Steroids 101
They control you, But if you understand them you can start to control them.
They control your metabolic rate, energy levels, sexual performance, make you feel tired at night and wake you up in the morning, they make you hungry or full , some sharpen your senses, some increase your heart rate, some strengthen your bones and muscles, some cause inflammation and some block it.
The word Hormone comes from the Ancient Greek ὁρμῶν (hormôn), meaning “to set in motion” or “to stimulate.”
This represents exactly what hormones do in our body, they signal and regulate pretty much every process in our body.
They control your metabolic rate, make you feel tired at night and wake you up in the morning, they make you hungry or full , some sharpen your senses, some increase your heart rate, some strengthen your bones and muscles, some cause inflammation and some block it.
There are over 200 active hormones in our body, each has it's own unique role developed over hundreds or even thousands of years. it is common to divide the hormones to 3 main groups, this helps to categorize them and understand their chemical and biological properties.
1. Peptide hormones: water-soluble chains of amino acids, for example insulin that's built from 51 amino acids, BPC-157 that's built from 15 amino acids.
2. Amine Hormones: Small molecules derived from single amino acids, for example dopamine that's made from Tyrosine or serotonin that's made from Tryptophan.
3.Steroid Hormones
These hormones all come from cholesterol, which is the basic building block for this group of hormones.
In animals, cholesterol is the most common sterol molecule
(Steroid + Alcohol) molecule.
Steroid is a molecule that has 3 carbon hexagons(6 carbons) connected to 1 carbon pentagon(5 carbons).
steroid that has an Hydroxyl group(O-H) at C3 of Ring A is called Sterol.
In nature sterols maintain the structure and function of all cell membranes, They prevent uncontrolled leakage of ions and small molecules in both animals and plants, In animals cholesterol is massively converted into steroid hormones, bile acids and to vitamin D(which is a steroid not a vitamin).
Pregnenolone
The first step occurs in the mitochondrion mainly in adrenal, gonads, ouveries, where cholesterol loses its side-chain and is slightly oxidized by the enzyme Cytochrome P450 side-chain cleavage enzyme (CYP11A1), producing pregnenolone. Being less fat soluble than cholesterol, pregnenolone leaves the mitochondrion, to avoid inhibiting its own synthesis.
besides being the first steroid pregnenolone is anti-inflammatory, enhances cognitive function, lowers stress and stress hormones(mainly cortisol),supports oxidative metabolism.
From pregnenalone we have 2 options depending on the tissue and the gender.
In males most of it would convert to DHEA
In females most would convert to progesterone, and some to DHEA to be converted later to Estrogen.
DHEA
Is the main storage & precursor to the androgens Testosterone and DHT.
He is neuroprotective, inhibit stress, Anti -Inflammatory and is associated with youthful metabolism.
Low DHEA indicates weak androgens activity.
C20 from pregnenalone is cut off, this makes DHEA smaller, more stable and similar to testosterone, he can cross membranes easily and that makes it a very good storage that can convert to testosterone or DHT when needed.
Supplementing DHEA can be a good idea in males, but since it can get converted to estrogen a good strategy would be to take low doses(5mg max at a time no more then 3 times a day) and combine it with pregnenalone or even progesterone to avoid estrogen conversion.
The ration DHEA/Cortisol is predictive of mortality rate, Libido, stress and should be at least 10:1
Progesterone
In females pregnenalone converts mainly to progesterone which is the true female hormone, It's A ring is much more stable and saturated than estrogen and it acts as the main protector from estrogen and cortisol harmful effect in females, it supports oxidative metabolism,CO2 and T3 production, it is crucial for deep sleep and relaxation by activating the GABA system. Progesterone is anti catabolic and a strong anti-inflammatory agent, it rises mainly in pregnancy to support the developing fetus and insures proper oxygen supply to the embrio.
Progesterone is a very beneficial hormone, especially for women, low progesterone promotes estrogen and cortisol dominance.
Testosterone
In males DHEA will convert mainly to Testosterone(then to DHT).
Testosterone is a stronger androgen then DHEA, Synthesized mainly in the testicles, responsible for sexual maturity in males, deep voice, muscle mass, libido, mood, motivation, fertility, glucose metabolism, bone density, sleep quality, energy levels, anabolic processes.
There is no doubt it is important for males and females but there is one problem, testosterone can be easily converted to estrogen by the enzyme aromatase, making it a good androgen but not good as DHT.
Rhoid rage often assumed to happen because of testosterone while it's actually a sign of aromatase dominance responsible for converting the testosterone injected into estrogen, creating mental issues and huge back acne.
Measuring testosterone levels is okay at best, and without DHT or DHEA it's impossible to assess androgenic profile.
Healthy male makes around 3-15 mg a day, the range depends on metabolic health, glucose consumption, cholesterol intake and production.
DHT- The ultimate androgen
The enzyme 5-a-Reductase converts testosterone to DHT, Which is 3-5 times stronger androgen then Testosterone, Having low levels of DHT and even high levels of testosterone would result in weak androgen profile and estrogen dominance, that is because DHT can not be converted to estrogen making it the truly master androgen hormone in males, DHT is a very strong anti-inflammatory, especially in the gut, It is very effective in building muscle and bone mass, protect against stress hormones, eliminates depression and several neurodegenerative diseases, Increases oxidative metabolism and metabolic rate, Protects brain catabolism from cortisol Blocks serotonin and prolactin production.
Unfortunately big pharma managed to accuse it of causing baldness, cancer, and created an evil drug called Finasteride that blocks 5-a-reductase causing DHT levels to drop, this is supposed to delay balding but in the cost of losing muscle and bone mass, no libido, depression, increase in suicide rate, to me this proves how crucial is DHT for males, Much more then testosterone as it can not be converted to estrogen.
DHT has fully saturated A ring, this makes the molecule so beautiful and stable, In males this might be the most important hormone, and main protector from cortisol and estrogen.
DHT has 5-15% conversion rate from testosterone, It depends on redox status, metabolic health, estrogen activity, That is estimated at 0.5-3 mg daily.
Estrogen
I'll start with the fact that the NIH and WHO declared estrogen as carcinogen. a huge study with over 100,000 women who got estrogen therapy got canceled mid trial because data showed clearly rise in deaths of the estrogen group and the other harmful effects of estrogen, It increases prolactin and promotes TPH the enzyme that creates serotonin.
It is highly inflammatory, promotes formation of the prostaglandins and leukotrienes which are very potent inflammatory mediators that cause an increase in aromatase so more estrogen will be produced. Adipin was Estrogen's old name because it was known that it causes fat gain and together with cortisol they are the 2 most catabolic agents to the thymus gland that controls the immune system, Estrogen increases the activity of 11β-HSD the enzyme that activates cortisol.
By looking at it's structure we can notice that the A ring has 3 double bonds, that makes the molecule less stable, more hydrophilic, when estrogen enters the cell it causes the cell to become more hydrophilic so more water enters the cell causing swelling and potassium loss while sodium and calcium enters and block the oxidative electron transport chain from working, By causing water to enter it promotes cell division and proliferation instead of cell differentiation and that is basically how cancer cells grow thanks to estrogen, most women and men are in estrogen dominance that messes up their life without even knowing it, lowering or blocking it would beneficial for almost anyone.
There are 3 main forms of estrogen:
Estrone(E1) weak estrogen, better to have it then E2
Estradiol(E2) the active and strongest estrogen that is the reduced version of E1.
Estriol(E3) the weakest, usually rises in pregnancy.
The redox status of cell controls estrogen activity, if the cell is reduced and has low NAD/NADH ration then NADH will donate Hydrogen to E1 and turn it to E2, This would cause estrogen dominance, Increasing metabolic rate and shifting redox status to oxidative would lower estrogen activity that works hard to block oxidative metabolism
Cortisol
The main stress hormone in the body, It has 1 main rule
To shred any tissue that has amino acids so that the liver can convert them to glucose.
Considering that our muscles and all of our organs including the brain liver thymes contain amino acids and express the glucurtcoid recepetor it becomes obvious that raising cortisol is very dangerous and should avoided.
It can and will shred any tissue in order to supply glucose so avoiding sugar might be the easiest way to increase it while consuming enough sugar might be the easiest one to lower it.
Cortisol levels are higher in people with mental diseases ,cancer, diabetes, depression.
Higher levels are confirmed to decrease brain size.
Cortisol works together with Estrogen, Serotonin ,Prolactin ,Aldosterone and together they destroy oxidative metabolism and everything that makes us humans.
Cortisol gets converted from cortisone by the enzyme 11β-HSD that adds Hydrogen to C11, This makes it clear that also cortisol is activated when the redox status is shifted to reduction, so Cortisone accepts Hydrogen and becomes activated to cortisol, supporting oxidative metabolism by oxidating glucose.
Cortisone/Cortisol ration is very important and shows stress dominance, it should be at least more than 1 for healthy people and known to decrease in aging and in diseases.
Aldosterone(Renin-Angiotensin)
Also known as the sodium-retaining hormone,
When blood volume or sodium levels are low the kidneys release hormone called Renin to the blood, Renin targets protein called Angiotensin and converts it to Angiotensin I,
When the blood reaches the lungs the enzyme ACE(Angiotensin converting enzyme) turns it to Angiotensin II the active form that causes blood vessels to constrict and blood pressure to rise and when he reaches the adrenal gland he converts Corticosterone(cortisol analog) to Aldosterone, Aldosterone increases sodium reabsorption from urine while increasing potassium and magnesium loss from the cells, causing inflammation and stress response while messing up the mineral balance.
The steroid hormones are a unique ecosystem that controls every aspect of our health, understanding how and when each work is crucial for everyone that wants better life, High metabolic rate and healthy mind.
