levels. Even if you take exogenous T, your fat will still aromatize T to estradiol.

It's probably not what you want to hear, but you need to man up and lose fat. At this point it's tough to determine whether obesity is causing your low T or vice versa.

[pr0crast]

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Obese

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I'd recommend taking care of what is causing your low T before jumping straight to medication. Learn how to eat and the problem will take care of itself naturally. You think you eat healthy but I guarantee you don't. Yes, you might be genetically prone to obesity - but that's only exacerbates the problem of poor diet. And you don't have diabetes now, but you most likely WILL down the road if you don't get the weight in check.

An example of a good diet would be lots of fiber + whole grains, lean meat (chicken, fish, grass-fed beef), LOTS of veggies, fruit for dessert, NO SODA (loose leaf home-brewed green tea instead), NO FAST FOOD (pack a lunch), NO CHIPS, nuts for snacks (almonds or walnuts), no white rice or white bread, and DAILY EXERCISE (jogging, walking, yoga, lifting, basketball, whatever, just SOMETHING)

[Jeff W]

All that is good advice, but if he doesn't track kcals he can can eat all that good stuff and stay a fat [censored].

[pr0crast]

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All that is good advice, but if he doesn't track kcals he can can eat all that good stuff and stay a fat [censored].

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Tracking kcals is great but there's no point unless you can make lifestyle changes first. What I mean is if you just cut cals and not focus on the foods you are eating, then you will inevitably gain it all back at a later date. If you can learn how to eat healthy and THEN focus on kcals, you will be set for life.

[ginko]

Grape seed extract slows/stops the conversion of T to E ?

Grape seed extract is an aromatase inhibitor and a suppressor of aromatase expression.
Kijima I, Phung S, Hur G, Kwok SL, Chen S.
Department of Surgical Research, Beckman Research Institute of the City of Hope, Duarte, California, USA.

Aromatase is the enzyme that converts androgen to estrogen. It is expressed at higher levels in breast cancer tissues than normal breast tissues. Grape seed extract (GSE) contains high levels of procyanidin dimers that have been shown in our laboratory to be potent inhibitors of aromatase. In this study, GSE was found to inhibit aromatase activity in a dose-dependent manner and reduce androgen-dependent tumor growth in an aromatase-transfected MCF-7 (MCF-7aro) breast cancer xenograft model, agreeing with our previous findings. We have also examined the effect of GSE on aromatase expression. Reverse transcription-PCR experiments showed that treatment with 60 mug/mL of GSE suppressed the levels of exon I.3-, exon PII-, and exon I.6-containing aromatase mRNAs in MCF-7 and SK-BR-3 cells. The levels of exon I.1-containing mRNA, however, did not change with GSE treatment. Transient transfection experiments with luciferase-aromatase promoter I.3/II or I.4 reporter vectors showed the suppression of the promoter activity in a dose-dependent manner. The GSE treatment also led to the down-regulation of two transcription factors, cyclic AMP-responsive element binding protein-1 (CREB-1) and glucocorticoid receptor (GR). CREB-1 and GR are known to up-regulate aromatase gene expression through promoters I.3/II and I.4, respectively. We believe that these results are exciting in that they show GSE to be potentially useful in the prevention/treatment of hormone-dependent breast cancer through the inhibition of aromatase activity as well as its expression.

PMID: 16740737 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

[ginko]

Things that raise T:

Supplements
Diet
Exercise
Guns
Competition
Reducing stress
Losing weight

[coopersmydog]

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Obese

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I'd recommend taking care of what is causing your low T before jumping straight to medication. Learn how to eat and the problem will take care of itself naturally. You think you eat healthy but I guarantee you don't. Yes, you might be genetically prone to obesity - but that's only exacerbates the problem of poor diet. And you don't have diabetes now, but you most likely WILL down the road if you don't get the weight in check.

An example of a good diet would be lots of fiber + whole grains, lean meat (chicken, fish, grass-fed beef), LOTS of veggies, fruit for dessert, NO SODA (loose leaf home-brewed green tea instead), NO FAST FOOD (pack a lunch), NO CHIPS, nuts for snacks (almonds or walnuts), no white rice or white bread, and DAILY EXERCISE (jogging, walking, yoga, lifting, basketball, whatever, just SOMETHING)

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Never said I eat healthy. And I'm not blaming low T for my being fat. However, for the first 20 or so years of my life I did eat relatively healthy and exercised way more than than necessary. During that time I did nothing but gain weight and didn't build much muscle.

I need to lose weight for reasons unrelated to my T levels, and I know this. But I'll tell you, it's hard to get motivated when you feel like crap 24/7 for 15 years. It wears on you, trust me.

I'll report back after my dr. visit on the 16th and see what he thinks. I'm not big into taking medication (it took me years to take medication for ADD), so I'll be discussing all available options with him.

[MatthewRyan]

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Things that raise T:

Supplements
Diet
Exercise
Guns
Competition
Reducing stress
Losing weight

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how does diet? just more protein?