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The New Science of Your Sex Drive
A new study says we’ve been looking for libido in all the wrong places. Here’s the truth about testosterone, estrogen, and sex drive.
HOW TO (REALLY) BOOST YOUR LIBIDO
Male sex drive is largely influenced by testosterone. The more testosterone you have, the thinking goes, the more likely you are to get sprung at the slightest sexual thought, the briefest glimpse of thigh, or heck, even a chalk doodle on the sidewalk that vaguely resembles the curves of a female body.
However, according to a study presented at a meeting of urologists in Boston, it appears that total testosterone has little to do with male libido. Instead, it’s free testosterone and, surprisingly, the ratio between testosterone and estradiol (a type of estrogen) that determines your randiness.
THE NEW SEX DRIVE STUDY
The scientists had 200 patients of a cardiology practice fill out a series of erectile dysfunction questionnaires, including the IIEF-15, which collectively spell out a pretty decent picture of a man’s libido. Of note, none of the men had been diagnosed with hypogonadism (low testosterone) in the past, and none were on medications that could have affected T levels.
The researchers then measured the patients’ total testosterone, estradiol, sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG), and free testosterone and compared them with their reported libidos.
WHAT THEY FOUND
It turned out they found no correlation between total testosterone and how often (or how infrequently) the men wanted to do it. Nor did estradiol levels correlate independently with sex drive, even when levels were lower than 5 ng/dL. This last fact is significant because it was thought that men are more likely to have healthy libidos if their estradiol is in the “sweet spot” between 2.0 and 5.5 ng/dL.
What did correlate with libido, though, was the ratio of testosterone to estradiol, along with free testosterone, i.e., that percentage of testosterone that isn’t chemically bound to SHBG. The higher the free T, presumably the greater the sex drive.
WHAT THIS MEANS TO YOU
Oftentimes, men with low libidos or poor sexual functioning go on testosterone replacement therapy or pro-testosterone supplements. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t, but when it doesn’t, it’s generally because of one of two things, as this study clearly supports:
Too much SHBG (resulting in low levels of free testosterone)
High estrogen levels (throwing off the testosterone/estrogen ratio)
What the study didn’t tell us is the perfect level of free testosterone or the precise T:E ratio we’d want for “optimum” sex drive. Still, it gives us some clues as to what we should do.
For instance, if you have symptoms of low testosterone (depression, weight gain, inability to put on muscle, diminished sexual desire or performance) or symptoms of high estrogen (increased abdominal fat, fatty tissue around the nipples, erectile dysfunction, or loss of libido), you might consider finding a progressive physician and getting your SHBG and estrogen levels tested (along with free T, of course), the latter with what’s known as the “sensitive” assay.
If you don’t ask for a “sensitive assay,” they’re going to measure your estradiol the same as if you were a ballerina from the Bolshoi ballet suffering from menstruation problems. In other words, the results will be pretty much useless.
Your other choice would be to experiment with using dietary practices and supplements to manipulate levels of SHBG and estradiol.
HOW TO LOWER SHBG AND/OR RAISE FREE TESTOSTERONE
Take magnesium daily to raise free testosterone. Take zinc daily to lower SHBG. You can get both in something like ElitePro Minerals.
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Designed to replace key mineral deficiencies caused from the most brutal training and competition.*
Take vitamin D3 daily to lower SHBG, ideally microencapsulated D3 – the most bioavailable and longest-lasting form – which is found in our i-Well formula.
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400 mg Beta-1,3-Glucan, 400 mg Micellar Curcumin™ Solid Lipid Curcumin Particles, 400 mg EGCG 125 mcg (5000 IU) Microencapsulated Vitamin D3 – 90 Vegetable Capsules
Don’t short-change yourself on carbs. A diet low in carbs increases SHBG while lowering testosterone.
Watch the booze so that testosterone levels don’t drop.
HOW TO LOWER ESTRADIOL LEVELS
Lose fat. Fat contains an enzyme that converts testosterone into estrogen.
Eat lots of broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, and Brussels sprouts. They contain a chemical that “fights” estrogen.
Take curcumin, ideally in micellar form (95x greater absorption). It reduces the effects of an enzyme that converts testosterone to estrogen.
T NATION – 1 Feb 22
Curcumin Benefits: The Complete Supplement Guide
Curcumin’s benefits for human performance and health are staggering. Here’s a snapshot of the many conditions this supplement can help.
Est. reading time: 24 minutes
Take resveratrol to decrease the activity of that estrogen-converting enzyme.
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600 mg Resveratrol per Serving – 60 Softgels
Don’t get old. The older you are, the more estrogen-ey you are. (Okay, if you insist on aging, then at least put the above tips into action.)
ReferenceReference
Gupta N et al. Calculated Free T and T:E Ratio but not Total Testosterone and Estradiol Predict Low Libido. AUA Annual Meeting. May 12-16, 2017, Boston.
I also suggest high quality cordyceps extract powder for testosterone and energy. The peer-reviewed research on its fruiting body is pretty compelling. I did a deep dive into medicinal mushrooms to help heal a nerve injury (Lion’s Mane for that), and have continued to take several of these since.
PubMed Central (PMC)
Cordyceps militaris Fruit Body Extract Decreases Testosterone Catabolism and…
The androgens testosterone and dihydrotestosterone (DHT) are essential for a variety of systemic functions in mature males. Alteration of these hormones results in late-onset hypogonadism (LOH) and benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH). The fruit bodies…
Charles Poliquin gave me some of that stuff in the 90’s, but I didn’t use it long enough to gauge the results. Interesting!
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