I’ve mentioned this problem in past newsletters, so if you’re a long time reader, you might know a bit about this topic… but I want to explain how this works a bit more and how serious the problem is these days…
The problem I’m going to describe here can actually cause “feminization” issues in men (more chest fat, reduced testosterone, etc), but can also cause hormonal disorders in women too. And it also causes the other problem that everybody hates…more stubborn abdominal fat.
Let’s start with the enzyme I mentioned in the headline… it’s called aromatase enzyme in your body. Aromatase is the enzyme responsible for converting androgens to estrogens in your body. This is a normal process and increases with aging in your body.
Unfortunately, we are being exposed in this modern world to certain chemicals (such as pesticides, plastics, petro-chemicals, and other chemicals in our food and water) that over-stimulate the actions of aromatase, thereby causing hormone imbalances for both men and women. These aromatase-stimulating chemicals can cause excessively high estrogen levels in men (with accompanying issues of body fat, chest fat, and feminization), and other estrogen-dominance issues for women too.
The easy way to think about it is that we want to minimize our exposure to aromatase-promoting chemicals and maximize our intake of anti-aromatase compounds found in certain foods, herbs, spices, etc.
Expert scientist and author, Ori Hofmekler, in his book “Maximum Muscle, Minimum Fat” states: “…it is critically important to eliminate aromatase-promoting substances from the diet including pesticides, herbicides, plastic derivatives (particularly from soft, cloudy or opaque plastic containers), and estrogenic dietary compounds such as those found in soy, clover, licorice, and hops (in beer)”
Sorry guys about the bad news about beer… but that explains the “beer bellies” you see from heavy beer drinkers. Just another reason to choose wine or another liquor if you choose to drink.
Mr. Hofmekler continues… “There is growing evidence that certain compounds in food, herbs, and oils can inhibit aromatase activity. Notable natural sources for anti-aromatase nutrients are garlic, onion, passion flower, chamomile, grass-fed dairy, turmeric, raw nuts and seeds, and omega-3 oils from fish, flaxseed, and hempseed”.
There you go… protect yourself from these harmful effects and reduce your stubborn fat by loading up daily on the anti-aromatase nutrients listed above!