the MAN page- yaahh!!!

Men-  I have to start the page with the wonders of zinc; but first- let us honour a proud Canadian man, Mr. Ed the Sock- no man's page would feel complete without him!

 Zinc

Be sure to get enough, since a deficiency lowers testosterone. Lower testosterone levels mean lower sperm count, less libido, or sex drive, and reduced erectile performance. Optimum testosterone levels are good for drive, mood, and muscle mass, as well as lowering fat mass.

How much is enough? A typical guy would do well to get 20-30mg from his supplements. An active guy; more like 40- 50mg. If one is very sexually active, add more, since each ejaculation has been determined to cause a pretty big zinc loss, requiring an extra dietary 10mg or so per 'episode'. So, remember, Zinc for your Dink (I can't take credit for this helpful phrase- it was coined by Daryl Wolfe).

 
the Prostate
Prostate health is very dependent on zinc, for a number of reasons. Sufficient zinc helps to minimise DHT production. DHT, or dihydrotestosterone is a metabolite of testosterone, which swells the prostate excessively, and also contributes to hair loss.
Saw Palmetto is a herb which helps to block DHT, but zinc is an essential mineral, so it gets top priority. Taking both is not a problem, in fact it is recommended for those with any prostate symptoms, such as frequent urination, incomplete voiding, and especially frequent night visits to the bathroom, interrupting sleep, to urinate. In more severe cases, urination will be difficult, with a slow stream of urine, and difficulty in completely emptying the bladder (incomplete voiding).
Pumpkin seeds are also very beneficial for prostate health. Why, I couldn't tell you for sure, but trust me on this one. One older fellow, with severe symptoms once was told by his doctor that they should either surgically remove his prostate, or do a 'roto- rooter' job on him, where effectively, a larger hole is drilled through the prostate. The procedure is as gruesome as it sounds. So, this fellow asked for some time.
Please, all of us remember- your body is Yours. Do not be rushed or pressured into doing anything at all, unless you are good and ready!
Getting back to this fellow's story; He found three men who had 'surgical intervention' to 'cure' their troubled prostates. One man was in diapers. The second couldn't get it up; complete erectile dysfunction. The third was fine.
Being understandably scared, this fellow started on 50mg of zinc, and a few handfuls of raw pumpkin seeds per day, as a result of his limited research into prostate health and natural therapies. He started feeling better in days. Months went by, and the man became free of any prostate symptoms; he was fine. He checked back with his doctor- tests confirmed what he already knew- he was fine, and not in need of any medical barbaric treatments.
 
 

Bedroom Performance

Many clients want to know what they can do to enhance erectile performance. Start by getting enough zinc, also be sure to be well hydrated. Drinking enough water is crucial for good blood volume and circulation, both of which are key, for 'performance'. Working out will naturally raise testosterone levels, as well as circulation. Taking a 'yang'. or male tonic can often be helpful- go with large doses of Korean, and Siberian ginsengs, (Canadian is good if you are prone to high blood pressure or tense) or better yet, a testosterone boosting herbal product, like 'testo- boost', sold on the metabolicdiet.com website. See my notes under the sexual healing section, and mass section, for more on test levels. Also in the SEXual healing section, is my 500mph formula, which you can put together yourself, with stuff you can find in any health food store. Lifting heavy weights, for relatively short workouts is a major growth hormone and testosterone booster. Boosting test definitely boosts bedroom olympics. Excessive exercise, especially long term/ long distance  cardio lowers testosterone. So keep all your workouts intense, and never over one hour (20 minutes of cardio is plenty- just do it intensely, so that you cannot go past 20 minutes for optimal testosterone response).

And sleep enough, to lower cortisol- a major enemy of testosterone!

Do you like living? Then don't do Viagra. It kills men- most of whom have no prior history of heart disease! Do not believe the hype about it only kills men with heart conditions- German Viagra related death stats spank that bit of propaganda. 'Nuff said.

Horny Goats

The Chinese lore goes something like this; A shepherd  noticed a certain goat in his flock that was quite randy with the lady goats. He also noticed this same goat eating a particular herb, which to this day is called horny goat weed, in common language. It is available in pill form, at a steep price. I would rather get large doses of this well-known Yang tonic, for cheap. In the Chinese pharmacopia, Yin Yan Huo (Epimedium, botanically, or Horny Goat Weed) is recognised as a top, if not THE top Yang tonic.

So, getting back to cheap- just ask for Yin Yan Huo in your friendly neighbourhood Chinese herb store. I paid $3.oo, for a large whack of neatly stacked, dried crude herb. Makes a nice tea.

Older Men, Younger Babes

An Indian woman recounted to me that she knew an older gent who was seeing a much younger lady, who had a healthy libido. In his efforts to keep up with her appetite, he had been recommended to try Shilajit, a mineral pitch from India. It is sort of like a muddy peat moss, so consists of rotted vegetable matter layer, and dirt. It is renowned in Ayurveda as a source of minerals and strength. With modern testing, we know that it has many beneficial organic acids, among them fulvic acid, which is an amazing mineral absorption helper, and also a heavy metal detoxifier. 

So this older gent in question began taking a teaspoon a day (tastes like pungent dried mud), and reported that he and his mate were quite pleased . . .

Fertility

In couples that can not conceive, men and women statistically share the potential for improvement. You can up your sperm count and sperm quality by taking antioxidants. Vitamin C is the most proven, but don't be cheap; throw in vitamin E, and selenium as well. And eating more fruits and vegetables will greatly increase your antioxidant status. Taking extra enzymes, particularly pancreatin has been shown to strengthen sperm, making them better able to penetrate an egg. 

Xenoestrogens

Chemicals which mimic estrogen in our bodies are called xenoestrogens. They include many plastics (especially plastic wrap), some pesticides and herbicides, and some industrial chemicals, like PCB's. Even when banned, these things bio-accumulate in the food chain, and persist in the environment for many years (fields may have high measurable levels even after 30 years or more without chemical application- our seas and lakes are all contaminated; some more than others).

the bad news
Xenoestrogens are the reason why we are seeing animals with serious reproductive/ sexual problems. Alligators in parts of Florida are born with micro-penises, and few sperm. Whales (who are sterile) have been found with testes that resemble ovaries in function. Male fish with egg protein production in their bodies have been found. There are other tragic animal examples of our planetary poisoning but I'll stop here. Humans today have approximately half the sperm counts as were commonly found in the 1940's.
 
the good news 
We can reduce or detox xenoestrogens out of our bodies through detoxification methods- see the detox pages in this site for particulars, and research evidence.  
Reducing intake; Avoid new plastic bottles- buy water in glass, or at least in recycled jugs (the 18 litre kind). Or filter your tap water (even a Brita is acceptable). Wash anything well that has been wrapped in plastic, and use glass jars for leftovers, NEVER plastic wrap. Do not use non stick pans- best bet is glass or ceramic cookware.
I use glass cookware, being careful not to burn food when cooking. If something does burn, the sodium hydroxide that I clean my dishes with dissolves burnt food quite well. Use gloves, for God's sake, if you clean with sodium hydroxide (also called lye, or NaOH), since it can literally eat your skin right off! It is a non toxic cleaner, which actually improves lake water quality- lakes tend to be acidic from acid rain- NaOH is a strong base (alkalises).
 
 

ESTROGEN and MEN

We all produce estrogen, some more than others. Estrogen is part of the negative feedback loop, affecting testosterone production, largely through hypothalmic/ pituitary signaling to the testes, involving leutenizing hormone, gonadotropin, and others. What this means is that rising estrogen levels = lowering testosterone levels, in men. Much of our estrogen is produced in our liver and other tissues, as a metabolite of testosterone. Bodyfat, or adipose tissue, in both sexes is also a major producer of estrogen. This means that fatter guys will produce more estrogen than leaner guys, and therefore will have less testosterone, due to the negative feedback, described above.

Plant Estrogens can be good! (to the rescue?)
Plant estrogens are also called phyto sterols, and include many fatty substances, like sterols, serolins, sitosterol, oryzanol, and many others. They are all weakly estrogenic, some more than others.
They are good for us, in a lot of ways. Plant sterols, or estrogens, are weakly estrogenic, so, in our bodies they compete with real estrogen. Since men do have some, the right amount of plant estrogens will bind to some estrogen receptors, preventing some of our real estrogen from binding. That is an anti-estrogenic effect, since plant estrogens are weaker than real estrogen.This same competition happens with xenoestrogens, and plant estrogens. Xenoestrogens are very potent, as in several times more potent than any natural estrogens, and so are enemies of men and women, but especially men!
There is evidence, in human in vitro, and in vivo research, that high sources of plant sterols, like flax meal, and soy, are very competitive with xenoestrogens, reducing their ill effect on reproductive health, and sex organ cancers.
Soy is something to be careful with, since it is commonly allergenic. The safest soy to consume is fermented soy. That means only miso, and tempeh. Limit the soy milk (I hate tetra paks- they are plastic-lined)., and the tofu. Soy milk and tofu are vastly over rated. I do think that reasonable amounts of the feremented soy foods mentioned above are useful, in that they are antiestrogenic, for guys, if eaten in moderation, and "anti-xenoestrogenic" for both sexes.