The Other Hormones of Youth

temperature and the heat turns back on. But with aging, the equivalent control in the endocrine system falters and the system becomes less responsive to the needs of the body. The cells begin to function less and less efficiently and the end result of this progressive dysfunction is the diseases of aging, and, finally -- death.

In Chapters 6 and 7, we will discuss melatonin, DHEA, thyroid hormone, IGF-1, estrogen, progesterone, pregnenolone, androstenedione, and testosterone. Each of these has its inherent value to the human body, but the most dynamic age reversing effects are seen with an integrated program of HRT, antioxidants, exercise, and diet, along with HGH or its precursors. There are several reasons for this effect:

1. Replacing all hormonal deficiencies has a synergistic effect on health, i.e.: 1 1=3, as in the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
2. Our body functions at peak efficiency in our youth when our hormones are at their highest levels.
3. If you cannot stimulate your own endogenous levels of HGH and require injections, raising the levels of the other hormones will decrease the amount of HGH needed for maximum benefit, lowering the overall cost of treatment.

Vladimir Dilman, Ph.D., a renowned Russian researcher in aging and member of the Soviet Academy of Sciences, believed that the key to controlling aging was to recreate the fine tuned hormonal control of youth. Any deviation from that of a healthy 25 year-old should be considered abnormal and treated. His own treatment program included the use estrogen, progesterone, HGH, insulin and thyroid hormone. Although Dilman published his work several decades ago, his insight about the rejuvenating properties of HRT has recently been borne out by a number of studies.

Melatonin is produced in the dark, while we sleep, and wanes upon daybreak: bright light signals the production cycle to shut down. It is secreted by the pineal gland, a small organ set behind and between the eyes. The pineal is called the "third eye," a reference to our evolutionary heritage -- a time when the pineal may have extended the sensory capacities. The pineal gland serves as the timekeeper of the brain, helping to govern the sleep-wake cycle and, in animals, seasonal rhythms of migration, mating, and hibernation. In the human population, melatonin levels are highest as children.

Italian immunologist Walter Pierpaoli, M.D., Ph.D. and Russian scientist Vladimir Lesnikov transplanted the pineal gland from old mice to young mice and found that they were able to speed up aging. When they performed the reverse experiment, transplanting the pineal from young mice to old, it gave the mice a whole new lease on life -- allowing them to regain youthful function and maintain it throughout their maximum life span. Using melatonin supplementation, Pierpaoli and other colleagues were able to extend the life span of mice by 25%. The treated mice also appeared younger, healthier, and more vigorous. The rejuvenation also extended to their sexual function, not only reawakening youthful interest and vigor, but also actually repairing and regenerating their sexual organs so that they were comparable to younger animals.

Melatonin also stimulates the thymus, a key organ of the immune system involved in the production of disease-fighting T-cells. Melatonin levels and the size of the thymus gland appear to be related. That is, melatonin levels are highest around puberty when the thymus is at its largest. Then melatonin levels decline and the thymus starts to shrink until at about age 60 when the thymus is a thin shadow of its former self and melatonin production is very low. In the thymic-stimulating model of aging, the decline in melatonin levels causes the thymus to shrink and the immune system to falter, leading to a vulnerability to disease.

When Pierpaoli and his associates put melatonin in the drinking water of older mice, the animals became much more resistant to disease. At the same time, the weight of their thymus glands increased and their thymus cells became more active, suggesting that they were producing new, active immune cells.

Immune dysfunction, a loss of the ability to fight off infections and cancer, is a hallmark of aging. Rejuvenation of the immune system in the aged could prove to be yet another boon to those seeking to ting champagne glasses while doing the tango on their 120th birthday. Clinical studies with melatonin found that it boosts the immune system, lowers elevated cholesterol, and shows promise in preventing and treating cancer.

It is also a highly effective and safe remedy for sleeping and overcoming jet lag. In a 1995 study, melatonin was shown to strengthen the immune system, particularly those aspects that fight cancer, in 23 cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy. In addition to stimulating immunity directly, the hormone acted as a buffer against stress, counteracting the suppressive effects of stress hormones on the immune system, which in turn helped the patients fight cancer. Melatonin also significantly increased the one-year survival rates of people with metastatic lung cancer in a 1992 study by Dr. Paolo Lissoni and his colleagues at San Gerardo Hospital in Monza, Italy. To 200 cancer patients with advanced solid tumors and a life expectancy of just six months, Lissoni gave a combination of melatonin and immunotherapy. The result was that 2% of the patients had complete tumor regression, 18% had partial regression, and 38% had their disease stabilized. Melatonin may play a role in preventing cancers of the breast and prostate as shown by the fact that patients with these diseases have very low levels of this hormone.

In humans, low levels of DHEA have been shown to be predictive of heart disease in men, as well as of breast cancer and ovarian cancer in women. It may play a role in maintaining brain cells and protecting against Alzheimer's. Brain tissue contains five to six times more DHEA than any other tissue in the body, but people with Alzheimer's have almost half the amount of DHEA in their blood compared with age-matched controls, according to several studies. One study of 61 men ages 57 to 104, who were confined to a nursing home, found how well they functioned depended on their levels of DHEA - the lower the level, the more dependent the man was and the more difficulty he had carrying out daily activities. DHEA also hasanti-diabetic action, increasing insulin sensitivity in mice and actually preventing the disease in rats bred to develop diabetes. Some clinicians report that their patients need less insulin when they are on DHEA.

Could DHEA be used as an anti-obesity drug? In one study, high doses of DHEA (1,600 mg per day) given for four weeks, caused a 31% decrease in body fat in four of five subjects with no overall weight change, implying a substantial increase in muscle mass. Their LDL levels also fell by 7.5%, showing that DHEA was protecting their hearts as well. The weight loss potential of the hormone has been explored by Arthur Schwartz, Ph.D. of the Fells Institute for Cancer Research and Molecular Biology at Temple University, a pioneer in DHEA research. He found that animals on the steroid lost weight regardless of how much they ate. When he took normal weight mice and controlled their activity and diet for four weeks, they reacted exactly like the humans, with four out of five losing 31% fat while their overall weight remained the same.

There are a number of explanations for the anti-obesity effect. First, DHEA inhibits an enzyme called glucose-6-dehydrogenase, which may block the body's ability to store and produce fat. Second, Schwartz found that it stimulates cholecystokinin (CCK), which signals the body to feel full. Third, it may work through IGF-1 to shift the metabolism from producing fat to creating muscle and energy.

While these studies are impressive in animals, reports from physicians using replacement levels of DHEA have not seen significant weight reduction in their human patient population. Still, they do report elevated testosterone, which is a metabolic product of DHEA, and this appears to help increase lean body mass.

Do you feel like you lack energy, are weaker than you used to be, and moving more slowly? Your problem may not be aging, but hypothyroidism -- a lack of thyroid hormone (TH). This condition may also manifest with an increased susceptibility to colds, viruses and respiratory ailments, heavy labored breathing, muscle cramps, persistent low back pain, bruising easily, mental sluggishness, emotional instability with crying jags, mood swings, temper tantrums, getting cold easily (particularly in the hands and feet), dry, coarse, leathery or pale skin, coarse hair and/or loss of hair, loss of appetite, stiff joints, and atherosclerosis.

In general, TH does not share the age-related decline characteristic of DHEA, HGH and the hormones described in Chapter 7. However, thyroid deficiency is widespread throughout the population. Estimates are that from 15 to 40% of the population suffers in some way from an underactive thyroid.

Home Detection of Hypothyroidism:

The Barnes Basal Temperature Test can help you determine if you are low in thyroid hormone.

1. Shake down an oral thermometer and place it next to your bed before going to sleep.
2. As soon as you awake, place the thermometer under your armpit and leave it there for 10 minutes before getting up.
3. Record the temperature. If it is below normal rising temperature (97.8 to 98.2 F) for two consecutive days, you are very likely to be hypothyroid. (Menstruating women should wait until after the first day of their period before taking this test.)

If you are low according to the Barnes test, have your doctor conduct a TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) blood test. While thyroid supplements may be available from health food stores, we advise that you do not treat yourself. Too much TH can be just detrimental as too little. Hormones are serious medicine and their replacement should be done under the supervision of a physician.

Thyroid deficiency can increase your risk of age-associated diseases:

1. Depresses metabolism, increasing weight gain and all the associated ills of obesity, including heart disease, high blood pressure, and diabetes.
2. Increased risk of developing adult-onset diabetes, since normal levels of TH are needed to regulate blood sugar.
3. Low TH can also greatly increase the risk of heart disease by raising the levels of cholesterol and triglycerides and may cause high blood pressure.
4. A number of studies find a correlation between low iodine levels, which interfere with thyroid function, and an increased risk of cancer. Goiter, the enlargement of the thyroid gland due to iodine deficiency, was associated with higher than average cancer rates in a survey of "goiter belts" in 15 countries across four continents. On the other hand, because TH controls the metabolic rate and stimulates immunity, it may be of value in helping to combat certain types of cancer, according to studies in the Southern Medical Journal.

The adrenal glands are responsible for manufacturing your body's stores of DHEA. Take care of your adrenal glands and you'll help to ensure adequate DHEA production.

Methods to restore the adrenals:

• Eat a whole foods diet, and minimize (preferably, eliminate) substances that cause adrenal stress -- sugar, caffeine and alcohol.
• Consult a physician to identify possible food allergies and to develop a proper food rotation diet to manage the condition.
• Siberian Ginseng contains a component that the body uses to manufacture pregnenolone, the precursor to DHEA. 100 mg twice a day (if its effects are too stimulating, take only a morning dose).
• Go outside and enjoy nature for an hour a day. Researchers are finding that, in addition to causing seasonal depression, a lack of natural light may be counterproductive to the functioning of the adrenal glands.
• Adopt stress management techniques: Remember, Rome wasn't built in a day. Adding to your Plan from , you might try:

  • Prepare a list of your daily activities and rank them in order of priority. Accomplish what you can, but don't fret if it all doesn't get done.
  • Make sure to participate in and enjoy leisure activities. This will reduce the constant taxing of stress on the adrenals.
  • If you find yourself embroiled with conflicts at work, home, or anywhere else, take the time to resolve the matter with those involved. If necessary, seek professional counsel. Keep negative emotions bottled up and your adrenal might figuratively explode.
• Plus, as little as 10-25 mg daily of DHEA may help to restore your youthful levels of energy, stamina, mood, ability to think clearly, immune function, and resistance to disease. Check with your physician.