By Dr. John Lee

What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Prostate Health And Natural Hormones Supplementation
What Causes Estrogen Dominance In Men

The conclusion is that estrogen dominance is responsible for more cancers of the breast, prostate and endometrium than any other cause. Estrogen dominance has many causes but several are more common than others. In men they include insulin resistance, stress, and early (especially embryonic, during early life in the womb) exposure to petrochemical toxins (called xenoestrogens) such as pesticides, emulsifiers, and toxic chemicals that out-gas from certain plastics and adhesives (such as carpeting) that are common in the environment.

Researchers at the National Cancer Institute assessed the relationship between insulin resistance and prostate cancer risk. They found that men with the highest insulin resistance had an increased risk of prostate cancer compared to men with the best insulin sensitivity. When men with the highest tertile of insulin resistance and waist-to-hip ratio were combined, their risk of prostate cancer increased to an odds ratio of 8.21. These associations were independent of total caloric intake, serum levels of insulin growth factors, sex hormones and sex hormone binding globulin.

As we know from breast cancer research, insulin resistance leads to estrogen dominance and an increased risk of breast canceer. It seems too that the same pattern occurs in prostate cancer. If saliva tests had been used more in prostate cancer research, I suspect that the association between insulin resistance, estrogen dominance, and prostate cancer would be apparent.

Progesterone helps by restoring normal inhibition of 5-alpha-reductase, thus preventing testosterone from changing into dihydrotestosterone (DHT), which stimulates proliferation of prostate cells. Progesterone not only stimulates the action of the cancer-preventive gene, p53, but also maintains testosterone, which is a direct antagonist of estradiol.

You may have noticed that aging men tend to develop breasts. This is a clear sign of estrogen dominance. It is a sign that the man is low in progesterone and testosterone. All studies show that estradiol in men rises gradually with age. Therefore, the ratio of progesterone and testosterone to estradiol falls, producing estrogen dominance.