|
Recent Articles
Commentary
Dear Mr. Morgenthaler,
Thank you for the “Health & Wellness Update.” I look forward to each issue, and the solid information it provides.
- John V.
Sun City, AZ
Praise for
Smart Publications
Health & Wellness Update
"For sometime now I have enjoyed reading Smart Publications. They are beautifully structured, well written and educational"
- John W.
Durham, NC
"Wealth of information for anyone that chooses alternative healing methods. It's an education in itself just to read one of these newsletters! Every time I get one I read it from cover to cover! Easy to understand and easy to decipher when looking for products. Well done! It's a joy to read."
- B. White
Oxnard, CA
|
Androstenedione:
Boosts Testosterone Safely and Naturally for Muscle Growth and Sexual Enhancement
by Ward Dean, M.D. & Jim English
Recently a new dietary supplement has taken the sports nutrition market by storm. Androstenedione, (pronounced "an-dro-stene-dye-own") is a metabolite of DHEA and a natural precursor of testosterone. To understand why androstenedione has become so popular with athletes and bodybuilders, as well as how it may benefit health in general, we first need to look at testosterone.
Testosterone is responsible for the normal growth and development of the male sex organs, muscles, beard and body hair, and plays a key role in maintaining human health, strength and energy. In short, testosterone is responsible for making the male body "masculine." In fact, every anabolic steroid is a synthetic analog of testosterone. Growth hormone, although anabolic, is not a steroid—i.e., it is not derived from cholesterol. Having normal testosterone levels is essential for health and well-being. Lest we give the impression that testosterone is only a "male" hormone, testosterone also promotes muscle growth, maintains mood, and boosts sex drive in women.
Testosterone and Youth
Like many other physiological and biochemical changes that occur with aging, testosterone levels (especially free testosterone—that portion of testosterone in the blood that is not bound to sex hormone binding globulin [SHBG]) drop significantly with advancing age. Often, symptoms like decreased sex drive and ability to perform (libido), fatigue, depression, and signs like increased body fat, reduced muscle mass, and loss of bone density are preceded by decreased testosterone production.
These signs of lowered testosterone production can occur at different times for different men, however most of us will experience a dramatic decline. Even those seniors fortunate enough to maintain testosterone in the normal range probably had even higher levels in their youth. Conditions other than advanced age that can lead to lower-than-normal testosterone levels include: alcoholism, AIDS, chronic anemia, chronic corticosteroid use, chronic kidney failure, diabetes, liver disease, obesity, osteoporosis, rheumatoid arthritis and hypogonadism.
Replacement Therapy
The usual methods to restore low testosterone levels to normal is to use testosterone replacement therapy (TRT). This is normally done with injections, pills, or transdermal patches. One problem with many testosterone replacement therapies is that they use synthetic testosterone (like the hepato-toxic/liver-damaging methyltestosterone) which may cause a number of adverse effects. Another challenge is to mimic the body's normal rhythmic production of testosterone. Testosterone is naturally produced in a pulsatile fashion, with the greatest amount being produced throughout the evening, with much smaller amounts produced during the day. Although somewhat safer than oral pills, testosterone injections and transdermal patches can cause testosterone levels to remain elevated for days or weeks. The testosterone will then either drop to subnormal values until the next treatment is given or applied, or the next treatment may result in an overload or be converted into estrogens or toxic metabolites.
The abnormally low levels of testosterone which may occur following conventional TRT is caused by feedback inhibition of the hypothalamus, pituitary, and testicles. This can adversely influence natural endogenous testosterone production, and even lead to testicular atrophy. None of these problems are known to occur with physiological (in terms of both dose and timing) supplementation of androstenedione.
Androstenedione
Androstenedione, produced in the body from either 17-a-hydroxyprogesterone or dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), was first synthesized in 1935. In 1936, Dr. Charles Kochakian, a world expert on steroid hormones, discovered that it has both androgenic (masculinizing) and anabolic (tissue building) properties. The anabolic effects of androstenedione were ignored by the scientific community until 1962. At that time, two researchers conducted and experiment in which normal women were given either 100 mg of DHEA or 100 mg of androstenedione. The study found that both hormones led to elevated testosterone levels—but androstenedione increased testosterone levels twice as much as DHEA. In the women given DHEA, testosterone levels (normally less than 199 ng/dl), rose to 280 ng/dl within 60 minutes. The second group, taking androstenedione, had testosterone levels elevated as high as 660 mg/dl and hour later—a three-fold increase above normal levels!
Significantly, this testosterone increase was transient, and lasted only a couple of hours -- and remained at peak-levels for only a few minutes -- just as occurs naturally in our bodies. Confirmation of the effectiveness of androstenedione is contained in a German patent which claims that 50 mg of oral androstenedione can raise plasma testosterone levels in men from 140% to 183% of normal. Thus, we may now have arrived at a truly physiologic (natural) way to restore flagging testosterone levels in aging men and women to those of young, healthy adults.
Using Androstenedione
For those whose testosterone levels may need a boost, 25-50 mg of androstenedione taken at bedtime, and perhaps again first thing in the morning, will mimic the body's normal diurnal rhythms. The same dose may be taken 30-60 minutes before exercise (for enhanced performance) or after completion of exercise (to enhance muscle recovery and growth).
Serum levels of testosterone start rising about 15 minutes after oral administration and stay elevated for around 3 hours. Blood testosterone levels usually peak in around 1 to 1.5 hours after ingestion. Because the elevated testosterone levels swiftly return to normal baseline levels, there is little risk of negative feedback suppression of the hypothalamus, pituitary or testicles.
Women may also benefit from occasional low-dose androstenedione use. It will probably be found to be of use in the maintenance of bone density and actual reversal of osteoporosis. Also, occasional use of androstenedione as a libido-enhancer has been reported, with onset of effects occurring within 30-60 minutes. Women using androstenedione for any use should be careful to adjust the dose downward -- or discontinue use -- should signs of secondary male characteristics be noted (i.e., voice deepening, hair or whiskers on upper lip, etc.).
Reprinted with permission from Vitamin Research News, copyright 1998.
You can call VRP for their free newsletter, with articles by Ward Dean, MD and Lane Lenard, PhD, former editor of Life Enhancement News.
Tel: 800 877 2447 or 702 884 1300.
Copyright © 2008 - Smart Publications
POB 4667 - Petaluma, CA 94955
1-800-976-2783
888-998-6889 (fax)
|
Subscribe
to Smart Publications
E-newsletter
and receive weekly e-alerts from the world of nutritional medicine.
Just type your email address below and click on submit (unsubscribe anytime.)
Subscribe...to
Smart Publications Health & Wellness Update
the 16-page monthly newsletter.
and receive the latest information from the world of nutritional medicine.
>> subscribe for free!
Advertisement
FREE
Welcome Kit
from Health Freedom Nutrition
Complete product listing and discount offers included!
>> request a kit
|
