Category: Hormones

Polyester Pants & The Disappearing Alpha Male

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Way back in 1992, they tested polyester as a male contraceptive, and guess what?

It was 100% effective.

Fourteen men wore a polyester ‘sling’ around their prized jewels (similar to men wearing polyester underwear) and after an average of 139 days, all 14 men were found to be azoospermic. (In plain English, that means zero sperm. Zilch, Nada. No chance of making babies).

There was also degeneration noted in the tubules. It took approximately 150 days for them to regain fertility, after ceasing to wear the sling.

Polyester (polyethylene terephthalate) belongs to a class of chemicals (phthalates) that are known endocrine-disrupting, in particular, they disrupt testosterone production.

Similar studies were conducted on dogs, with similar results, and showed that polyester decreased testosterone levels.

Another study divided men onto groups wearing different textile underwear. Over the course of 12mths, men wearing polyester underwear had less and less intercourse (they became increasingly impotent/less interested in sex, although the effect was reversible after ceasing to wear polyester underwear).

A similar study on mice found that polyester underwear (however did they wrestle mice into miniature underwear? 😅) decreased their potency by a whopping 87%.

Mens testosterone levels have tanked by more than half, in the past few decades, and one need only look around to see that has vast (and perplexing) implications for society.

If you want to #bringbackalphamales ditch the synthetic clothing and bedding, ditch the synthetic perfumes and fragrances (found in nearly all big-brand personal care products, deodorants, detergents, etc) is a great place to start.

Given the ubiquitous nature of polyester and other phthalates in the environment, we cannot eliminate exposure, but we can reduce it. Making sure our diet has adequate zinc is one way to protect the reproductive system from endocrine disruptors.

Zinc Protects the Reproductive System from ‘Gender-Bender’ Chemicals

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Zinc is such a super-hero.

It has protective effects from many of the toxins we’re being bombarded with, on a daily basis. That includes the ‘gender-bender’ chemicals that disrupt and create havoc on our hormones.

Bisphenol-A (BPA) is structurally similar to diethylstilbestrol (DES), the drug given to millions of pregnant women from 1940’s – 1980 that greatly increased the risk of sexual disorders and cancers in their offspring (and their offspring’s offspring). Although BPA is less estrogenic than DES, it is probably more pervasive in our environment, due to widespread use.

Bisphenol-A, found in many plastics (including baby bottles and children’s drink bottles/lunchboxes) and epoxy resins is one such chemical. BPA has been shown to be toxic to the reproductive system, especially in males. Studies on rats shows that zinc deficiency increases toxicity of BPA on the male testis. Zinc has also shown to be protective against neuro-behavioral disorders caused by BPA toxicity.

Another endocrine-disrupting class of chemicals are those known as phthalates, also ubiquitous in the environment, in vinyl furniture, fragranced products (air fresheners, personal care products, shampoos, nail polish, detergents, soaps, etc). One of the ways we are being bombarded by phthalates is via our clothing – polyester (otherwise known as polyethyl terephthalate) in particular.

A study on rats, published last year (2020), showed that zinc supplementation protected from the endocrine toxicity caused by phthalates.

Although zinc is a super-hero, it must be kept in balance with another super-hero mineral, namely copper. Check out this case study on what can happen if you supplement with isolated zinc. Fortunately, she was able to recover most of her symptoms, but this person, who was poisoned by their zinc-based tooth adhesive material was not so fortunate.

It is far better to get zinc from food sources, such as oysters and red meat. Oysters are, by far, the world highest known source of zinc, but they also contain copper. Beef liver is another good source of both zinc and copper. If you are not a fan of the taste of either, you can take it in capsule form, which can be found on the NourishMe Organics website (use code ‘nourishme’ at checkout, to get 10% off)

Low Libido Is Not The Problem…

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Low libido is not the problem. It is the body’s way of protecting itself from a pregnancy that it cannot properly nourish. (Yes, even if you don’t actually want to get pregnant, anyway).

Our bodies are always talking. The question is…are you listening?

Women are more sensitive to stress, and that makes complete sense from a biological standpoint. We are the bringers of new life into the world, so naturally, our body is sensing its environment at all times. Is it safe to bring new life into the world? Or is food and resources scarce?

If there is barely enough energy/nutrients to meet the bare minimum requirements that your vital organs need to function, you can hardly expect a raging libido that increases your chances of getting pregnant.

If you are regularly under-eating, dieting (cutting calories excessively), or over-fasting, your body senses famine, and therefore begins to conserve resources and energy. Since libido and ovulation are not necessary for your survival, your body will cease those, in order for the scarce amount of energy and fuel to be directed to vital organs.

Our libido is naturally low/er while breastfeeding, for this very reason. Because your body is already expending energy to grow a small human, and not in an *ideal* position to gestate another (though it can and does happen).

Rather than trying exotic herbs and powders to “fix” your libido (it doesn’t need fixing, it’s working exactly as it’s meant to), look at the bigger picture. What does your body really need? Nourishment? Minerals? Rest? Time for dysfunction to regulate itself? Do the adrenals and thyroid need support? All the above?