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Testosterone.
Sure, it's what we're all about. So
it shouldn't come as a surprise that we spend a lot of time
thinking about how to increase Testosterone and how to make
it, and consequently you, work better.
The trouble is, there's a yin to Testosterone's
yang and it's called estrogen.
When we increase Testosterone, gosh
darn it, some of it changes to estrogen or, more specifically,
estradiol, in a process called aromatization that takes
place mostly in fatty tissues and yes, muscle.
Unfortunately, estrogen does things
to us that we don't like. Estrogen can cause an increase
in body fat, a reduction of muscle mass, and even a decrease
in strength, not to mention making you want to cry at the
end of every episode of Grey's Anatomy.
It can even cause one of the most
embarrassing conditions known to man: gynecomastia, or male
breasts.
Yikes.
To make things worse, increased levels
of estradiol can then enter the bloodstream and travel to
the pituitary and signal it to stop producing the hormone
that prompts the testicles to produce Testosterone.
That's right, estrogen is petty. It
wants to keep Testosterone levels from going higher.
Furthermore, a lot of us believe that
estrogen plays more of a role in promoting prostate cancer
than the other Testosterone metabolite that generally gets
most of the blame, DHT.
If only our body's own production
of estrogen were the only problem! Unfortunately, modern
man is besieged by chemicals in the environment that mimic
estrogen. These phony estrogens, known as xenoestrogens,
exist in plastic bowls and bottles, air fresheners, pesticides,
even toothpaste. They're literally all over the place and
far too many find their way into your body every single
day.
These xenoestrogens can have negative
effects on the immune system, mucking up memory, behavior,
and even the ability to learn, not to mention the effects
caused by regular run-of-the-mill estrogen that I mentioned
above.
While there are plenty of substances
that combat estrogen, it's a tricky business. The thing
is, men need some estrogen to maintain the health of blood
vessels. Too little estrogen and the things get all brittle
and inelastic. Not good.
So how do you manage estrogen so that
you're able to keep Testosterone levels optimally high,
body fat low, and strength high while still maintaining
blood vessel health?
Thanks for asking, Papi.
There's a substance in nature that's
been the subject of a whole lot of worldwide research lately.
It's called resveratrol and it's a polyphenol found in such
foods as peanuts, grapes (and consequently, wine), and mulberries.
Resveratrol has a whole lot of good
things going for it, but the one we're most interested in
has to do with estrogen. You see, resveratrol acts as a
potent estrogen antagonist (while also acting as an agonist
in some tissues, similar to the drugs clomiphene and tamoxifen).
In higher concentrations, it acts
as an aromatase inhibitor. That means that it stops the
body from whittling away at your Testosterone.
This is cool because if a substance
stops Testosterone from being converted to estrogen or estradiol,
it not only prevents the nasty effects of estrogen (loss
of muscle and strength and accrual of body fat), but it
increases your level of Testosterone, leading to additional
strength and muscle!
What's equally important is that it
won't cause your Testicles to go on vacation, i.e. shrink.
The testicles don't get a signal from the pituitary to shut
down because estrogen has been curtailed!
There's a lot of good data in animal
models to back this up. Studies have demonstrated a resveratrol-fueled
increase in Luteinizing Hormone and Follicle Stimulating
Hormone (the pituitary hormones that signal the testicles
to start producing Testosterone) that's 2.7 times greater
than placebo.
Additionally, resveratrol caused a
76% increase in sperm count, all of this without any adverse
effects. (1)
The aromatase inhibition is thought
to occur through two mechanisms: reducing the expression
of aromatase, as well as binding to the enzyme and preventing
it from doing its dirty work.
And, unlike conventional aromatase
inhibitors, resveratrol doesn't cause a decline in endothelial
(blood vessel) function. In fact, it seems to improve it!
(2-12)
And remember those nasty xenoestrogens
I mentioned earlier? Resveratrol seems to occupy the receptor
sites, or biological "parking lots," so that these
xenoestrogens can't "park" in their spots. That's
good.
While athletes should no doubt be
excited about these Testosterone-increasing, estrogen-lowering
effects of resveratrol, male and female Life Extension people
have been all over this substance for other reasons.
An overwhelming amount of literature
on resveratrol has demonstrated potent cardiovascular benefits,
anti-aging effects, powerful anti-cancer effects, anti-arthritic,
and neurological effects (e.g. potential benefits in treating
Alzheimer's Disease). Many of these benefits seem to stem
from anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory effects as well
as gene modulation. (13-21)
What the Life Extension people are
most excited about, though, is that resveratrol might actually
extend lifespan.
Remember those calorie deprivation
people that believed you could extend your lifespan considerably
by just munching on a ridiculously low number of calories
each day?
Well, one proposed mechanism by which
calorie deprivation can make you live longer is that it
activates a protein called SIRT1 (sirtuin 1). Activation
of this protein inhibits PPAR-gamma activity and this causes
your body to burn fat.
It's not hard to imagine that having
less fat might cause you to live longer, but remarkably,
resveratrol activates this very same SIRT1 protein.
So even if you're not concerned with
extending your life at this point, resveratrol can cause
your body to burn fat.
Maybe you've heard of the "French
Paradox" (and no, it has nothing to do with why their
star soccer player would head butt a guy in the finals of
the World Cup)?
It's the medical puzzle where certain
populations (French and Greek) seem to experience a low
incidence of coronary heart disease while eating a diet
high in saturated fat. Epidemiologists have reasoned that
it has to do with their daily consumption of red wine.
Well, many researchers have gone one
step further and concluded that it was the resveratrol in
the wine that was responsible for the French Paradox. (22-25)
This miracle substance has also been
shown to have impressive anti-fungal and anti-viral properties,
and may even protect the liver from excessive alcohol consumption
or oxidative damage from taking too much acetaminophen.
(26-39)
If all that wasn't enough, there's
a good deal of data demonstrating that resveratrol is an
extremely promising compound for the prevention and treatment
of prostate cancer! (40-48)
So if taking Testosterone-boosting
supplements has made you wary before because of possible
prostate risks, resveratrol seems like the answer to your
prayers.
Quit teasing
you? Oh, okay.
If there's an exciting compound out
there, Tim and I want it; we want it for ourselves and we
figure that if we want it, chances are you want it too.
That's why Biotest has been working
on the isolation of pure resveratrol for the last year,
and why we're introducing our newest supplement, REZ-V.
Each bottle of REZ-V contains 60 capsules of the purest,
highest-grade of resveratrol possible.
Our recommended dosage of REZ-V is
three capsules once per day. It's best to take one large
dose of resveratrol, instead of several smaller doses, because
of the way it's metabolized. In essence, you want to overwhelm
the body's ability to inactivate and excrete resveratrol,
which is done through sulfation and glucuronidation (adding
sulfate and beta-glucuronide groups).
This "overwhelming" process
is accomplished at about 200 mg taken in one shot. A three-capsule
dose contains 600 mg of pure resveratrol, which is also
the dose we believe delivers the greatest benefit for the
least cost.
Unlike a lot of other supplements,
REZ-V doesn't have to be cycled. In fact, because of the
super-powerful health and protective benefits, we recommend
all males over 18 take REZ-V every day.
• Acts as
both an estrogen antagonist and an aromatase inhibitor.
• Increases
Testosterone without causing testicular shutdown
• Promotes
blood vessel health and cardiovascular health in general
• Exhibits
anti-cancer effects, particularly anti prostate-cancer effects
• Exhibits
anti-aging effects
• Promotes
fat loss
• Has anti-inflammatory
properties
• Acts as
an anti-oxidant
• Exhibits
anti-arthritic effects
• Shows
anti-fungal and anti-viral effects
• Acts as
a liver protectant
Excuse me for saying so, but that's
all pretty damn cool.
The cost for this wonder supplement?
An extraordinarily low $69.95 per bottle (when purchasing two or more). That's a whole
lot of benefit for not a whole lot of money.
Whether you're interested in increased
Testosterone and decreased estrogen, along with reduced
levels of body fat, or just want to be healthier and possibly
live longer, REZ-V has got to be part of your daily supplement
arsenal.
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