What Do Estrogen Blockers Do?

Aromatase inhibitors or estrogen blockers block the production of estrogen, which is known to increase the risk of breast cancer. Humans now have higher levels of estrogen in their bodies than ever before due to environmental toxins, pesticides, plastics and the birth control pill.

Function

Estrogen blockers are sometimes referred to as anti-estrogens. Estrogen blockers lower estrogen levels in the body and prevent testosterone, which both men and women have, from converting into estrogen. Estrogen blockers are sometimes referred to as estrogen detoxifiers, according to Antiaging-systems.com.

Potential

When estrogen levels are lowered, testosterone levels will increase. Too much estrogen can lead to cancer as well as to increased body fat and man breasts, which is medically referred to as gynecomastia.

Benefits Versus Risks

Estrogen is a wonderful and vital hormone when a woman is young. It allows her to physically develop and reproduce. Men also need estrogen, but in a much lower degree than women. However, estrogen, when it becomes dominant, can result in a bad outcome, namely cancer.

Too Little, Too Much

As we age, our estrogen levels increase, which reduces sperm count in men and increases the risk of cancer, particularly prostate and cervical cancers. When women go through menopause their estrogen levels significantly decline, which creates another host of problems because women need estrogen to stay healthy, just not too much of it. Many post-menopausal women opt to take hormone replacement therapy (HRT) but that has been found to put them at higher risk for breast cancer. It’s a vicious cycle.

Tamoxifen

Tamoxifen, a drug, was the estrogen blocker drug of choice for years for post-menopausal women who have breast cancer that is estrogen-dependent for growth. However, in 1999, Aromasin was approved in the United State for the treatment of post-menopausal women with advanced breast cancer whose tumors were no longer responding to Tamoxifen treatment.

Aromasin

Aromasin is a steroidal aromastase in-activator. This means that it specifically targets and irreversibly binds to the enzyme called aromatase, which is needed to produce estrogen. When estrogen stops being produced in the body, breast cancer cells can’t survive.

Types

Examples of estrogen blockers are formestane, testolactone and vorozole. These are aromatase inhibitors. Selective estrogen receptor modulates include clomifene, arzooxifene and tamoxifen, which block estrogen receptors.

References

• Antiaging-systems: Estrogen Detoxification
• Daily News Central: Estrogen Blockers And Breast Cancer