Are male bodybuilder DHT and estrogen levels the lower the better?

Resistance to androgen and estrogen side effects is almost the norm for bodybuilder. But we should not blindly think that they are bad, they exist, play an indispensable role.

Testosterone and its bioactive metabolites dihydrotestosterone (DHT) and estradiol determine the development and maintenance of male sexual differentiation and mature male characteristics. The most common side effects of DHT are prostate growth and male pattern baldness (AGA), and the common side effects of estrogen are gynecomastia and water retention. However, DHT and estradiol themselves do play important roles in the male body.

Testosterone has a characteristic tetracyclic C18 steroid structure and is synthesized mainly by testicular interstitial cells. Testicular interstitial cells maintain circulating testosterone levels and thus produce characteristic androgenic effects on distant androgen-sensitive target tissues.

Testosterone in the body goes to one of four places: DHT, estradiol, muscle and other metabolin.

About 5-10% of testosterone is converted by 5AR into DHT.

DHT is the more potent androgen that produces locally amplified enhancement in specific tissues, such as the prostate and hair follicles, and is the basis for the development of adolescent male characteristics. More than 95% of the testosterone that enters the prostate is converted into the more potent androgen DHT, which has 3-10 times the binding affinity of testosterone in androgen receptors. DHT is necessary for early testicular development while maintaining normal erectile function in mature men.

Therefore, testosterone is transformed by 5AR to develop and maintain important masculine characteristics.

About 0.2% of testosterone is converted to estradiol by aromatase.

Although very little testosterone is converted to estradiol, estradiol has a higher molar effect (about 100 times that of testosterone). Therefore, a small amount of estradiol is needed to maintain a man’s estrogen needs. In men with normal gonadal development, about 80% of the estradiol derived from extra-testicular testosterone is aromatized. Testosterone in neural tissue is converted to estradiol and plays an important role in mediating testosterone action, including the triggering of negative feedback mechanisms. Estradiol is also related to male bone maturity, lack of estradiol is difficult to maintain male normal bone mass.

Thus, the expression of testosterone after aromatization maintains mature masculinity and bone health.

A portion of the remaining testosterone binds directly to androgen receptors in skeletal muscle, while another portion is inactivated by hepatic phase I and II metabolism to become inactive oxidizing and binding metabolites.

Some of this testosterone is metabolized, while others help muscle growth and maintain muscle mass.

The specific metabolic pathway of testosterone plays an important role in the human body, mediating the normal operation of the body. Synthetic anabolic steroids (AAS) were originally intended to replace the effects of testosterone. For bodybuilder, the body has a stable level of testosterone, and supplementation with exogenous AAS can lead to high levels of DHT or estrogen, which can have corresponding side effects. bodybuilder sometimes needs to block the effects of DHT or estrogen, but it is not advisable to reduce their levels indefinitely, only to restore them to normal levels.