Causes of hormonal imbalance & its connection to heart disease: My experience
I never talked about causes of hormonal imbalance, although unbalanced hormones were one of the main culprits for my disease. So, here it goes.
I was going through puberty and was very prone to acne, due to surge of hormones. As most teenagers, I didn't like it one bit.
So, I went to dermatologist which prescribe me a cream for acne. However, since the damn thing didn't work very well and it stink, the doctor decided to prescribe me antibiotics.
After few months of taking antibiotics and applying the cream, my face cleared up a little bit but it was still a long way from normal. Since antibiotics shouldn't be used for long period of time, as soon as I stopped taking them, acne came back with a vengeance.
CAUSES OF HORMONAL IMBALANCE - THE TURNING POINT
After going back and forth, my dermatologist reluctantly prescribed me a drug which was third and final solution.
Doc told me when to take the pills but he didn't mentioned the possibility of numerous side effects which could be triggered by the drug. Also, I didn't know better at the time.
When it comes to acne, the drug worked great. They were almost all gone. However, several months later, I started to gain weight although my eating habits remained the same. On top of that, progression of my facial hair development stopped, my face wasn't oily anymore, I stopped growing and got bitch tits or gynecomastia.
I was like, WTF.
Anyway, about 6-8 months later, when I was about 17 and a half, I had to go through mandatory army medical exam, were they noticed irregularities in my tests and EKG results of the heart.
All that happened after taking just one drug for a short period of time which helped with one thing and caused numerous other problems.
CAUSES OF HORMONAL IMBALANCE - WHICH DRUG WAS IT
Although I can't remember the name of the drug, I believe it might be Accutane.
Accutane works by reducing production of sebum, secreted by the sebaceous glands. Sebum is natural oil that moisturizes the skin but it can also cause acne, if produced in excees such as during puberty.
It has been proven that androgens, especially hormones such as DHT are responsible for stimulating secretion of sebum. Although its mode of action isn't completely resolved, saying that accutane or isotretinoin inhibits DHT in some way, might be correct.
Less DHT, means less sebum and less acne.
CAUSES OF HORMONAL IMBALANCE - WHAT ABOUT THE SIDE EFFECTS
Drop in my DHT and free testosterone levels would explain why the drug help rid of acne. On the other hand, it also explains the side effects.
Since DHT went down, estrogen went up which caused weight gain, prevented further facial hair development, gyno as well as sudden slowing down of height growth. Despite that, I still got up to 6 2' (188 cm).
That being said, sudden hormonal imbalance also lead to heart disease, as it seems. There are several studies that support my theory, including heart hypertrophy which made my already genetically predisposed enlarged heart, even bigger.
CAUSES OF HORMONAL IMBALANCE - PART 2
Like it wasn't enough that my sex hormones got screwed up, especially at this crucial age, my stress hormones also went crazy.
Due to lower DHT levels, gyno and the stress that young people encounter in their late teens, when deciding in which way to go, I experienced depression, insomnia and anxiety for those few fucked up years. I even went to doctor because of body aches I was experiencing, especially in the morning.
Then, I discovered that my stress hormones, ACTH and cortisol, are through the roof which could explain deterioration of my condition and heart function. It was like pouring gasoline on a fire. Not good.
CAUSES OF HORMONAL IMBALANCE - HOW DID I DEAL WITH THESE PROBLEMS
Overtime, I figured these things out on my own and resolved my problems, naturally. It is why I give so much credit to adaptogens and anti-estrogens. Adaptogens help with unbalanced hormones, especially ACTH and cortisol.
On the other hand, anti-estrogens helped with unbalanced sex hormones, by raising free T and DHT, while lowering estrogen. These also helped with balancing progesterone which was faced with elevated estrogen on one side and increased cortisol on the other one.
Body aches I was experiencing or fibromyalgia as the doctors called it, was gone. Also, my beard continued to slowly fill out, after I balanced my hormones, while gynecomastia decreased a lot.
However, I will probably need a surgery to completely remove it. Due to elevated DHT and lowered estrogen levels, even the hair on my scalp started thinning.
What was even more important, is that my heart function improved and the size of my cardiac muscle decreased to a more healthy dimensions.
WHAT ELSE CAN LEAD TO UNBALANCED HORMONES
Besides certain medications and stress, other causes of hormonal imbalance may include environmental toxins such as xenoestrogens, too high or too low body fat percentage, heavy metals found in food and even some bacterias.
There are several bacterias which can stimulate secretion of stress hormones such as ACTH and cortisol. By raising cortisol, bacterias and parasites can multiply more easily since stress hormones suppress immune system, your first line of defense.
Anyway, with time and knowledge I managed to overcome all the obstacles, including elevated stress hormones, suppressed DHT levels, increased estrogen, acumulation of xenoestrogens and other toxins as well as suppressed immune system and frequent infections that I was having.
If I could do it, so can you.
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