Blood Results - Low T and Low Vit D

Hi,


Finally got my blood results. I thought my thyroid was most likely the cause of my diffuse thinning and dry hair, but my TSH, FT4, FT3 came back all fine. Instead my Testosterone levels are 192 (normal 280 - 800) and my vitamin d 30 (32- 100). My free T is ok thought (3.3 (normal 2.0 - 4.) and my DHEA is relatively high (8.2 (1.8 - 12.5)).

I did an allergy test as well and Aspergillus niger came back high , as well as casein, pumpkin seed, egg white : ( ,which is interesting as it means im allergic to mold. My itchy scalp started when i lived in a place which had a very musty, moldy smell to it.

My dr has taken more blood and is going to check what part of the body is causing the T problem.

My regime over the last 2-3 months has been...
Top 6 (minus Curcumin - i believed it increased my shedding)
Brewers Yeast
Broccomax,
Zinc (did the tally test and didnt taste a thing)
B-12,
Magnesium,
Licorice (just started)
concentrace mineral drops
si jun zi tang (blend of ginseng and other roots)
Shen Min (just started - will the Saw P not help with my T levels? )

Since starting this regime i have seen a slight increase in shedding, perhaps some regrowth (not sure if its new hair or hair on the way out) and my itchy scalp has not really changed - tried loads of stuff here - many oils, IH topical, Niz, Baking Soda, Aloe Vera, Borax and nothing has got rid of it.

1)My dr wants me to do the adrenal faitigue urine and saliva test. However, ive already spent enough on bills and supps and I know for sure i have AF - tired during day, bad sleep, tired after meals etc. Is it really worth doing it?

2) have some Iosol, is it safe for me to start taking it, even though my adrenals are out of whack? Im hoping its the missing link in my overall health.

3)Due to my vit D levels low, should I just up my supp take to 5 pills a day?

4)I imagine my dr will start trying to increase my T levels. I thought increasing my zinc level would help. Is low T the cause of my diffuse thinning?

I hit pubert v late and still dont have much body hair even though im in my late 20's, so the low T is no surprise to me, just upsetting that i never did anything about it. Funnily enough i got it checked a year ago and a dr said it was fine (God knows what the level was at then).

5) Since starting my supp regime, the body hair i do have has got a lot longer. Could this be DHT? Or is it the Zinc upping my T?

licorice apparently inhibts 5ar which COULD be the cause of your shedding but im not sure, try taking that out of your regime to see if it helps.

the best thing to do when starting supplements is to gradually introduce them, over 2/3 weeks, in my view this is enough time to realise whether it will cause a shed or not.

not really bothered about the increase in shedding at the moment and as mentioned i only started licorice recently. And it is difficult to judge what supp does what when you are starting out and want to dive into the top 6. I'm hoping that some shedding is a good sign that things are being reorganised : )

Be great to have a response to my questions above, if anyone can help.

DBAL,

Have you ever tried curcumin (Jarrow, NOW, or Meriva brands), resveratrol, and vitamin D together for an itchy scalp?

i tried curcumin for a month and i found it increased my shedding. I may reintroduce it at smaller doses. TBH nothing has really addressed it for me so far.It's not an aggressive itch, just slightly bothersome and makes me worries about the health of my scalp.

Judging by my blood work, i think Vit D should be increased.

I think at the moment, I am more worried about the low T in my body. I always assumed I had low levels but it didnt bother me as i knew that meant my DHT levels were low and I wouldnt lose much hair. Well, now im losing har!

From my experience and readings, vitamin D as well as vitamin E (tocotrienols) increase your T levels, without negatively affecting your hair.

Been doing some reading on the effects of low T. Apparently it leads to insulin resistance. Any chance that is reversible when levels are optimized?

does vit e and d3 raise total test or free? free is the bad one right?

I would definitely do a 'loading dose' of d3 at 10,000iu/day for a month and tehn drop down to 5,000iu for a month. Get levels tested again then. CS is a big proponent of vitamin d to increase T levels (among other things). He has also said in the past that many cases of adrenal fatigue can be corrected with vitamin d alone.

I'm sure you know that licorice prevents the breakdown of cortisol. You only want to use licorice if your cortisol is low and avoid it if it is high. The benefit to the 24 hour cortisol test is that you can see what times of the day it is low or high. If for instance it dips below norm at 3pm you want to take the licorice then. I've read that licorice should not be taken long term. Here's the link with the rest of the protocol: http://livingnetwork.co.za/hormones/adrenal-fatigue/adrenal-restoration-programme/ I'd highly recommend the 24 hour cortisol test. Blood cortisol is fine but isn't that useful as the levels change throughout the day.

This is a good website for on adrenal faitigue/thyroid - check out the FAQ on adrenal fatigue. http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/adrenal-info/

A note on licorice. If you take too much it will produce symptoms just like hyperaldosteronism (high aldosterone). I just started licorice as well and one of the things I'm noticing is itching like bugs are crawling on the skin. That is a sign of high aldosterone. You have to mess around with the dosage to find the best one for you.

I'm going to look into hydrocortisone replacement (cortef). Some argue that it will shut down the adrenals, but like that site says in the FAQ- chances are that the adrenals are already shut down. It says that low dose cortisone will not completely suppress the adrenals. It depends on how patient you are really.

Make sure to stop any adrenal supplements like licorice if you do the saliva test. That first link has a good general protocol for adrenal fatigue you could try before deciding on cortef.

In summary I'd basically get your vit d levels up and see what happens. Then you can make an evaaluation from there.

Thanks, I really appreciate your advice.

And in response to iluvhair, yes you probably don't want too much free testosterone. My free levels aren't too bad even though my total is low.

I'm slightly concerned that by upping my T levels, I will see an increase of DHT. My one fear is that perhaps my follicles are extremely sensitive (like some members of my family) and lose more hair. In the end I would of course prefer health over hairloss. but I'd love to have regrowth as well as good health

i cant imagine taking some zinc or increasing vitamin D will get your levels up to where they need to be 800-900ng/dl
you need a high BAT.

you need HCG + Testosterone shots, most likely.

you need a lot more testing. Test DHT, Prolactin, SHBG, Estradiol, LH, FSH
need to figure out if your primary or secondary..

I cant imagine living with Testosterone of those levels. you gotta feel terrible,

I wonder why people notice increased Shedding with CURCUMIN?

Your testosterone is low because your SHBG is low. If you increase your SHBG it will automatically increase your total-testosterone level. SHBG acts to preserve testosterone and keep it in its anabolic state. When testosterone is free from SHBG it loses its anabolic effects and can then exert estrogenic effects (estrogen) or androgenic effects (DHT).

SHBG is influenced by diet. A high-fat meat based diet lowers SHBG while a low-fat/high-fiber carbohydrate based vegan diet increases SHBG [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6].




[1] Dietary correlates of plasma insulin-like growth factor I and insulin-like growth factor binding protein 3 concentrations.
[2] Determinants of circulating insulin-like growth factor I and insulin-like growth factor binding protein 3 concentrations in a cohort of Singapore men and women.
[3] The influence of dietary intake on the insulin–like growth factor (IGF) system across three ethnic groups: a population–based study.
[4] The associations of diet with serum insulin–like growth factor I and its main binding proteins in 292 women meat–eaters, vegetarians, and vegans.
[5] Diet and Sex Hormone-Binding Globulin.
[6] Hormones and diet: low insulin-like growth factor-I but normal bioavailable androgens in vegan men.

Blackjack - thanks. I don't feel too bad, though i think ive learned to live with it. I assume i have had low levels my entire life. My dr has taken more blood to check if it's my testes or my pituitary gland. Just done some reading and it seems that it can result in infertility. Scary.

MisterE- getting tiresome this shit man.

I would love CS opinion on all this.

DBAL wrote:

MisterE- getting tiresome this shit man.

Just trying to help.

sorry man, it's just ive read your posts in every thread, and i may be wrong, but this is something that has been wrong with me for a while and i think the diet thing isnt going to be my savior. It may help a bit but as mentioned earlier it's probably going to need more than that. Apologies, im a little shellshocked by my results and what im going to need to do.

I suppose DHT blockers are out for me? Cut out the Shen min?

DBAL wrote:sorry man, it's just ive read your posts in every thread, and i may be wrong, but this is something that has been wrong with me for a while and i think the diet thing isnt going to be my savior.

I think you might find it interesting that vegans have about 13% higher SHBG-bound-testosterone levels than omnivores or vegetarians [1]. From personal experience, me going on a extremely-low-fat/high-fiber vegan diet drastically increased my total-testosterone levels...as a result I leaned up, my athletic performance was greatly improved, my sex-drive came back (along with rock-hard erections) and my personal confidence is thru the roof! Also, my hypertension disappeared. Along with my high cholesterol and type-2-diabetes.

Why don't you try it out? Give up the processed foods and animal products and load up on fruit, veggies, and healthy high-fiber complex carbohydrates. It's made all the difference to me and that is why I'm here; to show people the scientific evidence and give them my testimony...there are others on the forum who have taken my advice and report they are feeling better than ever! I know I am…



[1] Hormones and diet: low insulin-like growth factor-I but normal bioavailable androgens in vegan men.

What about the 95% of people who fail on on the diet you recommend?

If you decide to increase your intake of Vitamin D3, I would certainly take Vitamin K2 as well.

The Dilemma with Vitamin D

"The issue is that Vitamin D is only half of the story. What Vitamin D does is to up regulate a protein called matrix Gla protein (MGP). MGPs job is to prevent vascular calcifications. BUT, this process also requires VITAMIN K2. The role of Vitamin K2 (menaquinone) is to literally active MPG by adding a carboxyl group (see cartoon).

Essentially, there are two types of natural Vitamin Ks - Vitamin K1 (phylloquinone) which is found in green leafy vegetables and Vitamin K2 (menaquinone) found in organ meats, moldy cheeses like Blue Cheese, and natto (fermented soybeans which is eaten in Japan). Vitamin K1 deals with the blood clotting process. Certain proteins are produced in the liver and aid in clotting. These are factors II, V, IX, X. All of which require Vitamin K1 for activation. Thus, Vitamin K1 is important for the liver.

Vitamin K2, as noted above, is required for the peripheral tissues in preventing calcifications and also for bone formation. Since the Vitamin Ks are fat soluble, they will be carried in lipoproteins. Vitamin K1 is found in triglyceride rich lipoproteins whereas Vitamin K2 is found within HDL and LDL. (1) ..."

"In summary, Vitamin D increases the expression of MPG but Vitamin K2 is required to active it and prevent vascular calcifications. Whereas, high doses of Vitamin A can inhibit the increase expression of MPG by Vitamin D. Therefore, taking high doses of Vitamin D without Vitamin K2 may increase the risk of vascular calcifiations. Yet, there is also the concern of an increased risk of blood clots with Vitamin K2 administration in those who are prone to clots like patients with atrial fibrillation, cancers, Lupus, etc. These patient may need to completely avoid Vitamin Ks especially if there are on warfarin. One future studies will tell how safe is Vitamin K2 in these patients...."

http://nephropal.blogspot.com/

Id be interested to see if you experience increased in shedding from Curcumin, did you use the Jarrow Brand? the one CS recommends on top 6?

Just 1000 mg. of vitamin D3 cuts one's risk of prostate cancer by 50%, I have read.

blackjack wrote:I wonder why people notice increased Shedding with CURCUMIN?

Who does? You?

LEF's curcumin caused many here to shed. It is a very powerful extract though (one capsule is equivalent to almost 2800 mg. of a typical 95% curcumin extract). Jarrow's is 500 mg. per capsule, and combined with resveratrol (and vitamin D) should do nothing but wonderful things for your hair and scalp.

I mentioned earlier that it (curcumin) might have increased my shedding. I have dropped it but there hasn't been a change so it probably wasnt causing that. I imagine my hair fall is due to the low t. I'm tempted to say I have had some frontal regrowth but I think it'll be a few more weeks till I know for sure.

Thinking about replacing the Shen Min with Densiti. I'm just wanting to cut down the shed (especially the small hairs).

When vitamin D levels are optimized it raises glutathione and also raises testosterone (both phenomenal for heath.

I should point out that if there is any disruption in sleep, Part I & 2 of this Daily Topic maybe applicable to some (if cortisol levels are too high).

http://www.immortalhair.org/apps/blog/show/3142667-sleep-apnea

http://www.immortalhair.org/apps/blog/show/3220718-sleep-apnea-part-deux

Rather than opting for T shots, I think I'll sort out my Vit D levels and hope things improve. I'm pretty sure upping my Zinc dose will help as well - Ive been taking 30mg a day but i still dont get too much taste on the zinc tally test.