Low-fat Diets Reduce Estrogen Levels - Shouldn't This Be The Best Reason To Eat Low Fat?

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I'm not sure if Peatarians are aware of these studies, I would like to think so, given how everyone is trying to reduce their estrogen, but if not, I thought I'd post these:

Effects of a high-complex-carbohydrate, low-fat, low-cholesterol diet on levels of serum lipids and estradiol. - PubMed - NCBI

The effect of a low fat diet on estrogen metabolism. - PubMed - NCBI

Meta-analysis: Dietary Fat Intake, Serum Estrogen Levels, and the Risk of Breast Cancer | JNCI: Journal of the National Cancer Institute | Oxford Academic

Fat Intake Is Associated with Serum Estrogen and Androgen Concentrations in Postmenopausal Japanese Women

I don't see anyone bringing this up which is rather surprising given how many people are talking about low fat and estrogen separately.

However, for us men, as we know, a certain amount of fat is required for testosterone and steroid production.
I believe this was quoted as being as low as 15-20 g per day. It would seem then, that in order to maximize the testosterone:estrogen ratio, one should eat only enough fat to produce maximal amounts of testosterone, but no more than that, so that the estrogen levels are kept as low as possible.

Seems that 20% of energy from fat would be a good starting point and then one could take it lower bit by bit while measuring serum levels of hormones to optimize it further.
 

Hugh Johnson

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PUFA is estrogenic, so the issue with studies like this is that they might just be measuring PUFA intake. I would rather eat 50% of calories from hydrogenated coconut oil and milk fat than eat 20% corn oil.
 

Wagner83

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www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0022473184902541
The possible effect of dietary fat content and the ratio of polyunsaturated to saturated fatty acids (P/S-ratio) on serum sex hormones was studied in 30 healthy male volunteers. The customary diet of the subjects, which supplied 40% of energy as fat (mainly from animal sources, P/S-ratio 0.15) was replaced for a 6 weeks period by a practically isocaloric experimental diet containing significantly less fat (25% of energy) with a higher P/S-ratio (1.22) and other environmental factors were stabilized.

Serum testosterone and 4-androstenedione decreased from 22.7 ± 1.1 nmol/l to 19.3 ± 1.2 nmol/l, (SEM, P < 0.001) and from 4.6 ± 0.2 nmol/l to 4.3 ±0.2 nmol/l (SEM, P < 0.01), respectively. These changes were paralleled by a reduction in serum free (non-protein bound) testosterone (P < 0.01) suggesting a possible change in biological activity. During the low fat period a significant negative correlation between serum prolactin and androgens was observed. All the changes in androgen levels were reversible.

With the exception of a small but non-significant decrease in serum estradiol-17β, the other hormone parameters were practically unaffected by the dietary manipulation. Our results indicate that in men a decrease in dietary fat content and an increase in the degree of unsaturation of fatty acids reduces the serum concentrations of androstenedione, testosterone and free testosterone. The mechanism and importance of this phenomenon is discussed in the light of epidemiological and experimental data.
I'm not sure the drop in T is significant, they also claim the reduction in estradiol is non-significant.
 

sladerunner69

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Difference between unsaturated, polyunsaturated, and saturated fats on estrogen levels is very significant indeedy. I consider too low estrogen to be an issue likewise....
 

cyclops

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I believe this was quoted as being as low as 15-20 g per day.

I think the only reason to go very low fat is if you have body fat to lose or are getting fat. Otherwise eat as much good fat as makes you feel good. Seems reasonable?
 

Wagner83

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Have you encounterred this by chance? I still have back aches and kneww joint aches whenever I take even a single aspirin. I've been cutting back on coffee, aspirin, fat soluble vitamins, androsterone, just everything.
Could the aspirin be irritating?
 

ddjd

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a zero/low fat diet seems to be working wonders for my estrogen levels
 

Ulysses

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Did you check how much these were lowered actually? It doesn't look that significant to me but I'm no expert.
During the program, serum estradiol levels were significantly reduced from 47.2 +/- 4.6 to 23.8 +/- 2.5 pg/ml (mean +/- SE) whereas serum testosterone levels were unchanged (5.1 +/- 0.3 versus 5.1 +/- 0.2 ng/ml).

A 50% drop in estradiol is huge. In this study testosterone levels were unaffected; in other studies the biggest serum T decline I’ve seen from a low-fat diet is 13%. I would gladly take that kind of drop in my T if it means halving my estradiol, but my last round of bloodwork showed high testosterone and high estradiol, so maybe that’s just me.

It should be noted that this study was conducted with Pritikin, which means that, unlike the “low-fat” diets in many other studies, these subjects were really eating as little fat as possible. Sometimes in the other studies you will find out that they were being fed 20% of their calories from fat - not the best way to test the very-low-fat hypothesis. For one thing, once your diet is composed so substantially of fats, then the composition of the fats you consume becomes a confounder.

Moreover it appears to be a metabolic ward study. Overall a really excellent study. Worth pointing out, though, that they refer to “daily exercise” in the abstract, which in 1985 surely means endurance aerobic work. A month is more than long enough for this type and frequency of exercise to lower testosterone, so perhaps their T levels would have actually risen had they remained sedentary, or done resistance training instead. On the other hand, even though endurance training has been shown to raise prolactin, the studies about its effects on baseline T seem equivocal.
 
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Alexander

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A High Carb Low fat diet is a Disaster.

I was raised as a child on this diet. Until i got too 25 years old, And i start increasing Saturated fat From Beef, Whole milk, Butter, Whole eggs.

A High Carb low fat diet will age you way faster, You look older apperance wise.

When i was growing up i was Very Pale white male, No skin color, Nothing at all.

Women werent interested in me. My testicle were small until i turned 25 years old.

Once i start Increasing Saturated Fat intake from Whole eggs, Whole milk 3.25, Beef. My body change completly.

I start too look like a man and not a teen.

My mother raised me on a low fat High Carb diet because i was a 1980 baby, where low fat recommandation were setting in. My father also had a heart Attack,So thats why she raised me on this...

Total bull**** diet, its not good, It will age you faster.

Just too proove my point people guess im 25 and im 34. Before when i was growing up they told me i look older...

I now eat a Low Carb, High Fat diet. Even if peat say High carb is good, I eat ALOT of Saturated Fat.
 

Alexander

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Also Saturated Fat is ANTI-DHT.

I got a ******* Mature Hairline in my teens from a low fat/High Carb diet. I panicked because i thought i was going bald. DHT increase.
 

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