Tag: health

Male Menopause, does it exist?

Today’s topic is Male Menopause, does it exist?

Recently I was having this discussion with some male colleagues. The general opinion was that men’s testosterone levels slowly decline as they age, but without ‘menopausal like’ symptoms.

After refreshing my knowledge, this is what I can report.

There have been several articles written about this subject. The medical community is debating whether or not men really do go through a well-defined menopause. However there does seem to be some consensus that some men suffer from ‘Andropause’.

Andropause?

This term is used to describe age-related changes in male hormone levels.

The same group of symptoms is also known as testosterone deficiency, androgen deficiency, and late-onset hypogonadism.

Andropause involves a drop in testosterone production in men who are age 50 or older. It’s often affiliated with hypogonadism. Both conditions involve lowered testosterone levels and similar symptoms.

Typically as men age, their testosterone levels will begin to drop. According to the Mayo Clinic, testosterone levels tend to decline an average of 1% per year after men turn 30. Some health conditions can cause earlier or more drastic declines in the testosterone levels.

Andropause can actually cause physical, sexual, and psychological problems.

As with female menopause, they typically worsen, as you get older.

The symptoms may include:

  • low energy
  • depression or sadness
  • decreased motivation
  • lowered self-confidence
  • difficulty concentrating
  • insomnia or difficulty sleeping
  • increased body fat
  • reduced muscle mass and feelings of physical weakness
  • gynecomastia, or development of breasts
  • decreased bone density
  • erectile dysfunction
  • reduced libido
  • infertility

Some men may also experience swollen or tender ‘breasts’, decreased testicle size, loss of body hair or hot flashes.

Ladies, does this all sound a bit familiar?

Sounds like ‘male menopause’ to me.

Low levels of testosterone associated with andropause have also been linked to osteoporosis. This is a condition where your bones become weak and brittle. These are rare symptoms. They typically affect men at the same age as women entering menopause.

Andropause or male menopause differs from female menopause in several ways.

For one thing, not all men experience it. For another, it doesn’t involve a complete shutdown of the reproductive organs. The testes, unlike the ovaries, do not run out of the substance it needs to make testosterone. It’s well known that a healthy man may be able to make sperm well into his 80s or later.

Well, whether you call it ‘Andropause’ or ‘Male Menopause’, I think it is fair to say that for both sexes, as we get older, our diminishing hormones can make our lives a little challenging.

Till the next post,

Live Clean n Prosper

Cauliflower, is it a ‘Super food’?

Todays’ post is about Cauliflower. I found out this week that cauliflower aids the body’s detoxification system. This was new information for me.

So I’ve decided to learn a bit more about this vegetable and share the results.

Cauliflower is a member of the Brassica family, better known as cruciferous vegetables. It contains fiber that helps with the feeling of satiety, weight loss and a healthy digestive tract. It is is not only low in calories but also packed with vitamins and minerals.

May be a ‘Super food’

It seems every week experts are calling a food ‘super food’.  To be given this label the food needs to be ‘nutrient rich and considered especially beneficial for health and wellbeing’.

Well, this versatile vegetable also contains antioxidants and phytonutrients that can protect against cancer, choline that is important for learning and memory, and many other important nutrients.

Raw cauliflower is rich in the antioxidant vitamin C, which is required for tissue growth and tissue repair in all parts of the body.

It is also necessary for the formation of the important protein collagen, which is used to make skin, tendons, ligaments, scar tissue, and blood vessels.

Cauliflower contains decent amounts of vitamin K, which has anti-inflammatory properties. Studies also suggest that vitamin K aids in preventing bone loss in both men and women and that it might also decrease the risk of heart disease.

Regular consumption of cauliflower assists healthy blood circulation and aids in maintaining blood vessels, which is attributed to the presence of sulforaphane.

Aids in ‘detoxification’.

Cauliflower also contains a phytonutrient that together with sulforaphane, helps activate and regulate the function of detoxifying enzymes.

These nutrients are important for Phase I detoxification along with sulfur-containing nutrients essential for Phase II detox activities.

Other compounds found in cauliflower are very important for helping the body detox due to their function to support the liver.

These compounds stimulate what are known as ‘Phase II enzymes’, the natural antioxidant system of our body. They help trigger the liver to produce detoxifying enzymes that block free radical damage. At the same time, sulforaphane stimulates detoxification and digestion by preventing bacterial overgrowth occurring in the gut.

Sources; http://www.well-beingsecrets.com/ and http://www.mercola.com/

Minimal cooking

Cooking is harmful to the nutritional content of cauliflower. Cooking for thirty or more minutes reduces health benefits by 75%. So the lesson here is to steam your cauliflower so it’s just tender, or eat it raw.

There was so much more information available on the health benefits of cauliflower. Who would have thought that this humble and unpopular vegetable could contain so many health-promoting nutrients?

It seems that incorporating cauliflower into our daily diet would be a smart strategy to protect against many health conditions.

 

Till the next post,

 

Live Clean n Prosper

Nails, are yours absorbing toxic chemicals?

Today I’m going to write about nails. I was talking with a work colleague this week about Acrylic manicures and whether they were ‘toxic’.

For 20 years I used to get acrylic coatings on my nails. I didn’t mind that over time this process made my nails thin and weak, because that is how they are naturally.

It is only in recent years that I stopped this practice. I became more aware of the damage that some chemicals can do to our body.

Not many people are aware that our nails are in fact porous and that water can pass through more easily than normal skin. Any moisture that collects underneath the surface of the nail would ordinarily evaporate, passing through the porous structure of the nail. The presence of an artificial nail or a polish impedes that.

With these facts in mind I was concerned that any of the chemicals used in the acrylic manicure could be absorbed through the nail.

The research…..

I have done a lot of research online to clarify this, but have found so much conflicting information.

One study I found did reveal that some chemicals used in some nail polishes are absorbed into the body.

“Duke University researchers and a non-profit organisation called the Environmental Working Group, conducted the study.

The study found evidence of a nail polish chemical in the bodies of women who used popular nail polish brands. The researchers discovered traces of triphenyl phosphate, or TPHP in all of the study’s participants just 10 to 14 hours after they painted their nails.

TPHP has been linked to changes in hormone levels including endocrine disruption. In addition, previous studies in animals have found connections between the chemical and adverse developmental and reproductive problems.

The group’s research found that not only did TPHP exist in many popular nail polish brands, also that several polishes did not list the chemical in their ingredients.” (Source http://www.dukechronicle.com/)

What to do…

So, after all this I still am unsure about acrylic & gel. I am however convinced that we absorb some chemicals through our nails as the Duke University study revealed. With this in mind I probably won’t go back to using acrylic. However, I do use a nail polish that is free of triphenyl phosphate and other chemicals such as – toluene, formaldehyde and DBP (dibutyl phthalate).

We all make choices that contribute to our health and this is just another way for me to minimise my exposure to unnecessary chemicals.

Till the next post,

Live Clean n Prosper