How I Fixed My Low (free) Testosterone: High SHBG & Iron Overload
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- Опубліковано 11 вер 2024
- In this video I explain how I increased my free testosterone by reducing the levels of sex hormone binding globulin. However, the only way I managed to do that was to identify the root cause of the elevated SHBG in the first place, which in my case was iron overload!
After a few regular blood donations/phlebotomy, my free T levels improved significantly.
In this video I also discuss the bloodwork published by @Paulsaladinomd which showed very similar trends and improvement after phlebotomy.
Timestamps:
00:45 Difference between free and total testosterone
01:10 What is sex hormone binding globulin?
02:25 The root cause of Elliot's poor free testosterone levels
04:48 Paul Saladinos labwork
08:19 How to check your iron status
09:32 Elliot's genes
11:01 Can high SHBG serve a useful & protective purpose?
For more information on how to identify high iron, I recommend any of the following:
- podcasts.apple...
- • This is the Bloodwork ...
- • Why You Shouldn’t Mana...
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DISCLAIMER: Elliot is not a medical professional and the information in this video is provided for general informational and educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional advice. Always consult with your primary healthcare provider for medical advice.
#carnivore #carnivorediet #animalbased #animalbaseddiet #ironoverload #testosterone #SHBG
That was exactly my issue. I had high normal total testosterone, high shbg, very low free testosterone, and very high ferritin(552ng/mL). Started donating blood in 2021 and have seen a good increase in free and total testosterones.
Awesome
Fantastic
But is there no other way to reduce iron? Some natural chelation....?
Chris Kresser has a summary blogpost on lactoferrin treatment for iron overload
Are you low carb, keto or carnivore?
01:23 🩸 Elevated Sex Hormone Binding Globulin (SHBG) can lead to low free testosterone levels, even if total testosterone is normal or high.
02:04 📜 Fixing iron overload can help reduce SHBG levels and improve free testosterone availability.
05:17 🩸 Phlebotomy (blood donation) can be an effective method to reduce iron overload and lower SHBG levels.
08:29 🩸 Transferrin saturation is a better marker for iron overload than ferritin, especially in the early stages.
12:56 💉 High iron levels combined with high testosterone can lead to increased red blood cell production and thickening of the blood, which can be dangerous.
For those looking for a short answer - mentioned solution is bleeding/blood donation
Why’s that? Do they test your blood for loads more than a doctor would? And hence you find out any issues? Is that what you mean
iron acumulation on the blood@@serenitystars8839
I was about to comment- why not donate blood? I was in the middle of the video. After him saying women don’t have this issue as much because they menstruate. Glad I didn’t 😅
I did it for a year and went from ferritin 215 to 35!
Thank you! I summed it was when he said women menstruate but could find the point of the very boring video
I'm 58 and was always checking ferritin to see how I was doing regarding iron. My last ferritin was showing low at 17. However, I was doing low dose testosterone and that normally occurs in some men. Well, I was feeling out of breath, ED, elevated heart rate at the slightest exertion, respiratory rate at night increased from 14 breaths per minute to 17, fatigue, joint pain, and legs feeling like jello. Then I decided to check my TIBC and lo and behold I had a total saturation of 76% and my SHBG was 152! I'm giving blood as of today and will update soon! Great video!
UPDATE - 8-25-23
Turns out in addition to the elevated iron I had hyperthyroidism. The normal free T3 should be 2.5 to 4.2 and mine was 15! Yes, 15! Found this out after a trip to the ER on 7-13-23 shortly after my first post. Took blood tests this past Monday after taking anti-thyroid meds for the past 5 weeks and Free T3 is now at 4.6 and I feel like a totally different person. I was doing HCG in addition to the testosterone, and the endocrinologist said I was very sensitive to the HCG! HCG mimics TSH and can stimulate thyroid production! Be careful people if you are using HCG and monitor thyroid function if you are using it. Taught me a huge lesson! Hope this helps someone!
That helped me yes
The hyper thyroid will raise your SHBG and lower your free T. That's what I've been struggling with.
There are several vitamins like Biotin (vitamin B-7) which will cause false ELEVATED results of things like TSH and a few others ... Only have to stop taking it for about a week or less (maybe 72 hours or so) ...worth looking up just to make sure ... Most labs and doctors do NOT ASK if you are taking them ..they are also in some sports drinks, and many multivitamins...
Any update?
thank You for sharing. Iron-metabolism is of great interest to Me, I know that testosterone indirectly increases intestinal Iron-absorption, I have to research the influence of thyroid-hormones on Iron-metabolism. thank You. regards.
Its amazing and incredibly fascinating how we are all learning at the same time about ourselves and the complexities of our biology. Remember guys we are just trying to find the best way and dietary habits for optimal health its trial and error like everything, but weve come a long way. Almost anything is better than the standard diets. If youre here youre trying to improve and learn. Keep that up!
"your blood gets to thick and you develop blood circulating failure." I've never understood why steroid users are so prone to heart attacks until today. Thnx for the video
It increases red blood cells and increases blood pressure. My brother inlaw was on trt and doc told him to give blood to avoid it building up. I knew a guy in early 20's on steroids. His BP got so high it burst his aorta. Died doing a bench press at the gym.
It is good to donate a pint of blood every 3 months
That's not why. Testosterone is created from Cholesterol molecules. If you boost the testosterone artificially, your body will stop the production of testosterone from Cholesterol molecules (since it does not need to do it anymore) and you will accumulate cholesterol in your body which may cause heart failures (specially if you keep eating simple carbs and foods that impact the cholesterol in your body)
Distilled water is the CURE. Fact. Not open for debate. Pure H2o. HOLY WATER UNTAINTED.
Acts as solvent for human body in a GREAT way, but dummies fell for the FDA lies. ha ha ha
Ask yourself how can PURE water harm the body or any body???? It will never harm any body. I only drink distilled water for 30 years I am doing better than most.
Its also the sheer amount of lean tissue that needs all that supply of blood.
This is an interesting topic. I am 62 years old and have been a drug free bodybuilder and fitness enthusiast for over 45 years. Five years ago I was diagnosed with prostate cancer and went through two terrible years of chemical castration. It then took another two years for the drug to get out of my system, and my hormones to try and normalize.
I have been going to an endocrinologist for 18 months. I have very high total testosterone at 1258 ng/dl, and also high SHBG at around 58. My Free Testosterone is not too bad at 120.8 pg/ml. I have had most of the symptoms of low testosterone for the last seven years or so. I have spoken with my doctor multiple times about my high SHBG, but he always says that is not my issue.
My doctor's opinion is that my brain is not recognizing my hormone levels. He claims this happens to 20% of people. The solution for 95% of this 20% is taking a drug for six months. I have been taking the medication (Bupropion XL 300MG) for about four months. The first 90 days was 150MG. I have been taking the full dose of 300MG for almost a month.
To be honest, I am not convinced. While I have seen some improvement, I have a long way to go. I will know more in approximately two months when they start to tapper me off the drug. I was told by my doctor if this does not work, there is nothing in the scientific literature to address someone in my situation.
Your video is the first I have seen on the Iron / high SHBG connection. Normally when I have researched high SHBG, they usually talk about liver damage. I have lived like a monk for at least 60 of my 62 years on this rock, and my liver scores are in the normal range. If what I am doing now does not work, I am going to revisit this video.
Thanks for posting!
Doctors. If they drive it's direct into the wall.
Check your transferrin saturation %
What you mean living like a monk?
your levels are insane for your age, both free and total! over 1100 you're getting flagged for being too high!
@@benhartland4708 Stupid isn't it, 'Oh look, you are incredibly healthy for your age, better fix that pronto!"
exactly - and i'm vegan! iron overload was the last thing i expected from my bloodwork, but here we are. it's great to finally have some answers and connect various dots, thank you!!
Please keep us all updated here with any actions you take and the results 🙏
Great video, thanks for the info.
Some other natural iron chelators:
Curcumin
Pycogenol
Quercetin
Grape seed extract
Pomegranate
Milk thistle
EGCG
Once again, solidifying my belief that Oyster is one of the best foods a man can eat. Good zinc levels, even has good copper concentration, high cholesterol for testosterone building base, high in B vitamins, omega-3's, and a mix of other micronutrients.
Basically the second best thing you can eat besides Liver.
Especially your mom's oyster, catch my drift bro
I would argue both of them are so good, but of course not every day, is because they are best sources of copper, especially liver, its most copper concentrated food. Copper is essential to bind iron and transport it around among bunch of other things.
How did this video solidify your belief in oyster?
They are good but they are both pretty gross
You have one of the best channels on UA-cam! Thank you for all the knowledge!
Fr
I think I'm fortunate to have found this video randomly, I have had a tough time with high ferritin levels, high SHBG levels, and very low testosterone. Brief background: 03/2014 diagnosed with AML leukemia, 05/20214 after induction have remission. Refused HSCT, to see if my immune system would keep it in check, nope, relapse 12/2015. 07/2016 allogeneic peripheral blood HSCT, 10/2016 chronic GVHD, was ongoing for years. The oncologists/hematologists knew about the excessively high ferritin level (2017 790 ng/mL, 2018 1927 ng/mL, 2019 1857 ng/mL, 03/2022 1549 ng/mL) and never informed me, didn't discuss this with me, nor offered to treat me for this. The whole time period from 2017 to 2022, not one medical professional (oncologist/hematologist, urologist, cardiologist, PCP, NP) brought the condition to my attention. WTF ! It was 03/2022 that a PA ordered a ferritin level assay that I became aware of this debilitating condition. When I looked back at my clinical records from one comprehensive cancer center, it was noted by an endocrinologist that I had the one gene for hemochromatosis and had elevated ferritin which they would monitor (they never informed me of this). Every blood draw, assay, I would request a copy of the results. Not once was the ferritin level included in the print out. To this day I wonder if it was an oversight or malicious.
After the 03/2022 blood assay (the usual for a cancer survivor), I approached the young oncologist/hematologist that was on Kauai at the time, and showed him the results of the ferritin levels (he didn't't order the test, the PA (PCP ordered the test). This MD went on Epic (electronic record relational database software) to look at the past levels of ferritin in my electronic records. The MD says: "oh look you were 1927 ng/mL in 2018, hum ... wonder why no-one caught this".
The MD put in for an MRI to check on liver iron overload there at the 1.0 Tesla at Wilcox Hospital in Lihue, the results indicated iron overload. Fortunately the PA (PCP) (not the oncologist) put in an order for chest and abdomen MRI with a 3.0 Tesla to quantify the iron and check other organs. This was done at InVision in Honolulu. The report came back that there was iron overload in the liver, partial in the spleen, and the heart and lungs were ok. The iron saturation in my liver was so high that no details could be discerned from the photo plate produced, it just showed a large patch of reflected energy.
At this point I began the phlebotomies from 05/2022 to 01/2023 thirteen phlebotomies. Six months into the the phlebotomies and most of the painful symptoms had resolved, today the black colored skin patches are normal color.
For good measure this past year I have had IVs of umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (uMSC) and exosomes with the thought of trying to repair the organ and tissue damage that would be a result of the exacerbated chronic GVHD and the hemochromatosis.
An interesting aspect (03/2022) was that the chronic GVHD was seemingly getting worse, and debilitating painful symptoms seemed to increase, which I thought was due to the chronic GVHD. The classic symptoms of hemochromatosis were: fatigue, joint pain in various areas (not symmetrical), dark blackish patches on both of my forearms, pinkish-red tainted urine at random times, upper back ache and stiffness, pain in the right side of my stomach, near the area of my liver, ongoing muscle weakness, unexplained weight loss, and no interest in sex. Through all this time my SHBG levels were excessively high, free testosterone 28-30, CRP high.
At a consultation in 2018, I mentioned this to the young oncologist/hematologist MD at Cedar-Sinai, asked him why is my SHBG so excessively high ? His answer was flippant, saying well your liver is putting all kinds of biochemicals out, and he didn't seemed to be concerned. At that meeting he didn't mention ferritin level, nor discuss the results that were with the latest CBC/CMP (2018 1927 ng/mL). WTF !
I was concerned about my recovery and the seemingly endless symptoms of chronic GVHD. The oncologist/hematologist MD at City of Hope suggested extracorporeal photopheresis to mitigate the chronic GVHD, it is primarily used to treat acute GVHD. I consented to three months of this twice a week. At the end of the session period the chronic GVHD had been exacerbated and was of genuine concern to me. No mitigation but exacerbation. I pointed this out to the oncologist/hematologist and he looked at me, and the condition of my chronic GVHD abdomen and seemed puzzled. This MD never mentioned the excessively high ferritin that came back with the recent CBC/CMP (2019 1857 ng/mL).
This is when I gave up on that institution, I'm flabbergasted at the lack of professionalism, and wonder if it was an oversight or a malicious means to keep me returning for endless treatments.
After the 03/2022 CBC/CMP and ferritin results I went into full research mode. I found a medical case report on hemochromatosis in a HSCT patient suffering from chronic GVHD. The 2012 article mentioned that it was common knowledge that hemochromatosis exacerbated chronic GVHD, morbidity, and mortality.
As I have heard more often these days, the US medical system has evolved from medical care to sick care.
Now when I have a consultation with a "medical professional" I'm focusing on the ability, knowledge, level of interest in me as a patient, and their general intent/ ambiance to evaluate the capability of this individual.
I think these days one has to be their own advocate, engage in due diligence, and not be inhibited to get a second, and/or third opinion. If the patient cannot have an engaging conversation I recommend finding an MD that exhibits good attributes and not ego expression.
Interesting. Maybe it has something to do with how we survive as a species - when to live shorter lives and live on through procreation, and when to live longer lives and survive without procreating. Maybe it's like the body says, OK, I'm not going to die anytime soon, no need to procreate, time to save... Also interesting as it seems to highlight how healing diets may be just that - a healing diet. We have a tendency to find a diet that works for us and make it a lifestyle change - correct some imbalances and eventually cause another. Maybe carnivore heals for a little while and then needs to be modulated. Just like keto or vegetarian or whatever we tend to think is the cure all, even herbs and supplements. Maybe we're meant to be in tune with our bodies needs, because our bodies are a lot more intelligent than we realize. Thanks for this and all you do Elliot. You are helping SO MUCH with these videos!
Carnivore should be Raw. Raw meat, raw animal products. "Cooking" is only for foods that are not really foods. ie vegetables, it will break them down to glucose. Cooking meat makes absolutely no sense and ruins it. Raw meat digest so well that you will not even need to buy toilet paper. Do you see other animals using toilet paper or covered in shit lol. Raw animal products self digest they do not spoil. Take Raw milk for example, it doesn't spoil or lose nutritional value. Carnivore dieting is close but it is wrong because it is all cooked. Natural Diet is the way. Food never needs to be cooked. You got to break out of the J matrix.
I think it probably has to do more with how humans used to eat, before all this modern technology. Humans used to eat less of everything. But especially meat. Because meat was hard to come by. Early humans would have to go hunting if they wanted to eat meat. People who owned cattle or chickens or other animals, didn't want to kill all their animals, so they ate meat sparingly. They probably drank milk and ate eggs. People also worked harder and went thought periods of fasting. Early humans were skinny because they didn't have food constantly shoved in their faces. Eating meat was a luxury. Now a days people eat some form of animal products every day. A person's weight and fitness levels also affect testosterone levels. And lets face it. Most Americans are fat and out of shape.
Wow.
Blood letting in the medieval times did serve a purpose!!
Fascinating
Thank you
When you have a fever your body is using more iron to increase temperature still not a good idea. Even donating blood to fix high levels of iron is stupid dietary adjustments make way more sense then sticking a needle into your arm every two to three weeks. How can people be slaves to their diets. At least vegans do it formoral reasons but pure meat eaters need to adjust their thinking
Background: Fasting is an important pre-analytical factor that may affect clinical pathology parameters in toxicological and pharmacological studies. Little information is available on how fasting affects clinical pathology parameters in cynomolgus monkeys (Macaca fascicularis).The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of fasting on clinical pathology parameters in healthy adult cynomolgus monkeys.
Methods: Five female and six male cynomolgus monkeys were fasted for 0, 8, 16, and 24 hours. Changes in body weight (BW), core hematologic, and serum clinical chemical parameters were evaluated.
Results: The BW significantly decreased after 24 hours of fasting. Significant decreases in red blood cell count, hemoglobin, hematocrit, and mean corpuscular volume and increases in mean cell hemoglobin and mean cell hemoglobin concentration were observed at 16 hours in males.
I fast every weekday, 16 hours...
I have Lyme disease and have to pay for everything out of pocket. You just explained everything to help me address my low free testosterone.
At the time of the blood draw, I had very high iron. I do not remember if the saturation % was in the panel.
SHGB was low, serum high, free test was non existing.
The SHGB was low, likely due to the inflammation from the disease.
The free testosterone was nuked by the iron.
Thank you so much
Elliot, I respect your work. You helped me along with Sally K. Norton regarding uncovering my issue with oxalates.
Now, I have to face the fact that I am indeed testosterone deficient. My levels are so low that they are regarded as negligable. My SHBG is very high 122.1 nmol/L. My liver panel & iron panels are optimal. My free T4 is very low resulting in a high TSH of 9.11mlU/L with normal range free T3 but, I am not hypothyroid. I am ideal weight and 21% BF and maintain this easily with my carnivore diet for the past 3.5 yrs and VLC keto for 3 years prior to that. My HS CRP is beautiful at .72 mg/L. My HB A1c is 4.7%.
I do daily supplement with Lugol's iodine for health in general and proper thyroid care.
Anyway, all that to request you do a video on females and low testosterone. The literature our there is very limited and mostly aimed at men. I along with many other women would appreciate it. Thank you!
@@user-45674xcfr I use iodine & selenium to supplement my thyroid. I believe it is my almost non-existent testosterone that is making my numbers look hypothyroid when I am not. I am at my ideal weight with ease.
@@curiousjojo4life, your TSH should not be at 9, anything above 3 it’s cause for concern period. Regardless how much iodine, selenium, zinc you supplement, you’re missing something. If your thyroid it’s not optimal, testosterone levels will always be low! High estrogen, low thyroid, low thyroid, low testosterone. Low adrenal function, low most things that follow: thyroid, estrogen, testosterone. It’s not as easy as you can see.
I’m hypothyroid, not autoimmune ( which your high tsh number correlates to usually) and I also supplement all my hormones now being 7 years post menopausal. Seek the help of a functional medicine doctor, thyroid , adrenal and sex hormones are complicated. Gets much worse around peri menopause and beyond. Good luck in your healing journey!
@@tns4358 thank you for sharing your concern. I am working with my doctor. I agree it is complicated. Things are improving steadily. I appreciate you sharing your wisdom too. 💕
too much Iodine can hurt your Thyroid function too. beware. its hard to be iodine deficient with modern Western diets
Yes! Same request I had!
Also remember you can supplement Divanil nettle root extract which binds to SHBG and significantly boosts free testosterone. One supplement for example that has that is Activate Xtreme. Has to be cycled though so just run for 1month or 2months max per time.
I drink nettle leaf tea now and then but it's just not very tasty. :(
Boron also decrease SHBG
Boron works well for reducing SHBG, 10 mg a day, for men cycle 2 weeks on, 1 week off to keep from getting elevated estrogen levels.
About Divanil it seems is not yet proven scientifically pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16635963/
the point of the video is exactly that you don’t want your body to lower SHBG if you have iron overload. its high for a reason!
my testosterone was extremely low when i was drinking heavily during covid , while working from home
i was going through a 1.14L bottle of vodka every day, starting around 8:30am and nursing it all day
quit drinking completely in July of this year and test levels are back to normal
Did you completely stop drinking?
@@melanindread yes , i almost died from ketoacidosis and kidneys were functioning at 10%
Good for you man !
You are fortunate you are still alive.
This explains everything I'm seeing in my Blood work. I am homozygous H63D(iron overload/hemochromatosis), have very high TSAT but normal Ferritin, high SHBG, high hemacrit. Thank-you so much!🙏
Please keep us all updated here with the results of any phlebotomies you have\will done\do 🙏
watching this video lowers my Testosterone
How timely. I realized a week ago I have a similar issue and found a similar link to Ferritin. Glad to know I'm not alone and that fixing this may help my total and free T.
Taurine greatly helps with iron metabolism…it will reduce your iron levels.
Wow! I have iron overload- my sat rate is 59. I had a gastric bypass because bloodletting wasn’t working. Bypassing the duodenum did the trick. Diet doesn’t really work because it’s the heme form of iron that’s the issue. I do not advocate getting a bypass simply because my situation was extreme, and it’s a life changing decision with complications as well.
I’m shocked that a doctor would say you don’t have hemochromatosis! Why not?? Follow the numbers!! If you’re loading iron, and your ferritin is high, you’ve got it. They don’t know all the genes: I also have one C(282)Y variant.
Best of luck to you!
If its not iron overload, it can be stress. Stress and high SHBG are closely related.
As someone with Haemochromatosis this makes so much sense and explains a lot. Thank you!
Dude do tell more.
I was so " excited " the day the MD said I can now have the pleasure of donating blood up to 100x a year. I think watching grass grow was more fun.
I would like to not only find out more about your experience but also expand it to potential ED issues.
Thanks for sharing and looking forward to more.
It’s a genetic type of problem. The MTHFR GENE AFFECTS THE absorption of food. Not get the nutrients. Genetic testing tells us so much more.
OK, so I get most of what you're saying. Diet can play an important role. Aside from that I would recommend some kind of regular fasting protocol. Perhaps one day a week. But I really think that the benefits from fasting really don't show up until you reach a three day period. In my own experience I don't see real benefits until I reach the third day. Fasting affords your body a chance to 'reset' itself sort of speaking. The liver stores somewhere around 40 days worth of nutrients. I'd expect that if a fasting regiment of from 3 to 5 days was committed to every month that you'd see some of this overloaded iron being used. That, and a general cleaning out of the liver of other negative elements.
Yeah so far no talk of fasting, nature's operating table. Agreed!
It's very simple. Eat organic, as local as possible. Grass fed red meats, organic chicken, pasturized organic eggs, have kiwis and some fruits. Resistant training (doesn't mean weights, you can do bodyweight exercises). Get great sleep, go for walks, take in some sunlight.
Pasture raised* eggs
After 2 years full carnivore / living on red meat my iron saturation was 28%. Ferritin 137 ng/ml. Total iron 97mcg/dl.
I no longer have to be on a special diet to feel great but I am satisfied that red meat is not toxic to me in any way.
Henry Henry What do you eat in a typical meal on your carnivore diet and how many meals a day? Any supplements? Congratulations!
I eat 7 eggs a day, lots of butter and ghee. and the rest is steak or ground beef@@sannamuh985
WOW youtube just suggested this to me and I think its spot on for my health issues. Thanks for the amazing video! Instant sub here
Have you looked at the association of sugar and its effects on iron absorption? My ferritin, serum iron and saturation iron levels were all within the abnormal range with the numbers just keep on creeping up. Was referred to a haematologist and went through all the relevant tests including scans of the liver and blood tests. All came out negative. Then I looked at the association of the sugar groups, the liver and iron absorption. I did blood tests 5 months between and within these 5 months, I stopped consuming sugar from all the sugar groups including fructose and lactose. So no fruits, milk or dairy. Within 5 months I couldn’t believe how dramatically my iron levels improved with everything dropping now to within normal range. I’ve adopted this no sugar diet since then.
My understanding from what various commenters have said is that Saladino was on a carnivore diet -- a zero carb diet. So, he started adding some carbs back to his diet and his free test and SHBG began to normalize.
I understand that around 60% of the iron in red meat is non-heme and can be reduced with milk thistle, IP 6, and quercetin. Quoting a doctor that specializes in Hemochromatosis: "Additionally, the milk thistle and quercetin have other mechanisms to generally reduce elevated iron. Quercetin in particular has been shown to have chelation like effects on high ferritin levels." I would love to be able to verify this or get a second opinion. I am not eligible to donate blood anymore.
I would like to know this too as I've recently bought milk thistle, I have also heard tumeric can do the same
Tudca and nac are better
Ashwaganda helps increase testosterone
So interesting! This is definitely not my issue, as I tend to struggle to hold onto iron (low TF sat, low ferritin) even on animal based diet but this is really interesting! I love that you give your hypothesis on the mechanism as well!
Awesome video, Elliot. I'm a fan of Morley Robbins who is quite knowledgeable about iron and he thinks that ferritin should be much lower than what is widely accepted today. He thinks it should only be ~20 ng/ml and the problem that a lot of iron issues that people suffer from is actually a copper/retinol deficiency. He also feels that giving blood is something most people should do and should be part of many people's routine.
Andrew … glad you gave a shout out to Morley Robbins
✅✅✅✅✅✅✅✅✅
Copper/retinol deficiency? Do you mean overload?
@@dukington101 Actually no. Copper is key to the iron metabolism functioning properly and needs to be in balance with iron. Having too much iron circulating in your system (i.e. having a high ferritin level) causes oxidative stress throughout your body and some believe is the root cause for a lot of disease. That case study in this video shows a person is in an incredibly unhealthy state and ED should be near the bottom of the list of his worries.
The mainstream loves to demonize copper and make it seem like virtually nobody is deficient but that is simply not the case anymore because of our mineral depleted soils and processed food that can impact copper levels. Apparently in the 1900's, people used to get 4-6mg copper in their diet every day but now our health authorities feel that an RDA of 0.9mg is enough. There's lot of research out there that supports this. Proper copper and magnesium levels are absolutely key to health.
Did you transfer this vidéo to Morley ? he will probably like it unless he follows EO !
Morley has helped me much more than any MD
This reminds me of the bodybuilder who was training under John Parrillo back aroudn 1993 who was also taking his iron pills. At the time he was on the cover of the Parrillo marketing materials and looked awesome. But shortly after he landed in the hospital and nearly died. I think they determined it was related to too high iron levels in his blood. Anyone else remember this?
You can’t win. Im off high carb’s and on meat, chicken and fish. It seems nothing is good for you anymore, so I’ll stick with my new diet of low carbs and higher protein with meats and fish. Maybe these men are drinking too much bottled water or processed foods. Perhaps soy. I like you’re channel a lot
too much water itself - good catch mate in general
Saladino surfs a lot in salty water, he needs to drink more modern water which is high in deuterium ruining mitochondria
i hope he doesn't drink coconut water because it's literally a slow suicide
it keep fingers crossed for you!
I'm hoarding eggs, great for small anabolic and wound healing properties
If it's not bottled water, it's water full of hormones courtesy of birth control pills...
Can you please explain why drinking coconut water is a slow suicide? I TRY to get young coconuts and open them for water every now and then
@@szymonbaranowski8184 why is coconut water bad for you
It's not that. I have the same issue. It's probably the effects of all the GMO fake garbage food
Very interesting. This means 'health conscious' guys into carnivore diet and eating plenty of organ meat (loaded with iron) might end up with low T. The best natural chelators of iron are Curcumin and IP6 (Inositol Hexaphosphate). Combining these 2 will do better than just donating blood, and you get the added benefits of these nutraceuticals. Apolactoferrin, will also help the body to better utilize iron and avoid issues with toxic levels.
Can you also make videos on mold toxicity, as oxalates and mold have correlation.
YES PLEASE
Yes!
@@snowyowl6892 mold may not be as toxic as we think. In Brazil when is rain for too long the houses in same places ( behind closets, cabinets and ceilings can get pretty moldy, black mold,green mold and grey mold. People are exposed to mold all year round. I guess the mold may not be the cause of many issues people may think.
And the most prone areas in the US?
Also the connection between citric acid and black mold, and how it affects the human body
Exact same issue presenting in my lifetime first panel at 47 y.o. and 9 years carnivore lite. Fantastic thinking EO!
I do 5 raw egg in my Coffee bulllet that actually block iron absorbtion through protein in the white egg , Iam 50yrs my testosteron is amazing, being able to build lean muscle mass and just had my blood work my free testosteron is amazing better than in my 20's.
Hey man can you give me more information on this pls. Did you take the five eggs in the morning?? And What was the rest of your diet like? Lots of red meat?
Yo, Rocky
How? with avidin?
Free range or any eggs???
I want to say thank you for the information, very accurate. I just wish 99% of youtubers would slow down. There's so much information to process and there must be some kind of time limit or else no one will watch it. Watch some old documentaries and listen to how people had cadence, they paused, they let the listener breathe.
Unfortunately youtube rarely pushes that content because people dont watch it. Short attention span
Thank you so much for sharing your personal experience and what you found in the literature. I appreciate your work in thinking about everything and coming up with intelligent theories
Boron can help levels of free testosterone. I used boron for only 4 days in a double dose of different variants. I already felt an elevated mood. I came across a video that talked about free testosterone and boron which made sence. Boron also elevated DHEA and vitamin D which makes sence as it is also a hormone.
What sources of boron are you using?
@@FrenchViking466 you get it on Amazon. Do your research for levels
@@FrenchViking466 I have tried a combination of sodium tetra borate which is I think borax and I had one of nature's way that I could not find anymore after finishing it.
Now I have life extension which has citrate, glycinate and aspartate form in it.
Boron and vitamin D combo has worked well for me as well recently, boron is a good one.
For iron overload, look into oral administration of IP6 (Inositol hexa phosphoric acid (phytic acid)). From pubmed: "Oral administration of IP6 (0-200mg/kg) revealed significant decrease in biochemical markers such as serum iron, total iron binding, serum ferritin and serum enzymes."
Iron dumbbells must have a natural defense mechanism against bodybuilders. Fascinating 🤔
I’ve been in TRT for 5 years. I used to give blood regularly (every 60ish days). After a year or so I finally realized I had symptoms that fit low ferritin. Sure enough it was extremely low when I had it done. Problem for me is, on TRT my H&H goes up over time, when I give blood too regularly I crash my ferritin. I started a high quality iron supplement and brought my ferritin back but it seems contradictory to add iron to an H&H that is always increasing. My most recent labs also showed my total T at 850ish but my free was only 32 pg/ml. It is usually much higher when I donate blood regularly. Now I need to check SHGB and I’ll bet it’s high. What a pain in the A.
You need to increase fish fatty fish in your diet Iodine plays a huge roll in Iron absorption
@@katherinedownover7927 Just use salt with added iodine
@@dude861 you can use that but there's not enough iodine in the salt
We used to get extra iodine from milk as the cows udders where sterilized with it but they changed it to a chemical and the problem has become quite bad
Thanks for the suggestion. I do take over three grams of high quality omega 3.
Interesting
(Female) When I went low carb, and lost weight my TSH (thru thyroid med, hashi's) got too low, causing high red blood cell count, high ferritin & iron. I felt horrible being hyperthyroid!! It also caused weight gain or inability to lose weight & worsening blood glucose, making my type 2 way worse. FYI- I was first dxd w/Hashimoto's Thyroiditis in 2005.
Now that my thyroid med has been decreased from 200 mcg to 100mcg I feel much better. Most of the hyper symptoms have abated and I actually had way better blood sugar numbers, which also had a good effect on my weight loss efforts. So--if you have issues with high red blood cells, iron, ferritin, find out what your thyroid numbers look like too. There may be going a bit hyper thyroid induced by Keto/Carnivore/Ketovore, especially if you are a Hashimoto's Thyroiditis sufferer. AND, if you're also a type 2 diabetic, hyper thyroidism will make your blood sugar worse, despite eating very low carb and it made my increase peripheral neuropathy pain worse.
I couldn't figure out why keto & IF wasn't working better...well it was bc my doctor wasn't keeping an eye on my TSH. I ended up at "0" TSH!!
1) Maybe it would be worthwhile to also add a thyroid panel if one has high iron & red blood cell count, low testosterone, high free testosterone?
Now that I am on a much lower dose of thyroid medication, I'm slowly recovering. I'm even starting to lose weight again, as I want to lose 40 more pounds. Next step is to check my iron, red blood cell count again to see if it normalized. I suspect it will show improvement as well.
I've had a steady cascade of worsening health since first dxd with Fibromyalgia at age 22. (now age 56) I can't even list how many conditions I have now, but needless to say it was likely the undiagnosed Lyme Disease/& co infections that started the cascade of conditions/pain over the yrs(I live in an endemic state, NW WI).
I pray that the next step: B1 therapy & oxalates are the final piece to the medical puzzle. I've had to figure out a lot on my own since western medicine is unable to peel back all the layers of dysfunction. Thanks to Elliott i.e. EONutrition, I'm closer than ever & finally have a smidgen of hope.
@DMWB57 that is one heck of a journey, thanks for sharing. It's true, if we can't direct our Drs where to look and make the appointments more efficient and productive, we'll like never truly get to the source of to these things.
My problem is similar with very high ferritin and the accompanying symptoms. I HAD been taking massive doses of vitamin c during the pandemic to ward off viruses. Turns out C helps the body absorb iron. I have discontinued the C and I am feeling much better. I believe that by July when I return to the VA for my annual I will be in good shape I am taking turmeric, moringa, tongai cat and feenagreek to suppress the manufacture of estrogen.
Randy just a heads up. Free Iron is what they are fortifying our grains with here in the U.S. so just about all of the big companies by law have to add iron, but it's free iron, which is basically ground up cars and stuff.
If you eat any breads, cereals, corn flour, and even rice, the big companies are putting free iron in it by law, so you might want to go with organic brands instead of the major brands of food. I personally have just been trying to stay away from all grain products just so I don't get fat.
The iron we get from meat and plants is good iron and called Heme Iron, and is already a bound molecule and is good for us, but those ground up cars are killing our organs, besides feeding bacteria, fungus, cancer and viruses in our bodies...
@@robertputt7794 Yeah, goinmg "Keto" and eliminating the extra carbs in bread. I hat eto give up those "Hawaiian Rolls" LOL
@@randydrake8108 I know right. Bread is the best, but them Hawaiian Rolls should be called heavenly rolls!😛
Im older guy, i have had ED for years, low thyroid, and now it seems worsening osreo arthritis in my joints, all my joints. My doc signalled high ferritin 650 mols, and liver enzymes, i quit drinking but ferritin still high. He is conservative doc and doesnt like to do a lot of tests, i would like to test what you have tested and do phlebotomy...fat chance of that, and i cant give blood,,,cuz on blood thinner
I'm sorry to hear this. liver-damage is associated with Fe-loading. alcohol promotes Fe-absorption both acutely and chronically, so it's good that You've quit drinking. regards.
Frank Tufano showing he’s been ahead of the game for awhile now.
he was just first with destroying his own health
@@dwoh4345 sure I think he’d actually agree with this as well. Regardless he made the adjustments before Paul and the other carnivores. Keep in mind there are still people promoting a all red meat diet and are 3-5 years out from a wrecked liver and coming to the same conclusions. Much of the issue is all of these people are assuming various 8 go zillions years of evolution models vs created, fallen, mortal, thus eat the diet that best agrees with our bodies as is while we are here.
@@Bakamojo Bro Frank Tufano? How the hell he's ahead of the game do you see the things he eats daily now? Last vid I saw he was literally eating large amounts of potato chips, regular bread, etc and making up reasons it was okay to eat these things.
@@dukington101 Ahead in the sense he destroyed his liver before anyone else in the carnivore club. Not ahead in the sense that he figured things out before bad consequences ensued. Now that Dr. Saladino appears to have been heading in the same direction before correcting course, it certainly casts doubt on this widespread dietary experiment. In his latest interview with Georgi Dinkov, he seems to be easing up on the meat. Still eating organs but reducing his meat intake. The high ferritin may also explain the accelerated signs of aging visible on his face though the carnivore community thinks that's because of his carb intake in the form of fruit and honey. On the other hand, Dr. Shawn Baker and Dr. Anthony Chaffee are still looking good on a diet of nothing but ribeyes, so mysteries remain.
@@dukington101 Un huh. Like I said ahead of the game. Your still fear mongering on the wrong things. “Bro potatoes!?!?”.
I went from 334 to 960 in around 3 months. All natural no TRT. This book should be essential reading for all men. Written by a 50s guy with natural T levels of a 20s guy
Complete guide to testosterone by james Francis
😊 ty 4 this!
I've been a vegan for 10 years. I was a professional athlete and have had no prob with testosterone
I believe You. diet has to be tailored to the Individual, not the other way around. regards.
Thank you for this data. I've had high SHBG (55nmol/L) in comparison to my relatively mediocre Total T and since it's within the reference range (which is set super high at 71nmol), I haven't had much help from my doctor on this. I've had a full hormone panel done, Iron/Ferritin, Hepatic, CKD, Renal, Lipids, Glucose, CBC & Auto, D3. All were within "reference range", but reviewing again, it looks like my Ferritin is 217 ug/L, and Iron Saturation at 41%, so this is something I will definitely experiment with more.
"normal" ranges are too wide and hide several conditions
I had high iron saturation - around 55% to start. My blood counts were on the low side of normal and platelets were mildly below range and copper and zinc were below range. I started supplementing copper (you must monitor copper closely to avoid OD) and zinc on my own and then my hematologist started me on B12 drops to bring my B12 from 450 to around 1000 and also methylfolate 1700 mcg. Over 6 months or so the iron panel improved so that my saturation is in a normal range and iron has lowered too (no phlebotomy) and platelets are now in normal range. Other blood counts are stable but not much improvement. I would like to see them more in normal mid-range.
I have exactly the same issue. My total T is on the high normal, but free T is just above the lowest normal range. And ofc high shbg. I also always have low platelets. A bit lower than the lowest normal range. I’ve never found the root cause of this and never tested my iron saturation. I’m gonna test them next week. Hopefully this is also my root cause.
@@hatwolf7313 The bacterium Helicobacter pylori greatly reduces platelets! donate feces for antigen to Helecobacter
Not discussed but eating egg yolks and a lot of nuts like Brazil nuts and almonds when eating foods high in iron can help reduce your iron absorption. Egg yolks are high in phosvitin and nuts are high in phytic acid which both limit iron absorption. Eating nuts already have a lot of other benefits that are good for your nuts anyways.
One miss understood micro nutrient is boron which helps regulate estrogen, calcium, phosphorus and other nutrients. Research paper done on supplementing 6 to 9mg of boron in women with low sex drive and men with low free bound test which also causes low libido rectified the issue in both sexs. I've taken boron now for 3 years and my free test is always in a good range and it also rectifies men on trt as there free test gets out of wack due to being on trt
Marc thank you for the information, how do you take boron, is it prescription or otc.? thanks much
@@truthteller7705boron can be bought as a supplement 3mg. The study said 6mg to 9mg so I started on 3 x 3mg for 6 months but dropped to 6mg which I've taken continuely now for 2 years
Ashwaganda and Tongkat Ali also helps
@@truthteller7705 OTC, typically 3 mg capsules. I take 3 a day for a 9 mg dose. For women looking for an estrogen boost, take them consistently every day. For men looking to boost free test, cycle on 2 weeks and off one week to keep estrogen levels from getting out of control.
@@truthteller7705 you can get boron in trace minerals supplements.
I have hemochromatosis. Started treatment 6 months ago. My ferritin was at 3400, now after weekly blood letting I'm down to 400. I'm not sure what my testosterone levels are, but iv never really had any sex drive all my life. So this could explain why.
Here's my Testosterone fix for most men:
- Zero alcohol
- Zero cigarettes
- Zero refined sugar
- More protein
- More good fats
- Zero bad fats (cooking vegetable and seed oils)
- Only real food (Unprocessed)
- Cold showers
- Earlier better sleep
- Working out
- Intermittent Fasting
Works like magic within a week. 2-3 weeks if you're a complete utter mess.
All good ideas but doesn't tobacco actually increase testosterone?
@@robmcg9538 - There is a claim that cigars increase Testosterone. I don't subsribe to that. Smoke contains carcinogens, damages DNA and organs and reduce the amount of oxygen in your blood... I wouldn't tell myself that my T will benefit from smoking
not the cold showers syndrome this is such a typical list what everyone says, all the above should be normal, cold showers are a myth, just wash/showers cold the last few mins.
@@noWoodsman - That's exactly what I do. Have a regular shower. Finish up with 1-2 minutes of cold water
@@robmcg9538 Where did you got this information from???
I did not understand exactly what is the proposed solution, went over my head.
You and Morley Robbins need to do a podcast.
150 testosterone here
Low normal LH and FSH
Normal E2 and prolactin
Normal ferritin and liver enzymes
Low normal SHBG and free test
Secondary hipogonadism. But, why?
Healthy BF and somewhat muscular
Lack of meat,eggs,dairy
Or too many endotoxins
@@blicmen3804 I’ve added 5 eggs, fixed sleep and my cortisol. 3 months after it went to 500
@@mateusdovale5863 see i told u it goes up whem u do whats needed
Can you do a video on estrogen dominance, low progesterone, and improving estrogen detoxification pathways for women. Thanks!!! I love all of your videos.
Thyroid system is paramount for this. But carnivore/keto is thyroid suppressive.
@@aspiresk8boarding Is this because of the lack of carbs? Or another reason?
@@jennybadl7840 Mainly a carb issue I think. The liver is a glucostatic organ that depends on glycogen for energy. It converts inactive t4 to active t3 with the right deiodinase enzymes that need that glucose for energy. Our body does it’s best to constantly keep liver glycogen storages. I suppose on low carb gluconeogenesis can take care of this, it’s just energetically inefficient. Glucagon which first kicks in when blood sugar is low can trigger GNG but it hinders that thyroid conversion in the liver. If blood sugar goes even lower then adrenaline and cortisol kick in and further hinder that thyroid conversion. Active t3 along with vitamin A is needed to convert cholesterol in the cell into youth steroid hormones, most importantly progesterone for women. Progesterone has opposing effects of estrogen and detoxes estrogen from cells, keeps it in balance
@@jennybadl7840 Ways carnivore can be helpful for estrogen dominance:
-fat loss, less aromatization of hormones
-no longer feeding pathogenic bacteria with starchy carbs, less endotoxin means healthier liver
-finally getting enough protein, b vitamins, and cholesterol
Those can all be done while respecting blood sugar balance with carbs throughout the day
Higher insulin keeps toxic estrogen high (as a side note, women with estrogen dominance also tend to be insulin resistant)
It’s pretty simple , don’t over complicate it. Things that kill testosterone, having body fat, stress, sugary foods and drinks, bad sleep, lack of sunlight, sedentary lifestyle, inflamattory diet.
Things that’s boost testosterone
Sunshine, losing fat, healthy proteins and fats, not stressing, staying active, good sleep hygiene, anti inflamattory diets etc
Great analysis Elliot, my free T was borderline low, ferritin was close to the upper end.
Try blood donation! You will likely see it improve
@@EONutrition thanks , I'll do that
@@EONutrition
How much blood should be donated and after how many days or months should be donated again. Thanks
@@EONutrition or consume dairy?
Excellent down to hearth analysis. You just gained a subscriber! Thanks for posting this.
This is why food high in copper is so important guys
You don't want copper build up ethier. You can easily overdo iron, copper, abd calcium since they are all metals
@@thelonesquid7886 sure but it can absolutely help to fix imbalances too. Depending on requirement high intakes of metals can be very beneficial but they must be in the right ratios correct intervals and with the correct synergies. Making it sound like metals are high risk or bad is just useless scaremongering. Most people are deficient in metals and nowhere near toxic levels which is also a very relative measure since the problematic dose is dependent on many variables many of which can be adjusted with clever dieting and supplementation
@@jonlobov1249 again most people are chronically deficient in both metals. It’s never a good idea to go all in on one nutrient. The proper composition and ratios must be respected always
I tried to eat nuts, avocados as it supposed to have high copper, is it ok?
My total T was 872 and 919 on two different tests at age 38 but my free was way below the normal range and my SHBG was at 100. I spent a year going to Dr appointments and having tests run. Everything came back perfectly fine. I got tired of feeling like shit all the time and being depressed/losing weight and eventually gave in and started TRT about a year ago. I constantly regret it. My Total T has to be above 1200 just for my free to be on the high end of the normal range. Even then my SHBG is still above normal at 62. I despise giving myself 4 shots a week (TRT&HCG). I wish I had come across this info sooner. I was in a bad motorcycle accident about two years ago that put me into the ICU and one of the injuries was two brain hemorrhages, which is what all the Dr's seemed to think the cause was yet all tests results and scans came back fine. Perhaps in the near future, I will take a couple of months off from the TRT, try these suggestions, and see if it fixes my problem. My LH, while low is still there and the HCG has kept the balls working so hopefully I didn't screw myself over.
I am in a similar position. Shbg 117 and same issues regarding low free t. I too recently hopped on trt and although it’s helped with energy and brain fog, there have been no improvement in libido or my ED.
Do you also have high ferritin? Have you been treating that with blood letting? If so have you been feeling better?
Dudes, why are you in HCG? The only reason to do that is to stay fertile. If your shgb is still super high, just start taking proviron.
So what do you to get your free testosterone higher?
@@Patekphilipe1738
You take proviron and/or boron
If you haven’t come off yet ask your doctor for Enclomiphene not Clomid. A 6 week course and you should fully recover
Elliot, my TSAT was 63% last time I got it checked. Before that, it was 55%. I am 23 y/o with a Total T of 1,113, Free T of 120, and SHBG of 87. My Iron is always in the 130s and my Ferritin is 252. I have had this exact pattern in multiple other sets of labs. I also have hypothyroidism. I seriously think there is a connection with iron overload and hypothyroidism in addition to what you hypothesized. Maybe iron is being stored in the thyroid gland, causing it to produce high Reverse T3 (RT3) and/or low FT3 and FT4.
I have not gotten tested for hemochromatosis, but I will pursue it now and get it tested as soon as possible.
What does TSAT stand for?
@@NateB It stands for Transferrin Saturation. Wikipedia says "Studies also reveal that a transferrin saturation (serum iron concentration ÷ total iron binding capacity) over 60 percent in men and over 50 percent in women identified the presence of an abnormality in iron metabolism (hereditary hemochromatosis, heterozygotes and homozygotes) with approximately 95 percent accuracy."
What was the result of your test?
@@NateB transferrin saturation
@@supercal333 I just got it back today, actually. I have it! I am compound heterozygous. That means that I have both the C282Y and H63D mutations. This is apparently rare. 3-8% of people with hemochromatosis have this combination.
Take shilajit bro, u can take this as a hint and u can further research on it, all the best and god bless. Keep up the good work
High test --> hunting success --> meat consumption --> lowered test --> with time hunger increases --> increased test --> hunting success. If only people should start respecting/considering basic natural dynamics. No need for all the fancy pantsy analysis, and this comes from an academic...
If you eat meat you need to fight and lose blood to stay at least somewhat balanced. This is normal stuff...
Why not just increase consumption of Calcium rich food (e.g. bone meal, dairy, whole fish like Sardines?) Doesn't Calcium compete with Iron for absorption and utilization in the body?
Another good video but have you considered that high ferritin IS the protective mechanism? I certainly do in my work. It's already identified as an acute phase reactant. I think your fixes are not cooking in cast iron pans and giving blood. Which is sensible but I feel the mechanistic guess work does ignore ferritin at high levels not being problematic if all other iron markers are good.
I'm a believer in symptom-led diagnosis so if libido is not low, skin lacks discolored patches and energy is fine then high ferritin may simply indicate a recent infection or a protective role. I'd be open to a discussion if you are interested
In normal physiology yes. But not in people with hemochromatosis or issues with managing hepcidin.
The message doesn't get sent which would ordinarily shunt iron into ferritin, so ferritin doesn't rise as it oridinarily should do. Hence, maybe SHBG is the next best alternative
My total test and SHBG is way above the high range (35 TT - 63 SHBG), and my free test is 543 (range is between 200-600)... My Ferritin is 249 (range is 30-500), iron 16.8 (range is 10-30), saturation 31%. My SHBG was higher in my blood test last year. My cortisol is also through the roof way way above the high range.
so high end free t what is the prob ?
I find that my T is at its best when I am lifting weights 3-4 times per week. ....and eat a 95% natural food diet, with sugar and processed foods. It is a easy routine to get into and works well for me. (It also helps to live a less stressful way, and to sleep 7-8 hours/day)
Did you mean without sun ar and processed foods?
Sugar???
@@sabirislam5017 There are a number of people, including Ray Peat, who don't see cane sugar as the enemy.
Do you mean without
@@davidnorden1972 how about the majority of the medical community who does? Whatever. It's your life to live..
Came across this video while looking for answers to low T and various other symptoms, brain fog, low mood etc. and lack of you know what in the downstairs dept! Male late 40s.
I'm also trying to solve an issue with what seems to be a metabolic syndrome, my weight has been quite high for some time, and resultant high blood pressure on meds for that. I've also got issues like psorisis on my scalp, like big crusty flakes, poor sleep, racing heartrate sometimes, low oxygen saturation 95-97 typically, sometimes down to 93%.
I got blood panel done a couple of years ago and showed some markers out of range. First HDL low, HbA1c high, Uric Acid high, high creatinine and low eGFR. Basically advised to modify my diet and improve physical activity. Eat less refined sugar etc.
Since that time I did go on a couple of diets and got my weight and BP down a good bit but it didn't last I gained all the weight back on, had another blood panel this year and it showed pretty much the same plus I got testosterone done this one. The results for ones out of range were ALT high, Creatinine High, eGFR low, much the same as before. Interesting that the free T was low, total T was 7.5 (nmol/L) (Low) but SHBG 22.7 (nmol/L) was low but in normal range. This test was in Feb 2023, I recently tried the carnivore diet for a couple of weeks just to see how I went, I did loose weight on it but that wasn't the ultimate goal, I was trying to transform this poor health issues.
However while on the C diet whatever happened it seemed to bottom out my T levels completely, it felt like my balls were withering away and hence the interest in finding out about the low T with high iron. I also felt major brain fog and depressive episodes on the C diet but very slowly in the 2nd Week I felt a bit better but not the change I was hoping for, although I did not get the sugar/carb cravings and was down to eating only one meal a day for the last Week on it. I've since wen't back in a normal diet and my T seems to have came back up a bit, but still got the skin conditions and metabolic syndrome. I'd love to try the C diet a good bit longer but can't take the low T levels on it.
OMG! Brilliant, life saving wisdom. Thank you for this vital info. I have extremely high SHBG for many years. Not a single medical doctor that I have been to has any idea at all as to why it is so high, or even a clue as to what it is. I have been to liver doctors! Idiots - all of them. My Testosterone is in the 1200's and SHBG over 170 - and my testicles are exhausted and hurt. These numbers vary slightly from test to test, but not much. For other reasons (senescence cells) I planned to have regular blood drawn every 8 weeks and to see if my energy improves. Enormous lethargy.
I've donated 5 times in the past year and feel ten years younger. I'm gonna hit 12 donations then switch to 3xs a year
@@thelonesquid7886how long did it take to feel better?
My SHBG level is very high too (123). I must try phlebotomy to see if that help rise free t
They're are three good diets. I tried carnivore and almost had a heart attack.
I did keto and had sweet cravings constantly but it had a lot of benefits like no inflammation and high strength all day.
My best diet is raw healthy food only and eat small portions OR intermittent fasting.
You must have been eating too much on the carnivore diet. Or maybe too much fried meat. I've been on the carnivore diet for 2 years and I feel great.
To the body, weight loss is indicative of famine conditions in the environment. Could the body then reduce free testosterone availability as a pathway to slow down the metabolism?
Wow very interesting, I'm in my early 20s and after getting some bloods done earlier this year, noticed my total T towards top of reference range but free T was towards the bottom. I do a lot of cardio as a triathlete so assumed it was purely because of that but this could also be a lead as my SHBG was above reference at 88 nmol/L. I was looking into Tongkat Ali / Boron other supps to lower SHBG but interestingly my dad has haemochromotosis and my ferritin saturation is 52%. Will definitely look into this further as I'm trying to optimise my levels naturally
My #s match yours. Keep us all updated here please 🙏
Aerobic and anaerobic exercise with lower sugar intake with olive, coconut or grapeseed oil should help ameliorate the problem
Holy shit. I couldn’t never figure out why my SHBG was always in the red. I checked my iron levels and they are in the orange range, so is the transferring saturation, which was at 50%. Time to donate blood.
Any update?
@@ratgreendonated blood and SHBG went down by 10 points
I can highly recommend looking into Morley Robbins and The Root Cause Protocol for iron overload.
This was extremely informative! I have the HFE gene and eat ALOT of red meat. I had low T and I did clomid for 2 years but stopped because it making me neurotoxic so I stopped but now my low T hormones are coming back strongly.
Donate blood, especially if you’re on t.
And why were you on clomid?
@2K9s Didn't want to shutdown my natural production, so was going to give clomid a go. It worked but had horrendous brain fog
What else did you notice while on clomid?
@Jarack123 T went from 150 to 1200 and had good muscle tone, traps and shoulders grew and had decent recovery but horrendous brain fog
@@danch10what dose were you taking of clomid? Remember aromitase inhibitors will also increase your test by decreasing estradiol, counteracting the negative feedback mechanism at the pituitary gland level and consequently increase the levels of gonadotrophins, LH, and FSH, and result in a rise in serum testosterone.
Perhaps that will work without the brain fog.
this video was godsent since my ferritin was high 250ng/ml and started having all kinda weird problems also including elevated shgb.
Went to donate blood yesterday and plan to do so every 2 months which you can do here in finland without a cost.
Keep us all updated here please 🙏
Wow you have just solved my life long issue in a single video can't thank you enough! Just checked my last blood work and I have all the markers high shbg, testosterone, b12 and transferrin saturation. I just recently got on to the heavy metal toxicity after many many other possibilities. I found out that the heavy metals mimic other vital metals and take there place in the cells causing deficiencies. And that it also causes the brain to signal the liver to down regulate glutathione production. So nothing to clear out or build new cells causing terrible problems.
I've been using glutathione injections and fulvic acid along with activated charcoal to clear the heavy metals out and kick start repairing the damage.
If your TSAT% is high, you might be surprised to find that after blood donation and reduction of the % to 30, that your SHBG comes right down and your free T goes right up
@@EONutrition Are you saying blood donation works well?
@@Leonard.J.Mills. Yep
@EONutrition what is a normal sat%?....nevermind...looks like above you said around 30%
@@EONutrition TSAT% 28 free T is Low, SHBG is high. Total is 550. On a low carb animal based diet. Male 51 years old. How to improve my numbers?
I’m a woman, that’s my problem! My iron as always be low. I don’t menstruate. My doc has me on Aller- Ease DHQ to free up my testosterone. I can tell the difference after I take the natural supplement. I see my doc soon. I’ll get her to check my iron. It has always been low but I haven’t had it checked in awhile.
thank You for sharing. have You got chronic inflammation? regards.
@@wolfrahmphosphoros5808 I use to. I have IC aka interstitial cystitis . I haven’t had to be on meds for over 10 yrs. No more pain in my bladder as long as I don’t eat or drink anything that my body finds toxic …I’m on a diet manly free of nightshades. I’ve been taking celery seed extract for many yrs as it gets rid of inflammation. My doc tells me that since I have so many allergies my body isn’t working right with the hormones. Thanks for responding!
@@marshareed1438 I'm so sorry. yes, unfortunately if You have chronic inflammation, this is the most likely cause of your low Iron because inflammation results in higher levels of Hepcidin, which downregulates intestinal absorption of this nutrient, and locks body-Iron in storing tissues. have You been to your Doctor to check your current Iron-status or not yet? regards.
@@wolfrahmphosphoros5808 If I have low iron will I involuntarily catch my breath? I also get cold very easily! I feel like I’m chilled down to the bones. When tested in the past I was low but it wasn’t horrible.
I’m a big meat eater so I hate to take a supplement if I don’t have to. I get lab work once a year. I imagine iron is included. I will look at my last results which were in December & tell you what they’re. Thanks for responding! 🙏
@@wolfrahmphosphoros5808 It’s called a ferritin test, right? Doc didn’t check for that. She did a CBC/platelet check. My monocytes are high at 1.0. Isn’t that inflammation?
Since going carnivore I noticed a lower libido. My last blood test showed an average TESTOSTERONE (484), a high SHBG (70) and a low FREE TESTOSTERONE (18), but my FERRITIN seems to be in the normal range (228). How can this situation be explained then?
Some experience increases SBHH due to lack of carbohydrates on the carnivore diet. Also fasting and calorie restrictions can cause an increase of sbhg. You A: introduce carbs from fruits like bananas or rice. B use 9-12 mg of Boron for 1-1/2 half week. It will acutely decrease your sbhg significantly. You have to cycle it. So try it. And then measure it again
Low carb or low fat diets will tank your testosterone. If one wishes to have optimal testosterone levels, then they should eat around 45% carbs and 30% fats.
The person above mentioned Boron, which I can vouch for. Take 6mg per day for 2 weeks and then cycle off for 2 weeks and repeat. If you take it continuously without cycling, then it will increase your estrogen to high levels.
Your ferritin should be less than 100
I have similar symptoms without knowing SHBG and Ferritin. Carnivore diet, cook on cast iron, not donating blood, free Testosterone has tanked to 9. were you able to confirm iron overload was the issue?
You are misunderstanding the range. 228 is very high. Get your ferritin below 30. Do double red blood cell donations. Itll take you a few years to get it down where it needs to be. Stop eating only red meat. Thats how you got yourself into this mess. Read “Dumping Iron” it will explain everything. Unfortunately the carnivore fad has hurt a lot of mens sex drives and many other functions.
Root cause is lack of sleep if you are healthy there is no other reason
caffeine is the issue that makes sleep impossible
Have you looked into vitamin A toxicity and iron overload?
Yes, this is what I'm wondering. Does Elliot have a history of eating organ meats? Paul Saladino and Frank Tufano both appear to have tanked on carnivore from their obsession with organ meats, whether it was the Vitamin A or copper or both.
Interesting, this is purley anecdotal but I am pretty sure I was Vit A toxic previously (I took accutane and also mega dosed Vit A for acne, which I regret a lot). I now have high transferrin Saturation (50-70%)
I'v been saying it for years,all these extreme diets that people do are gonna make them sick eventually,but i guess you reap what you sow
I agree with You to an extent. regards.
Iron overload is such an odd problem, there has to be some mechanism by which the Liver can bind and get rid of excess Iron. Bloodletting makes sense for helping this problem but did our ancestors really bleed that much? I know this has some relation to an active virus in which the body shuttles away and inactivates Iron from fueling the Viruses. Usually Zinc-ionophores help against the virus and then allows the Iron to be active.
Iron filings have been added to many processed foods so we I take more iron than our ancestors.
Agree this is a super interesting question.
In nature it's not uncommon to have parasites or bleed out often. We've basically done away with that in modern society
All you have to do is survive. You won't die from a little high iron.
Supposed to be eating raw meat is the reason.
I love it when they show research stuff like this
Iron overload is dangerous. Someone wrote a comment saying cod liver oil raises ferritin levels dangerously high; he and a friend (they tried different brands of CLO) both landed up in hospital with severe infections. Surely if we needed iron we would crave liver, spinach and other iron-rich foods?
There is a condition (pica) where people with iron deficiency anaemia crave/eat dirt.
Mac are you saying clo is toxic then, that makes sense cos i went keto and doubled up on clo and ended up with bad heart palps, do you think that could of been the cause?
@@paulbillington8290 Might have something to do with too much Vit A.
@@brojoe4919
yes Joe i,ve been told that off someone else as well mate, interesting.
Are there alternatives for reducing iron other than giving blood? Any good dietary changes/supplements that may have a similar effect?
yes-avoid Fe-rich foods and consume a lot of foods containing Fe-absorption-inhibitors, so vegan and vegetarian diets. diet will not directly influence the Fe-stores, but by decreasing dietary Fe as well as decreasing bioavailability of the present dietary Fe, the body's stores will decrease over Time. regards.
Could avoiding eating iron rich liver, and eating a lot more dairy and eggs help fix this problem?
Yes good question?
Do some math, my friend. If you eat 2lbs of beef, you get 18mg of iron. In one ounce of beef liver, there's 2mg. That's about the proportions you'd eat of that.
Yes, liver is highly overrated in the carnivore community
Wow. Amazing video Elliot thank you
How long does it take to see major results after donating blood? great video
It's nice to be young and healthy.
I feel like this can be a problem for females as well, just on a smaller scale. I always felt weak and tired compared to others and tested with a high SHBG a few months back. Even though my other blood tests are normal most of my measures are near the low range including my free T. So I guess this advice works for everyone.
Don't forget that birth control pills raise SHBG ( A LOT)
As well as estrogen.