Supplement Your Success
For more than a decade, Dr. Randolph has researched and tested nutritional supplements to ascertain their true mechanism for beneficially influencing estrogen metabolism. Today, he recommends a select group of supplements to enhance healthy hormone balance and, therein, promote weight loss and weight management. They are:
Calcium D-Glucarate
Calcium D- Glucarate is a natural substance that promotes the body's detoxification process and supports hormonal balance. Calcium D-Glucarate facilitates the detoxification process by inhibiting the re-absorption of estrogen-like toxins into the bloodstream, allowing them to leave the body and be excreted in the feces. Calcium D-Glucarate has been found in animals to lower unhealthy estrogen levels and thereby inhibit the development or progression of cancer. Dr. Randolph recommends taking 1000 mg of Calcium D-Glucarate twice daily.
Diindolymethane (DIM)
DIM is a phytonutrient akin to the Indole-3-Carbinol (I3C) found in cruciferous vegetables. DIM has unique hormonal benefits. It supports the activity of enzymes that improve estrogen metabolism by increasing the levels of 2-hydroxyestrone, e.g. the “good” estrogen. When taken as part of a healthy diet, Dr. Randolph has found that DIM helps support PMS symptoms, fat loss and healthy estrogen metabolism.
In men, DIM also promotes its own metabolism. This means that it allows for greater testosterone activity. Men taking DIM supplements will benefit bio-chemically as DIM promotes optimal testosterone to estrogen ratio. Dr. Randolph recommends 200 mg of DIM each day.
The B Vitamins
The B Vitamins, such as B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, B12 and folate, do a lot within your body to support estrogen detoxification. Conversely, if your body is deficient in B vitamins, you will have higher levels of circulating estrogens. By now, you definitely know that increased estrogen levels lead to estrogen dominance and estrogen dominance will most certainly lead to weight gain and the inability to get that weight off.
B vitamins also impact estrogen activity for the hormone receptors at the cellular level. Clinical studies have shown that high levels of intracellular (e.g. within the cell) B6 can decrease the binding response at the estrogen hormone receptor site. What happens at the cellular level is sort of like an internal game of musical chairs: If the music stops and B6 sits down in the “estrogen chair” then the estrogen molecule is out of the game.
Because the B vitamins work together to perform such vital tasks at the cellular level, Dr. Randolph recommends that you take the entire B-complex, not just one or two of the vitamins. To treat symptoms of hormone imbalance, you will need between 50-100 mg of B Complex that contains 50 mgs of thiamine (B1), riboflavin (B2), niaicin (b3), pantothenic acid (b5), P6, PABA, choline, inositol,; 50 mcg B12, and 400 mcg of folic acid.
Vitamin E
I remembered from my little bit of nutritional studies in medical school that, years ago, researchers studied the effects of Vitamin E in reducing the effects of menopause and that most studies found Vitamin E to be helpful. Vitamin E has been shown to reduce PMS related breast-tenderness, nervousness, depression, headache, fatigue and insomnia. I had a hunch I knew why. As I reviewed the more current medical literature evaluating the health benefits of Vitamin E, I was validated when my hunch proved to be correct.
Low Vitamin E levels were linked to estrogen dominance. Furthermore, Vitamin E deficiency has been found to inhibit estrogen detoxification. Dr. Randolph recommends taking 800IC per day of Vitamin E; 400 IU in the morning and 400 IU at bedtime.
Calcium – Magnesium Combo
Most women and men find it difficult to get 1200 – 1500 mg of needed calcium from their diet. As a rule, I recommend supplementing calcium intake with a calcium-magnesium combination supplement.
Magnesium is another supplement that helps the body eliminate excess estrogen. For women, magnesium levels tend to fall at certain times during the menstrual cycle. These shifts in magnesium levels can upset an optimum calcium-magnesium ratio. In proper balance, the body better absorbs and assimilates the calcium it needs and allows calcium to migrate out of tissue and organs where it doesn’t belong.
Without magnesium, calcium may be not fully utilized. Under absorption of calcium can lead to menstrual cramps. Similar to a Vitamin E deficiency, when the body does not have enough magnesium to support calcium absorption, many women report PMS symptoms such as mood swings, fatigue, headaches and sleeplessness.
Premenstrual chocolate craving is a phenomenon that has puzzled a great many physicians. They have been unable to explain why some women have this overwhelming urge to eat lots and lots of chocolate right before their periods yet, at other times of the month, their chocolate cravings remain under control. When I started thinking about it, the PMS- chocolate connection made a lot of sense. Chocolate is very high in magnesium content.
Keeping an optimal balance of calcium and magnesium is critical for optimal physical functioning and for hormone balance. Dr. Randolph recommends that each day you take a calcium-magnesium supplement that combines these minerals in a ratio of two parts calcium (1500 mg) to one part magnesium (750 mg) .
7- Keto Dehyroepiandrosterone (DHEA)
Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) is one of the hormones produced by the adrenal glands. After being secreted by the adrenal glands, it circulates in the bloodstream as DHEA-sulfate (DHEAS) and is converted as needed into other hormones. Since it is a precursor to testosterone, DHEA may help build muscle. It is very unusual for anyone under the age of 35 or 40 to have low DHEA levels. As we age, however, the body’s production of DHEA declines, so people over 40 can most definitely become DHEA deficient.
While many anti-aging enthusiasts are familiar with DHEA, far fewer are likely to be as aware of its metabolite, 7-Keto DHEA, which functions within the body to safely boost immune function and help reduce body fat. The term 7-Keto DHEA is in fact a brand name for the chemical compound 3-acetyl-7-dehydroepiandrosterone. Human blood levels of both 7-Keto DHEA and DHEA tend to rise and fall in a similar pattern with age: increasing until the twenties, beginning to decline in the thirties and continuing decline until the levels are reduced by about 50% by age fifty. Clinical studies have shown that, as 7-Keto DHEA levels go down in middle age, body weight tends to goes up.
7-Keto DHEA stimulates weight loss through a process called thermogenesis. This term refers to the creation of heat at a cellular level. The more thermogenesis, the higher the metabolic rate and the more fat that is literally burned up as energy. Studies have also demonstrated that 7-Keto does not accumulate in the body over time and is free of unhealthy side effects.
Supplementation with 7-Keto DHEA has been shown to be significantly beneficial for increasing the rate at which the body converts stored fat into energy. Because 7-Keto DHEA is a natural hormone metabolite it benefits the body in two ways: 1.) it helps restore hormone balance while, at the same time, 2.) it works internally to melt away those unwanted pounds.
Dr. Randolph recommends 100 mg of 7-Keto DHEA per day; one capsule every morning.
Chitosan
Chitosan is processed from the shells of crustaceans such as shrimp, lobster and crabs. Basically stated, chitosan acts as a super fiber. The swelling action of chitosan creates a sensation of feeling full thereby serving to suppress the appetite. In addition, the super fiber characteristics of chitosan foster a natural cleansing process that is extremely vital to weight loss.
Chitosan is also able to absorb between six and ten times its weight in fat and oils. It then converts the fat molecules into a form that the human body does not absorb. When chitosan causes less fat to enter the body, the body has to turn to previously stored body fat to burn for energy. The net result: weight loss.
Chitosan also acts as a super fiber. I recommend taking 750 mg to 1 gm of Chitosan three times a day with meals. Do not take Chitosan if you are allergic to shellfish.
