What Drives Prostate Enlargement? DHT, Estrogen, Insulin, and More

Introduction to Prostate Enlargement 0:00

As men age, there are hormonal changes which definitely affect prostate enlargement. As a matter of fact, research has mainly focused on the hormones testosterone, dihydrotestosterone, progesterone and estrogen. Let's talk about these hormones which really get at the root of why a lot of men have prostate. Welcome to Health Breakthroughs with Dr. Stengler. I'm Dr Mark Stegler and each episode we cut through the noise to bring you practical, science-backed insights for more energy, better health and a life that feels like yours again.

Well hello men. In this video I am going to talk the surprising causes of prostate enlargement. known as benign prostatic hyperplasia. And this is a very common age-associated condition that involves, of course, enlargement of the prostate gland. Now, to properly prevent and treat prostate enlargment, you have to know what the causes are. That's what I'm going to get into in this video. You've done everything you were told to do and something still feels off. At Health Breakthroughs with Dr. Stengler, we go beyond symptom management to explore integrative, science-backed approaches to the issues that medicine too often overlooks.

Chronic fatigue, brain fog, gut dysfunction, inflammation, hormone imbalance, and healthy aging.

Symptoms and Prevalence of BPH 1:12

If you're ready for real answers and practical tools to support your health naturally, follow Health breakthroughs of Dr Stegler on Doctor Talks or wherever you listen to podcasts. Double 50% of men between ages of 51 and 60 have prostate enlargement. And of course, as we age, the condition becomes more common. If you're over 70 years of age likely you have some degree of prostate largement and the conditions is generally more severe and aggressive in African American men. The symptoms that are common with large prostate include an incomplete emptying of the bladder.

So your bladder feels full even after releasing urine. You have increased urinary frequency, the need to urinate often, about every hour or two in some more severe cases. Intermittency, then need the stop and start several times while urinating, which is a real pain. Urgency, sensation of needing to urinate right away. A weak stream, a lot of men will report a weak or feeble urinary stream. Straining, you have the need to push or strain to start your urine flow. And then nighttime urination, known as nocturia.

This, of course, means the needs to wake up at night to Urinate more than two times. Now, the thing is there's no single cause of prostate enlargement. Instead, there are several different causes, including genetic factors. However, one thing that researchers can agree on is that as men age, there are hormonal changes which definitely affect prostate enlargement. As a matter of fact, research has mainly focused on the hormones testosterone, dihydrotestosterone, progesterone, and estrogen. So let's talk about these hormones which really get at the root of why a lot of men have prostate enlargement.

Hormonal Causes: Testosterone and DHT 2:51

A lot people think that testosterone is the culprit why prostates enlarge in men. Well, testosterone levels decrease as men age, so that's not a good link. We don't find that prostate and enlargment is common in man in their late teens or early twenties when their testosterone level are at their highest levels. As well, men who have been castrated no longer have testicles, who had low testosterone do not have issues with prostate enlargement. Then there's the hormone metabolite dihydrotestosterone.

Now this is a little bit different because this IS associated with prostate enlargment. As the prostate gland contains the enzyme 5-alpha reductase, which converts testosterone into dihydrotestostone, also known as DHT. DHt binds to certain receptors in a prostate and stimulates growth. And when we're younger, we need this because DHT stimulates prostate growth during development, even starting in the womb in males. However, as DHC continues to stimulate prostate, growth later in life, then that can lead to prostate enlargement.

And we know that men with prostate and largemen tend to have higher levels or concentrations of DH T as well. They have high levels of the enzyme activity of a five alpha reductase, which again seems to be related to. Prostate enlargements. There can be other issues. There could be genetic variations in the receptors for DHT, variations known as polymorphisms. And in some studies that's been shown to be related to prostate enlargement. These receptors found in high concentration in prostate gland influence the binding of dihydrotestosterone, as well as the regulation of genes that can affect the prostate.

Now let's talk about estrogen, because men have estrogen aswell. This is another hormone that has been showing to influence prostate growth.

Estrogen, Progesterone, and Other Risk Factors 4:39

So while estrogen is a normal part of the male hormonal system and is produced in fat, brain tissue, bone, and other tissues, the production of estrogen in primarily controlled by the enzyme known as aromatase, which converts the hormone androstenedione, made by testicles and adrenal glands, into the estrogen known estradiol. So aromatase also converts testosterone from fat and muscle cells into estrdiol or estrogen. An increased activity aromatase seems to be a causative factor in prostate enlargement.

Now men tend to accumulate fat as they age, which leads to an increased aromatase activity, as well as decreased testosterone, but elevated estrogen levels. Age does not cause estrogen to decline the way it does with testosterone. Matter of fact, the relative excess of estrogen in aging men compared to their testosterone known as the estrogen-androgen ratio, influences the later phases of prostate enlargement and even prostate cancer. Now there are two types of estrogen receptors inside the prostate cells.

You got the alpha and beta estrogen receptor. And when estrogen binds to the alfa receptors, it stimulates prostate cell growth as well as prostate inflammation. The binding of estrogens to beta cells oppositely is anti-growth and anti inflammatory with the potential for anti cancer effects. Hey everybody, I want to take just a quick moment and invite you to my website drstengler.com. Here we have the supplements that we've been using with our patients for many, many years. High quality and high potency supplements, very pure.

So, if you're looking for high quality supplements where you can notice a difference, both in how you feel and on your lab tests, go to our website at dr.stegler dot com. Now, what about the hormone progesterone? Again, often thought of as a female hormone, but it's also known to play a role in men's health. It's produced in the adrenal glands and specialized cells of the testicles known as the lady cells. These are the same cells actually produce testosterone and the prostate gland has receptors for pro gesterones.

Now there are other factors that may play a role in the formation of prostate enlargement, including elevated levels of the hormone insulin, as seen with insulin resistance, things like pre-diabetes, diabetes, metabolic syndrome, Also insulin growth-like factors, norepinephrine and other peptides and hormones. Other factors include men who have a high waist to hip ratio, obesity, and again, genetics can play a role as well. And there are several nutritional balances associated with prostate enlargement, such as a higher intake of animal protein, saturated fat and high cholesterol intake.

men that consume too high of a calorie intake. Also, men who do not consume enough omega-3 fatty acids and vitamin D deficiency are also associated as risk factors for prostate enlargement. So, these are the key risk-factors for prostate enlargment. If you're using diet, exercise, the right nutritional supplements, you can affect these root causes. I have other videos on the best supplements to use for Prostate Enlargement, as well as articles, my website on markstengler.com, as well as videos on how you can best treat prostate enlargement.

So subscribe to my YouTube channel if you haven't done so already. Hit the like button and it's been great to be with you. Thanks for listening to Health Breakthroughs with Dr. Stengler. If today's episode resonated with, you please follow the show, share with someone who needs it and leave a review. It helps more people find us. For more resources and wellness support, visit DrStenglar.com.