Where Do Oestrogens Come From?

Oestrogen is a hormone made from cholesterol. Typically, oestrogen promotes positive effects, supporting tissue growth and female development. This very important hormone has a limited half-life (the time required for a quantity of substance to reduce to half of its initial value) in the metabolism and after completion of its vital function, oestrogen must be removed.

The body has a specialised detoxification system for the removal of used-up by-products which includes Phase I and II detoxification reactions.

The methylation (series of chemical changes that occur in the body) of oestrogen changes it to an excretable product which is no longer active as a hormone. This crucial methylation step is however often hampered by deficiency of essential enzyme activators.

There are three pathways regarding liver oestrogen metabolism of which two can lead to potentially carcinogenic (cancer causing) products while the other is protective.

What influences which pathway oestrogen takes?

1. Low thyroid function

2. Lifestyle and diet habits: B vitamin deficiency (particularly B6) or magnesium, can reduce the liver’s ability to clear oestrogen.

Not only is there a focus on removing carcinogenic compounds, but also on increasing the level of beneficial biological compounds.

Symptoms of oestrogen dominance vary from person to person and depend largely on the severity of your hormone imbalance.

High oestrogen in women may cause:

• Decreased sex drive
• Increased PMS symptoms
• Irregular periods
• Depression
• Mood swings
• Headaches
• Bloating
• Breast tenderness
• Weight gain
• Fatigue
• Difficulty concentrating
• Insomnia

High oestrogen in men may cause:

• Erectile dysfunction
• Weight gain
• Decreased sex drive
• Enlargement of the breast tissue
• Depression
• Loss of energy or fatigue
• Decrease in muscle mass

The benefits for men and woman:

Many health issues – including fatigue, acne, depression, anxiety, brain fog, mood swings and weight gain are a result of higher than necessary levels of oestrogen or a condition we call “oestrogen dominance.” Oestrogen dominance drives the most common hormonal health issues too, from PMS (premenstrual syndrome) to PCOS (polycystic ovary syndrome). Detoxing your body of excess oestrogen has many immediate and long term benefits.

Steps to hormonal balance and optimal health:

1. Eliminate the most common sources of xenoestrogens (bad oestrogens) that mimic the effects of true oestrogen and interact with cellular receptor sites. This process is what contributes to an excess of bad oestrogen and blocks the effects of true oestrogen. Most common sources of xenoestrogens include: oral contraceptives, personal care products, detergents, household cleaners, food additives, preservatives, plastics, canned foods, polystyrene, pesticides and herbicides. 

2. Catechol O-methyltransferase (COMT) is an enzyme that helps with the process of oestrogen methylation. Supporting COMT can improve the balance between harmful and beneficial oestrogens by adding methyl groups and key nutrients to the diet, like methionine, vitamin B12, vitamin B6, betaine (TMG), folate and magnesium. This is an important first step in addressing conditions like breast, ovarian, testicular, prostate and reproductive diseases. Trimethylglycine (TMG) is a strong methylator and 5-Methyltetrahydrofolate (5-MTHF), an active form of folate, is more effective than regular folic acid, with 58% of people having MTHFR deficiency. It has 7 times better absorption than folic acid. On the other hand, a high sugar diet can reduce the effectiveness of methylation enzymes like COMT.

3. Positively influence the ratio between important hormones and hormone metabolites like oestrogen, progesterone and the hydroxy oestrogens. Indole-3-carbinol (I3C) activates certain metabolic pathways and plays a prominent role in promoting oestrogen breakdown via the healthier 2-OH oestrogen route.

4. The next step is natural aromatase inhibitors (these lower estrogen levels by stopping an enzyme, called aromatase from changing other hormones into estrogen.). Aromatase enzymes are present in fat tissue and these will turn testosterone into oestrogen. Highly active aromatase will convert a large amount of testosterone into oestrogen which may contribute to the oestrogen dominance effect. Resveratrol, is a powerful natural aromatase inhibitor.

5. Help your liver process oestrogen. Your liver processes oestrogen so that it can be removed from your body. When oestrogen has done its work in your body, it is broken down by the liver into either “good” or “bad” metabolites. The “bad” metabolites are responsible for many of the problematic effects of oestrogen (and oestrogen dominance) and have been linked to hormonal-dependent cancers. Because diindolylmethane (DIM) helps your liver make more of the good metabolites, it will help you be healthier, happier and reduce your cancer risk. Diindolylmethane (DIM) is the principal breakdown product of indole 3-carbinol (I3C).

6. The last step is to assist the liver to ensure that oestrogen marked for excretion, leaves the body. The liver, which eliminates excess oestrogen, is assisted in this task by calcium D-glucarate. Calcium D-glucarate is important because it helps ensure that oestrogen marked for excretion actually leaves the body. Without sufficient levels of calcium D-glucarate, the neutralised hormone can be activated and reabsorbed in the body.

The liver then has to work again on clearing the reintroduced hormone, which strains the liver.

Article provided by Future Health: Prof. Elardus Erasmus (Biochemistry)