E17: Hormonal Optimization and Preventive Health with Jay Campbell

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Episode Summary:

Listen to the full episode on iTunes (and please leave a rating to help the podcast reach more people):  E17: Hormonal Optimization and Preventive Health with Jay Campbell

• Testosterone is the male hormone of vitality and one of the master hormones in your body.
• Testosterone is the sex hormone which differentiates a man from a woman. Men have roughly 14 times more testosterone than women and as a result men develop masculine characteristics such as increased muscle mass, thicker bones, bigger jaws, deeper voice and more body and facial hair.
• Overall, testosterone controls nearly all functions in your body and brain therefore it’s important that you have optimal levels of the hormone.
• Today there’s an epidemic of men with low testosterone levels.
• In the mid 1940s the average man had testosterone levels of 900 ng/dl. Today the average man is walking around with roughly 350 ng/dl. In other words, young men have on average 2.5 times less testosterone today.
• Here are the negative effects of low testosterone: Brain fog, erectile dysfunction, depression, inability to gain muscle mass, soft looking physique (skinny-fat) with a lot of fat storage on the back, indecisiveness.
• Here are the main causes of the low testosterone epidemic today: Poor nutrition (foods that contain GMOs, refined sugar, trans-fats), lack of exercise, chronic sleep deprivation, endocrine disrupting chemicals (xenoestrogens and BPAs in food and plastic).
• Having optimal testosterone levels naturally requires a big time-commitment for most people because you need to go against your environment (i.e. avoid most foods, eat expensive high quality foods, sleep early, avoid using monitors and smartphones at night, exercise a lot).
• Doctors often prescribe brain altering medications for ADHD, depression and anxiety to correct low testosterone symptoms but never address the core issue which is low testosterone levels.
• Jay believes that Testosterone Optimization Therapy (TOT) is the best and most convenient option for men suffering from low testosterone symptoms.
• Why Jay started TOT: He got kicked in the testicles during a basketball game at age 29.
• 2 weeks after he started feeling run down therefore he got in touch with an endocrinologist who did his blood work.
• His testosterone levels were at sub clinical levels (around 250 ng/dl).
• The clinical range for testosterone levels goes from 300 ng/dl to 800-1000 ng/dl, however it’s important to understand that to feel fully optimised you will ideally have total testosterone levels at the upper end of the range.
• Jay recommends somewhere around 650 ng/dl or more for total testosterone and free testosterone levels between 14-20 ng/dl. (The free testosterone is the biologically free testosterone ready to be used. This usually only makes up just 2-3% of your total testosterone since most of your testosterone is bound to estrogen and other hormones).
• You can get your testosterone levels checked through a simple blood test either at your local hospital or at a private clinic. If you live in the US, you can order your test online through PrivateMD labs or DiscountedLabs. If you live outside the US you most likely need to request the test through public health care.
• Public health care: When you request to get testosterone levels checked through socialised health care while being under 50 the physician will most likely look at you like you’re weird. The reason behind this is that young men are considered to automatically have healthy levels of testosterone. This knowledge is the norm for most physicians however  we now know that even young men can have low testosterone levels due to lack of high quality nutrition, sleep and exercise.
• To increase the chances of getting a hormonal panel done through your physician, be sure to tell them that you suffer of symptoms of low testosterone: Brain fog, erectile dysfunction and low sex drive. And insist if needed.
• When you get your blood work done, insist on getting a copy yourself so you can compare your values to optimal values. Don’t rely on your physician when he says “you’re in range” because the range is very wide therefore being in range could mean you have the average testosterone levels of an 84 year old man.
• Also, keep in mind that measurement numbers are meaningless compared to symptomology. They are only used as indicators of low testosterone.
• Regardless of whether you have symptoms or not, it’s important to get your blood work done early because you want to know what your base-line testosterone levels are when you’re healthy.
• Testosterone Optimization Therapy administration should depend on how many symptoms you show and what your base line levels were when you were young and healthy.
• For example, if you used to walk around with very high natural levels of 1000 ng/dl when you were young and healthy and you drop down to 650 ng/dl in your 30s or 40s you will have optimal testosterone levels but you may suffer of low testosterone symptoms such as erectile dysfunction, brain fog and depression.
• Testosterone:Estrogen metric: Very important because of phenoestrogens. When you’re estrogen dominant you present physically as soft, no muscle tone, fat in the upper back. Now a days you can’t differentiate between men and women from the back anymore. Gynecomastia too.
• Total testosterone should be 10 times higher than estrogen.
• 2 fold goal of TOT: a) Achieve balance between testosterone and estrogen and b) Happiness.
• Also, nutrition is a huge component in reducing estrogen.
• Foods to avoid: engineered foods. If it’s boxed on a store shelf it’s useless.
• Brocolli, green beans, spinach and kale reduce estrogen, however brocolli is by far the best.
• The “oldschool bodybuilding competition diet” relies on brocolli and fish for 10 days up to competition. This clears out excess estrogen and tightens up your physique.
• Important to supplement with Omega-3 fatty acids: Get 4-5 grams of Omega-3 everyday.
• According to Jay’s experience soy is bad for your hormones. No studies on this but it’s his experience.
• Usually when you have a deficiency somewhere such as a testosterone deficiency you will also have deficiencies elsewhere.
• A lot of people with low testosterone levels also have thyroid issues.
• When you correct someone’s testosterone deficiency, thyroid tends to sort itself out since testosterone is the lifeblood in the body.
• Women need testosterone as well. A lot of women are deficient in testosterone too – especially after having kids and in their late 40s and 50s. After getting on TOT they feel a lot better.
• Testosterone is linked to dopamine and does a lot in the brain.
• First sign of getting on a successful TOT regimen: Improvement in mood.
• It’s not something like adderall that makes you feel drugged up and addicted. The production of dopamine on a good TOT regimen will be more linear and you will be high energy all the time instead of tired and run-down.
• There are only 2 good ways to deliver TOT: Injections and transdermal.
• Transdermal increases sex drive because when you rub it on the skin you increase DHT formation which raises sex drive. DHT is the sexual gland function hormone in the body. It’s more anabolic than testosterone and raises sex drive. The problem with transdermal is that you have to shave the area where you’re applying and avoid contact with loved ones because it can rub off on them.
• Jay injects because it makes him feel more stable and he doesn’t have to worry about it rubbing off.
• Worrying about needle phobia: Most guys overcome it after a couple of injections. One injection takes 10-15 seconds and you’re done.
• The best way to deliver testosterone is  to deliver up to 250 MG of weekly testosterone through a 31 gage insulin syringe with the dosage spread through 2-7 weekly injections.
• 1 weekly injection is common however it is not optimal because the half-life of testosterone is 2.5-4 days.
• The peak is roughly 36 hours after the first injection. After that the testosterone starts wearing off therefore going a week between injections means that you will feel imbalanced and moody half of the week.
• To mimic the body’s natural production of testosterone you want to inject at least twice per week. This minimises side-effects such as moodiness and feeling imbalanced. You never want to have a bottom. You want to feel like you’re about to come off and then do the next injection.
• This mimics your body’s natural testosterone production because your testosterone peaks around 4-6:30 AM in the morning (typically the time you get your morning erection) and then it fluctuates throughout the day.
• Jay injects 3 times a week because it suits his lifestyle but he recommends daily injections if possible because that mimics the natural testosterone production the most.
• There are no addictions created by using clinical dosages of testosterone as long as you don’t exceed 250 MG of exogenous testosterone. This will usually put you somewhere in the optimal and healthy range of 650 ng/dl-1200 ng/dl total testosterone.
• Injecting this amount is nothing compared to taking super physiological testosterone dosages that competitive bodybuilders take. A recent bodybuilder who passed away at age 26 due to his bodybuilding lifestyle (Dallas McCarver) had testosterone levels of 55,000 ng/dl (more than 55 times the optimal levels). Bodybuilding testosterone dosages are a completely different topic than Testosterone Optimisation Therapy. With bodybuilding dosages we are talking about abusing testosterone to look like a monster, while with TOT dosages we are are talking about using healthy levels of exogenous testosterone to optimise your health (mood, focus, sexual function, attractive body-composition).
• Jay has never used more than 175 MG per week and normally uses 150 MG per week. This puts him at the top end of the healthy testosterone levels range.
• Only side-effect Jay has experienced: Very mild form of gynecomastia (male breast growth or puffy nipples) on right nipple that he got in 2015. He tried using medications to cure it but had no success.
• Most likely his gynecomastia was due to stress because he was going through a stressful time in his life at that time.
• Testosterone and legality: When doing TOT you must work with an experienced and open-minded physician who can legally prescribe you TOT, do your blood work regularly, monitor it and optimise your dosage based on your symptoms and blood work levels. Finding a physician who can do all that is incredibly difficult, however Jay is working on changing that.
• Problems with travelling with testosterone? No problems as long as you put the gear in a plastic bag with a holographic seal with a note from your physician explaining why you have a couple of needles with a solution in them. Even if you get pulled over you you will be ok as long as you look them in the eye and act polite. In 10 years Jay has only heard of one person who had a problem with bringing his syringes and solution and that’s because that person acted rude to the security.
• If you’re below 30 you most likely don’t need TOT but there’s still a significant chance since the average natural levels in men are 2.5 times lower today compared to 1940s. Therefore getting your blood work done is essential regardless of age.
• There are very few men with natural testosterone levels above 1000 ng/dl. Sardinian, Sicilian, Mediterranean and the Basques have naturally high levels.
• If men don’t start taking action, the average man in 2045 will be infertile.
• Female hormones are increasing. Girls hitting puberty much earlier and being able to get pregnant earlier.
• TOT should only be started after all natural methods have been exhausted.

– Oskar Faarkrog

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