THE DOCTOR ANSWERS
How can we regulate estrogen?
Estrogens (hormones present in both men and women) are characteristic of the human body, however un excess of these pose an increased risk of suffering from hormone-dependent neoplastic (cancerous) processes.
Breast cancer has increased, exceptionally, in incidence in recent years, specifically by 20% worldwide, (it is considered that one in every 8 women will suffer from it between the ages of 40 and 60) and the majority of diagnoses (70%) show positive hormone receptors (it means that the cancer cells that form the lesion grow due to the hormonal stimulus of estrogen).
Avoiding an excess of this hormone prevents the risk of hormone-dependent breast cancer.
You can reduce the risk of hormone-dependent cancer by introducing changes in our lifestyle.
Important elements to eliminate/reduce from our lives:
Xenoestrogens or endocrine disruptors:They are chemical agents of artificial origin that we ingest in food and with water, or they reach us through the cosmetics we use or the plastics that surround us. All xenoestrogens and endocrine disruptors can increase the risk of breast cancer because they mimic or block or alter the actions of natural hormones such as estrogen or progesterone, many of them apart from being obesogenic (increase the risk of obesity).
Dioxins: are produced by incinerators or thermal power plants, they accumulate on the fat of animals and in dairy products.
Bisphenol A:They are found in plastics and hygiene and cosmetic products (phthalates are often part of fragrances), cans, and polyester clothing.
windbreaks:They are widely used preservatives in hygiene and cosmetics.
Paraffins:They are cosmetic ingredients derived from petroleum.
Pesticides:Its residues are found in food.
Elements to enhance to protect us:
Avoid sedentary lifestyle:Doing physical activity on a regular basis, especially in the form of muscle strength at least 3 days a week, reduces body inflammation and prevents the accumulation of peripheral fat that can be transformed into estrogen. It has been shown that women who practice muscular strength physical activity at least 4 days a week reduce the risk by 30 to 40%.
Enhance the body's ability to regulate the production and elimination of estrogen:
The body has the ability to eliminate excess estrogen through liver purification, this detoxification process is favored if the patient takes a supplement of group b vitamins, inocitol and methionine.
Gut microbiota and estrogen:Having a powerful and diverse intestinal microbiota promotes immunity which is responsible for phagocytizing (destroying) precancerous cells.
Modulating stress and sleep: A healthy life is not possible without rest, melatonin (hormone that induces and maintains sleep) protects against breast cancer. Excess stress that is determined hormonally with excess cortisol weakens the immune system, in states of stress it is less able to detect precancerous cells.
What is Hashimoto's thyroiditis (HT)?
Hashimoto's thyroiditis (HT) is the most common autoimmune disease and the main cause of hypothyroidism, in which damage to the thyroid gland occurs due to lymphocyte infiltration. It is characterized by increased levels of antibodies against thyroid peroxidase and thyroglobulin.
Many patients with HT, even in a euthyroid state, have excess body weight, metabolic disorders and a reduced quality of life.
Because of frequent concomitant nutritional deficiencies, the role of vitamin D, iodine, selenium, magnesium, iron, and vitamin B12 is currently debated. Several studies have highlighted the benefits of vitamin D and selenium supplementation.
Oxytocin, Dopamine and Serotonin, what role do they play in falling in love?
Oxytocin, serotonin and dopamine have a lot to do with sensitizing pleasure, and the fact is, neurochemistry plays a fundamental role in emotions, neurohormones direct our movements in search of well-being.
When we fall in love, exercise, do physical activities we enjoy, or expose ourselves to risks or challenges...we all experience intense and pleasurable sensations.
It is very clear in falling in love, an aura is generated of: intense feeling of joy and happiness, emotions on the skin, increased energy, a constant desire to be next to this person, butterflies in the 'stomach, loss of appetite... And it is that our brain and gut release dopamine, serotonin and oxytocin, which are responsible for making us feel this way.
Dopamine is this chemical component that "turns us on" and that makes our heart beat faster. It is mainly related to desire and pleasure, it is to blame that we "get attached" to this special person and that we wish to have physical contact and be with them all the time.
For its part, oxytocin, also known as "the hormone of love", is responsible for connecting us with others and making us experience this romantic and intense love. In addition, it acts as a great disinhibitor when we feel this unbridled passion: it is responsible for us taking risks and jumping into a relationship.
Serotonin, known as the neurotransmitter of happiness, fundamentally affects our emotions and mood. When we experience happiness and emotions of love serotonin levels shoot up.
Through a complete integrative endocrinological analysis, the level of these neurotransmitters can be optimized. In order to optimize our own production of these neurohormones, we need our lifestyle and intestinal microbiota to be perfectly balanced in our state of hormonal health.
How to improve insulin resistance?
Insulin resistance, very present in our society, is the triggering cause of most cases of obesity and diabetes (defined as the pandemic of our century).
It is common to see many people who have a large abdomen, this is a diagnostic criterion of the disease, the presence of accumulated fat is usually an indicator of insulin resistance.
Insulin resistance is the result of an alteration in the body's insulin receptors, which are located throughout the body, but especially in muscle, adipose tissue and the liver. This alteration causes it to not respond correctly to the insulin that circulates in the blood and makes it difficult for glucose to enter the cells, producing a persistent increase in blood glucose, first causing pre-diabetes and later diabetes.
At the same time the accumulation of insulin in the blood is a great stimulus to increase fat in the waist area, insulin is a powerful fattening hormone when it is in excess. This type of situation is called: obesogenic diabetes, because it combines diabetes and obesity, it is very common, according to the study published in the prestigious British Medical Journalin January 2023, in three decades the incidence of diabetes secondary to insulin resistance has increased by 60% in our society.
It is necessary to carry out an integrative endocrinological assessment, which includes the genetic reasons, the triggering causes, the current risk factors and those foreseeable in the near future, it is necessary to plan a realistic integrative multidisciplinary treatment according to the situation of each person.
The most favorable attitudes to improve insulin resistance are the following:
1. Normalize hormonal analytical values that induce or promote insulin resistance: excess cortisol, vitamin deficiencies such as vitamin d3 (very common), normalization of the thyroid panel.
2. Design a nutritional project in accordance with the therapeutic objectives with a long-term goal, not only thinking about normalizing weight, but maintaining muscle mass and maintaining waist circumference.
3. Incorporate the physical activity as a lifestyle, usually in the form of muscle strength work combined with resistance exercise.
4. Assess the patient's micronutrition status, the level of toxicity in the form of heavy metal and endocrinological disruptors, in order to promote insulin sensitivity. This point needs to be evaluated in saliva, hair or urine, in each case the specialist doctor will determine the most appropriate method of determination.
5. Balance the intestinal microbiota, through the balance of the previous points and the determination of intestinal flora studies.
Heavy metals, toxic present in our body, how can we eliminate them?
Environmental pollution is an indisputable reality, international organizations say it is a major health risk. The increase in pollution causes between 6 and 7 million premature deaths per year according to the WHO. Environmental pollution has a direct consequence in the presence of heavy metals in the environment: water, air and food.
The highest heavy metals in our society are: lead, mercury, arsenic, cadmium and aluminum, which are associated with various diseases:
-
Lead: anemia, sclerosis, fatigue and kidney cancer.
-
Mercury: autism, depression and respiratory problems.
-
Cadmium: prostate cancer, bronchitis, infertility and vascular diseases.
-
Aluminum: depression, alzheimer, neurological deterioration.
Faced with this worrying scenario, how can we help reduce or eliminate these toxins from our body?
Clean the body of heavy metals such as mercury, lead, cadmium, aluminum, arsenic or tin, present today in almost everything we ingest and consume, and which accumulate mainly in the liver, kidneys, nervous system and bone system , is something that is necessary to have a perfect state of health, since they poison us and make us sick, blocking the absorption of basic minerals for health.
The organism has a series of antioxidant defense systems that try to neutralize the aggression (antioxidant is defined as "any substance that, when present at low concentrations in the presence of an oxidizable substrate, delays or prevents the oxidation of this .")
Supplementation with antioxidants is an effective tool to "neutralize" the harmful effect of heavy metals.
The neutralization process in the medical field is called "chelation", and should always be done under strict medical supervision. Medical professionals decide which is the best antioxidant or chelator in each case, which is why it is necessary to carry out an integrative endocrinological assessment, extensive that includes the triggering causes, in which a realistic integrative multidisciplinary treatment must be planned according to the situation of each person.
Some of the most commonly used antioxidants are:
-
Vitamin C: stimulates the enzyme system of the liver, so that toxins such as heavy metals and pesticides are eliminated. Liposomal vitamin C ensures that all the vitamin C we take is used by the body thanks to its special structure in the form of microscopic liposomes.
-
Glutathione: it is considered the most important antioxidant in the body because it is found in every cell and cooperates with other antioxidants so that they perform their function correctly.
-
Algae like chlorella: it is an algae that helps cleanse the intestine, liver and blood of toxins. It effectively removes heavy metals from the system as it binds to toxins in the body and helps them with the elimination process. This treatment, which until now has been used indiscriminately, must be supervised by endocrinological doctors, since it is very dangerous to use if the patient has thyroid problems, as it could destabilize the amount of free t3-t4.
-
lipoic acid: considered a "universal antioxidant" that can reach tissues that are mainly composed of fat, such as the nervous system, but also tissues with a water content, such as the heart.
-
Methionine and cysteine: These sulphurous amino acids, which are commonly used with alpha lipoic acid, solubilize heavy metals and facilitate their expulsion.
-
MSM (methylsulfonylmethane): Sulfur organic compound helps expel lead, cadmium, mercury and arsenic.
-
selenium: It is an indispensable mineral for thyroid well-being, it has the ability to join and expel heavy metals that we already have in our body. Protects against aluminium, cadmium and mercury.
-
Vitamin E: It is a natural antioxidant and antiaging, fights against cellular aging. It also prevents the accumulation of lead in our connective tissue and reduces the toxicity of our cells.