Episode 16 of the Living Life Well Show: Hormones and Testing
===
[00:00:00] Welcome to the Living Life Well Show, the intersection of God's Word, today's science, and healthy living with common sense application, all based on the truth of the Word of God. I'm your host, Dr. Jon Skelton. Now let's get straight to the truth. Hey, and welcome back to the living life. Well show, I'm excited to talk to you today about hormones and how to test, how to think about really determining what the issue is, how you think about hormones in general and what kind of overall testing really needs to be done to assess the problem.
So when we're talking about our hormones typically what we're thinking is that as we [00:01:00] age, those hormones are going to decrease over time that we're going to see. Changes in sex drive and those things that we typically associate our hormones with guys. We're typically thinking with regards to strength and muscle mass and. Ability to work out with and lift heavy things. So that is typically what we're going to kind of, think and expect that as we age, we are going to see changes in our hormones. Well, and that is true.
We do typically expect that we do see that is how we are naturally created to occur. We're created to have those hormones. Decrease somewhat over time. But to the degree of how much they're going to decrease, how much we're going to be affected. When those do decrease. Are really predicated for all the other [00:02:00] hormones in our body.
You see? So most of us, when we typically think of hormones, we're thinking the sex hormones, right. We're thinking testosterone, we're taking. Thinking estrogen for women, progesterone FSH, L H especially if you're looking to become pregnant if you're in that season of life.
So when you are talking about for women going through menopause or men, potentially with erectile dysfunction or something like that, we're always looking at these sex hormones and especially if a Couple is really looking to , add a child to their life to try and get pregnant and they're having those difficulties.
Hormones are very important. To us being able to have a fulfilling life, a sustain life, and to bring new life in right. And so we really need to pay attention to those. But the way we think about those hormones is [00:03:00] completely wrong because we're putting everything just on the hormones themselves, when really they are a symptom typically of everything else that's going on in our life.
Our stress, how much stress do we have our sleep? How good is it? How are we moving or are we. And if we are, is it the right movement that we're doing? And then the gut, the gut is huge. And so how do you really determine. What all is going on here. What other hormones are involved that we really need to look at?
Well, is it a chicken or egg kind of situation? Is it that my hormones, my sex hormones are off and that's causing everything else to be off or is something else off that's causing my hormones to be off? Well, it can be difficult to assess, especially when you just look at the hormone.
So these low T clinics. And [00:04:00] those things. It's a narrow focus. Right? And so if your hormones are low and you go into a low T clinic what are they going to do? They're going to give you testosterone. That's what they do. And so. Is that going to help? Yes, it will help some because you'll get that initial boost from raising that low level of testosterone. And or are other sex hormones.
If that's what you choose to do with your physician. You will get a boost. You will get some potentially increase mood increased sex drive. You will see benefits and skin and possibly even sleep. As well, when you start on these but. It typically is going to be short-lived.
It typically is going to be limited in its benefit. So you're first going to start out, you're going to get those benefits and then you're going to come in and you're [00:05:00] going to come in a few weeks or a few months later, if you're doing pellets and say, Hey, I was really feeling good initially, but now I'm noticing that my energy levels are waning. I'm not feeling quite as good. My exercise, isn't quite what it used to be.
And I'm still feeling fatigued and brain fog and all these other things that go along with hormone dysfunction and the reason you're feeling all of these other things is because. None of the other stuff has been evaluated. Your insulin levels. Haven't been evaluated your thyroid, your adrenals, otherwise haven't been evaluated your gut in particular, hasn't been evaluated. And if what you are doing for your movement, hasn't been evaluated through the lens of all these other things. You may be doing things in your workout that are [00:06:00] good, but are really driving more of your symptoms.
And so really learning to balance that learning what movement is correct. Making sure that we're correcting all these other issues and that we've ticked the box on my thyroid's. Okay. My adrenals are functioning. Good. My gut biome looks good. I don't have any opportunistic infections in my gut biome or elsewhere. That could be driving my symptoms. Are all going to be very important steps to take prior to ever initiating any type of hormone. Therapy. Now don't misunderstand me.
There is a place for adding in hormones, but it's not a one size fits all approach. It's not that. Pellets or best. It's not that injections are best. It's not that creams are best. It is very individualized because of all these other issues that we just [00:07:00] talked about. We've got to determine where that disruption is occurring because. All of the things I just listed the thyroid, the adrenals, the gut. It's all going to contribute to how your hormones are being processed, how active they are or aren't, and the levels that you're producing.
And so. That is what we really want to look at. And that's what I want to talk about today is how to really evaluate somebody for hormone dysfunction. And so. , one of the ways we do that in my clinic is that we have a really long questionnaire. This questionnaire is about, , 40 to 50 pages.
If you print it out. And so there's a lot of questions that go into determining how and what needs to be tested. And so my approach as with my background in that, in the ER, [00:08:00] I like to cast a wide net and get as much information as possible. And so that's the approach that I like to take.
I like to take testing fast and furious in the beginning so that we can see all the possibilities and address all the systems that may be contributing to your current fatigue or your current. Lack of energy or sex drive or our brain fog or any other symptom that you may have.
And so we want to cast that net wide. And so the way we do that is we want to test thoroughly in the blood. We want to test those thyroids thoroughly. We want to see what that. DHEA level what that cortisol level is for those adrenals. And then of course, we want to check your sex hormones as well.
So, through of the blood work. But we can't stop there. Right. So we need to look at all of those things, but then we really need to test the gut as well. And so [00:09:00] gut testing is going to be huge. Anytime there's a infection. Going on in the gut or a disruption of the microbiome in the gut. Creating an imbalance of those good bacteria, allowing overgrowth of potentially the bad, or if you're just really low on something. We've talked about Akkermansia and the, in the past and how important this is for insulin resistance and those things. We need to know what is going on there.
And then that will allow us to put in place the opportunities to address it, to allow your body to overcome on its own. Where that imbalance of that sex hormones are to allow them to start coming up. And so. We need to cast a wide net because really a lot of your, your hormones are created in the gut. If the thyroid is off, that can cause issues.
If the [00:10:00] adrenals are off, that can cause issues. With insulin resistance with hormone formation. All of these things and then can drive issues in the gut. And so that's why we want to take that comprehensive approach.
So practical things that you can do right now.
If, say you have gone to my website, you've taken some of our quizzes for thyroid or the sex hormones or male hormones or gut dysfunction. And it's come out that, , maybe you might be suffering in some of those categories. So, number one with a gut, it's going to be clean up your diet.
It's going to be eliminating those sugars, eliminating those processed foods. That's going to be the big thing. Eat the garden, then the pasture and the sea skip those fields of grain because that is going to lead to life for you. Eat colors, eat variety. And. [00:11:00] Really eliminate, like I said those fields of grain, the breads, the rice the tortillas, the corn. Anything that is made into any kind of a bread like, or breading type material? Is going to be important to eliminate, to allow insulin levels, to decrease. That is going to help eliminate your insulin resistance that over time in and of itself will help to change the gut biome. But then you also need to be on a really good probiotic.
At the Live Life Well show, we want you to truly live life well. To that end, we have a special limited time offer exclusively for our podcast listeners. We are offering our 90 Days to Begin Living Life Well course and membership to you for just 75 a month. The 90 Days to Begin Living Life Well course takes you through weekly email and video instructions, as well as weekly assessments in all three areas of health, body, mind, and spirit.[00:12:00]
We also provide Koinonia, our community of like minded people all on their own journey to living life well. In Koinonia, you and I will interact through regular Q& As as well as with special guests and content exclusive to the Koinonia community. In addition, you will have the opportunity for one on one coaching with me and my team.
If this appeals to you, scan the QR code so you can get started living life well. One that has a lot of bacteria in there. Specifically lactobacillus the Bifidobacterium. Those are going to be the two largest family. That we have in our gut biome. And so we want those to be a really good levels. And so. , you need 15 billion colony forming units in a dose for that too. To really be effective.
And then obviously you're not gonna know if you don't do testing what possible infections are there or aren't there. Some of those infections can be overcome with changes in [00:13:00] diet treatment of other underlying conditions. And those things was some can't, some like H pylori needs specific treatment .
And so making sure that you're working with a physician. Is going to be important to really assessing the gut. So when you're talking about the adrenals, we talk about cortisol and DHEA. Primarily those are going to be the two big things. That we see cortisol drives insulin resistance. Cortisol is driven by stress.
So one of the first things that you can do is really help to manage your stress. So having that quiet time in the morning, practicing that gratitude in the morning and the evening and throughout the day. Is going to be very important to help drive down those cortisol levels. And then really determining how is your sleep?
Does your spouse, tell you that you snore or that you stop breathing? Do you have sleep apnea? If you have sleep [00:14:00] apnea that is going to drive these cortisol levels, that's going to drive insulin resistance. That's going to create issues in the gut biome. And it's going to make all of your hormone levels off.
Okay. So you really want to pay attention to your sleep. You really want to pay attention to your vitamin D and B12 levels. These are going to be very important. With regards to other hormone formation. So, you really need to take a comprehensive approach and looking at this from an all over standpoint, not just What is my estrogen level or testosterone level or whatever level you want to put in there. You really have to have that comprehensive approach. And a mindset to really overcome these issues.
And so again, getting back to, to stress management and sleep, those are going to be two cornerstones of [00:15:00] a treatment intervention that you can attack today without ever having to go see somebody. You can start on that process today. So. Looking at eliminating or minimizing those relationships that you can, that cause you stress taking time to recognize what things that you are or aren't doing that are causing increased stress for you. Being able to take those thoughts captive will help you to really determine where those stress points are.
And then having that quiet time is going to help you determine how you can change that narrative. Maybe it's just how you're thinking about it. Maybe there's a practical step that you can take and a change in a routine. Maybe there is a relationship that needs to be leaned into or gotten away from. And so those are all going to be steps that, that you can take [00:16:00] today to help, to really kind of change that stress level.
Hopefully bring those cortisol levels back in line increase that DHEA is going to help to create testosterone and estrogen in your body. And so you need DHEA. As it's a precursor to both of these hormones. That again is made by the adrenals. The adrenals are really responding to stress. And so the other component of stress is sleep. So if you are somebody that is never having any kind of a sleep routine, you have insomnia, you're having issues with waking.
You have an anxious mind. Being able to get that under control, create a regular sleep pattern for yourself. Going to sleep at the same time every day. Waking up at the same time, every day, not sleeping in, not staying up late, not changing that [00:17:00] schedule is all going to help to heal those adrenals and bring that cortisol level down.
Bring that DHEA up and. Put it into that right. Pattern, that pattern. That peaks in the morning that decreases in the afternoon that, and then goes up a little bit. Before bed that cortisol pattern. That we want to see. Those are going to be important things. And a way to help improve your sleep.
If you haven't started doing this already. Is eliminate, , Anything that you're eating at least three hours before bed. Anything with any kind of calories, any kind of artificial sweeteners, anything like that? Eliminate caffeine at least six to eight hours prior to bed, if you're having issues. Especially with falling asleep or waking up very early after going to sleep. You want to eliminate that caffeine.
So by. Eliminating foods, three hours before bed. You're also going to be [00:18:00] helping the gut lining to repair because that's where the gut is actually going to get. Some rest is when you are sleeping. When you haven't added something in to be digested. Right before bedtime.
And so that's going to be very important. And then of course, if you're waking to use the restroom frequently of course this happens as we age. To, to some degree. And so a man with a prostate hypertrophy and those things are gonna wake a women. Many times will have a decrease. And ability to hold urine because the urethra is now shorter and you get that urgency, um, more quickly.
And so. Eliminating liquids two hours before bed is going to be a good idea as well. And then if you are somebody that has that anxious mind that either has difficulty getting to sleep or wakes up frequently. We need to decrease that stimuli that's coming into the brain. And so, by [00:19:00] doing this, we need to establish a bedrock bedtime routine that is soothing to the mind whether that is involved with prayer, some light reading, or maybe listening to some soothing music. Something in that routine that last hour to two hours prior to bed, whether it's showering relaxing that way, um, is going to be important.
And so. Establishing a reduction in stress and better sleep is going to lead to promotion. Of increased hormone levels. Healing of the gut biome as well. Now. Say that you have implemented these things and you still aren't seeing any improvements. Well then obviously testing is going to be necessary.
And again, we want to take that comprehensive approach, that, that approach that is going to look at the entire body, not just the sex hormones now. [00:20:00] As we kind of move forward and you've implemented lots of things. You've changed up your exercise routine so that it's creating less stress on your body.
Increased that muscle mass to. Increase your testosterone levels to. Increase your bone density. To also allow you to decrease that insulin resistance as well. So once you've kind of implemented all those things, if you're not seeing the results that, that you need, then yeah, you absolutely may need to have some sort of either supplement like DHEA. Or a progesterone at night for a woman. Possibly who's already been through menopause previously. And or somebody that is currently going through menopause may need that as well. As we decrease that insulin resistance as we decrease that inflammation that is in our body, we're going to see changes. For [00:21:00] those pregnancy-related hormones, the follicle stimulating hormones, the FSH, the luteinizing hormone that LH. Those surges and estrogen and progesterone. That allow ovulation. To occur in a cycle and allow for you to be able to get pregnant.
And so. Once we've implemented all these things and if we are still aren't getting results. And we've already tested. Now we retest. Now we retest and see where everything is. Do we need to address the thyroid more now, do we need to address the adrenals? Do we need to do something with the sex hormones?
And so whenever we're talking about adding in sex hormones, we want to do two things. We want to get blood levels. And then we also want to see what those metabolites are doing. How are you metabolizing the hormones that you do make without [00:22:00] supplementation? How's that estrogen broken down? Is it in a pathway that is showing good methylation? Are you able to get to those best forms and most active forms of the hormones?
Or do we need to supplement there is your testosterone going down a pathway? That's going to give you a lot of. Potentially hair loss, aggressiveness acne for women. Um, or is it going down a more beta pathway, less androgenic pathway. That's going to allow supplementation to occur with less risk of adding in those negative side effects. So all of those are going to be important.
In addition, the Dutch test is also going to tell us it's going to give us a clue into what's going on with your cortisol, as well as DHEA to a degree that we don't get through blood testing. So. Prior to starting anybody [00:23:00] really on hormones, you want to be pretty thorough. With your testing and then, and this is the big thing, and this is what, , the low T clinics will do is a retest, but they typically just are gonna retest that one thing that they're treating. You don't want to do that, as I've said, , this is in conjunction overall.
See, I see a lot of men that come in that are on testosterone that still are having those same symptoms. of fatigue and brain fog and , these things. And so when we start increasing testosterone too much, it can actually get turned into estrogen. The other issues that we'll see many times as we'll see. An overproduction of red blood cells makes it much more likely for you to. Create a blood clot create issues. In your cardiovascular system and really any organ potentially in your body.
And so. What gets told to them, and this is [00:24:00] crazy is, oh, I'll just go give some blood. Good. Just go give a pint of blood. Yeah. Let's stay on the same dose and let's just give blood every month. Well, That's a little ridiculous and that is created because you are living in that narrow focus. And aren't really looking at all of the things that are going to affect a testosterone level, and that are going to affect yourself. Your continued symptoms. That you went into this low T clinic for in the first place. So long story short, when you are going through or going to see your practitioner for a evaluation of your sex hormones. A, they need to be very thorough.
They need to look at the thyroid. They need to look at the adrenals. They need to look at the gut. They need to understand where your stress levels are, how you are managing that stress. And they really need to look at your sleep too, because if your stress and [00:25:00] sleep, aren't good, no matter what we do here. You are going to continue to struggle.
You're going to continue to have issues. And so making sure that you can calm that mind, calm, that stress level. Get good restorative sleep. Those are going to be very important things in very beneficial things. To all your hormones in your body and not just your sex hormones, that's going to help with insulin resistance.
That's going to help with your thyroid. That's going to help with the adrenals. And so all those are going to be very important. And then of course, diet. As we've mentioned briefly is going to be important as well. So, you want to test initially. You want to start an intervention? Be it again just lifestyle interventions, like we talked about and, or supplements and, or hormones. You want to start those and then retest.
And so after each time you choose to do some sort of [00:26:00] intervention, you need to give that a period of time to work, and then you need to retest. If you're talking about lifestyle interventions, you want to wait a couple of months. If you're talking about hormones that you have started or a supplement that you specifically started about a month.
And so you want to retest and retest those things to, to see where you are to determine. How you need to change things up moving forward.
So. I hope this has been beneficial. If you think that you may have some sort of a hormone. Disruption or gut dysfunction. I just say, , if you want to go to a place to where you can explore that for yourself. Again, none of these quizzes are a hundred percent accurate, but it's a place to start a place to for you to go to, to think about possibly implementing some of these changes we've talked about today. You can go to our website, livelifewellclinic.com and there's a button there [00:27:00] for take a quiz. You can take that quiz.
It'll tell you whether you passed or failed. If you've failed, I do suggest that you get in contact with a practitioner to really get some testing done you want again, that testing to be very thorough. If you can't find one. In your area. You can of course get in contact with us and we'd be happy to. Help direct you in any way we can. I hope this has been informative.
I hope it's been beneficial. Thanks. And God bless.
That's it for this episode of the Living Life Well Show. If you like what you've heard and want to learn more, or want to know how to put this into practice for yourself, go to livelifewellclinic.com. Until next time, this is Dr. Jon Skelton saying, go out and live the truth so you can live life well. The preceding is for entertainment and educational purposes only. It is not meant to be used to prevent, diagnose, [00:28:00] treat, or cure any condition. The information contained in this show does not substitute the need for a qualified medical professional, nor is it meant to provide medical advice or services.
If you feel information presented in this show may apply to you, we recommend you seek out the help of a qualified medical professional who can evaluate and treat your specific concerns.
