Category: Men’s Health

I recently attended the Advanced Applications in Medical Practice (AAMP)’s fall conference focusing on endocrinology. This was a 3-day, multi-doctor panel that taught all things endocrinology – the study of hormones.  I especially was intrigued by the research showing low testosterone in men affects cardiovascular risk and blood sugar regulation. 

Type 1 Diabetes

While I personally don’t have any type 1 diabetics currently in my practice, I gleaned quite a bit from the diabetes talk by Dr. Jodi Stanislaw, NMD. If you recall, type 1 diabetes is where the body starts to attack the pancreas via autoimmune antibodies, and you cannot make insulin to be able to utilize the blood sugar. This can be life threatening and the patient is insulin dependent.  There were many nuanced and often overlooked helpful points about blood sugar that can be applied to pre and type 2 diabetes.

Prediabetes and Type 2 Diabetes

I do see quite a few patients with prediabetes and type 2 diabetes, where the body’s glucose/sugar use is dysfunctional and often controlled by diet or if needed, supplements and oral medications. Their body can still produce insulin, but sometimes the communication between insulin production and use breaks down.

Hormones and Blood Sugar Regulation – an Important Connection

While blood sugar and hormones (estrogen, progesterone, testosterone) are often not linked together, the Endocrine Society is now recognizing this relationship as more important in the management of diabetes than previously understood.

There have been numerous studies regarding the beneficial relationship testosterone has on blood sugar regulation and atherosclerosis (the buildup of plaques in the artery walls which can cause high blood pressure, heart attacks, and cardiovascular disease).

The Endocrine Society is now recommending measuring testosterone in all newly diagnosed diabetic men as testosterone has not been found to necessarily effect the blood sugars directly, but moreover the inflammation that accompanies high blood sugar.

Bottom line: adding testosterone replacement therapy to a diabetic’s regimen improves cardiovascular inflammation, decreases cardiovascular risk, and decreases obesity. I think this research is amazing and will begin measuring testosterone in my male prediabetic and diabetic patients to further decrease cardiovascular risk!

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3167667/

Many people suffer hair loss, and it can be devastating to our sense of self. Hair shedding is part of a natural balance — some hairs fall out while others grow in. When the balance is interrupted — when hair falls out and less hair grows in — hair loss happens.

The three most common types of hair loss are:

Androgenic Alopecia: this is the most common cause of male and female pattern baldness. It occurs in more than 95% of men and often in a well-defined “M” pattern. In women the hair becomes thinner all over the head, but the hairline does not recede.

Poor nutrition: this can be from diets high in animal fat and processed foods or deficiencies of biotin, protein, zinc, vitamin D or iron. We can help you optimize your diet and decipher your gut health to promote better terrain for hair growth. https://boisenaturalhealth.com/test-your-gut-microbiome-with-a-simple-stool-sample/

Hormonal imbalance: low levels of estrogen and progesterone can cause hair to grow more slowly and become much thinner. We dive further into this aspect here https:// boisenaturalhealth.com/hair-thinning-women-identifying-cause/

We can also provide you with compounded hair loss solutions! This includes using minoxidil, finasteride, items to enhance absorption like tretinoin and azelaic acid, hormones like progesterone, antifungals like ketoconazole and more.