There is a saying in finance that “what you don’t measure you cannot improve” and I think that this holds true for our health as well. Unfortunately when it comes to our health there are A LOT of things we can measure so it is best to focus on one area at a time.
This year it was Hormones for me so I run the Dutch Plus (Complete and Cortisol Awakening Response) from Precision Analytical and the Organic Acids Test from Mosaic Diagnostics.
Disclaimer: While I am a Nutritional Therapist and have occasionally access to discounted test, I had to pay for these. So this post is not sponsored.
In this article I will run through my Dutch results!
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I am 44 years old and for the last 10 years my health concerns have been minimal. I do lab tests once a year to keep my health status in check and make any adjustments in my diet and lifestyle if needed.
The reason this year I chose to include the Dutch test in my yearly testing was because I was feeling tired & had low motivation. I performed the test in February after a 6 month stretch of no vacation.
Some relevant facts: I usually have x10-16 training sessions a week (lasting between 30 and 90 mins each). There are many “layers” to my diet so it would take too long to cover here, but I will just say that 2 cornerstones is 16-8 intermittent fasting while I am aiming for a x2 body weight (in kilos) of protein intake per day. I supplement occasionally.
Percentage of body fat is ~ 13%, strength levels are close to the highest they have ever been and cardiovascular health similarly ~5-10% off my peak state.
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The dials read like gas meters. In between the stars are the healthy ranges.
My testosterone levels are low and my total cortisol production is VERY low. The former came as a surprise, given every time I measured (serum) Testosterone it was close to the top of the normal range. These 2 findings match exactly how I have been feeling. My adrenals are having trouble to produce enough cortisol, indicating that my body is low on energy & mineral reserves. Low Testosterone levels affect negatively my motivation levels (and sex drive, although I have observed only a minor change in it).
Has low Testosterone affected my body composition, strength and muscle development? Two things are a given:
a. To the extent that it did, it was in a negative way
b. I cannot know for sure as I cannot live life twice, once with high and one with low Testosterone.
As you can see from the image below the relationship between Testosterone and muscle mass / strength might not be as black and white as it is some times presented.
In my case, I think low Testosterone has compromised my training despite the progress I made. To what extent I am not sure.
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Despite the low total cortisol production, the active cortisol in my body is healthy allowing me to get on with life “as normal”. The distribution of active cortisol during the day is also following a healthy pattern, as it peaks early morning.
DHEA (the anti-ageing hormone) and Estrogen levels are also within normal range. For a man (and the reverse is true for a woman) we want his Estrogen levels to be (relatively) lower than his Testosterone. Thankfully that is the case for me.
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The 3rd page of the Dutch test covers in more detail our body’s sex hormones. My results here look fine. If you have done this test, the markers you need to pay attention to are:
1. 5a-reductase activity and 4-OH E1, as they are both pro-carcinogenic when elevated
2. 4-OH-E1 and 16-OH-E1 should be a small % of total estrogen
3. Methylation activity should be balanced*
* While methylation activity is sometimes interpreted as an indication of detoxification, in my clinical experience it often isn’t. Methylation is only 1 of the 5, phase 2 detoxification pathways and responsible only for a small % of total detoxification process.
In men progesterone levels are not reported on page 3 but you can find them at the top of page 2. Progesterone is important in men for:
• spermatogenesis
• counteracting the effects of estrogen – so in a way it helps them “preserve their masculinity”
• building bone mass
• regulating blood sugar
• cognitive function
When a-pregnanediol is low, an individual may have trouble switching off, as it controls brain excitability [ref] .
On page 5 you will find a breakdown of your stress hormones and melatonin. Melatonin is one of the most important markers reported in this test. Melatonin levels are :
• indicative of the quality of your sleep.
• an indirect way to assess stress.
• a potent anti-oxidant. Thus low melatonin levels indicate a pro-inflammatory brain state.
The Dutch test reports melatonin based on the morning sample you provide. In my case the levels are at the high end of a healthy range.
In the rest of the page you will find a break down of cortisol: metabolised cortisol is the total amount produced from the body. Free Cortisol is the active form; and Cortisone the inactive form. Knowing that it is fairly easy to interpret the results. In my case cortisol distribution is good.
One more marker reported here is 11b-HSD activity. 11b-HSD is an enzyme that converts inactive cortisol to the active form and it is present in the liver, fat tissue, lungs, brain (anterior pituitary) and adrenal cortex. Thyroxine, glucorticosteroids, obesity and inflammation can up-regulate the enzyme and make us feel more stressed.
On page 6 you will find a few additional markers relevant to nutritional status, oxidative stress and neurological function.
Kynurenate and Quinolinate are 2 markers relevant to mood regulation, pain and neurodegenerative disease (as well as autism). This section of the reports should not be overlooked as it provides a lot of information but it would be too much for me to cover in this article.
In my case the only worrying marker is the low levels of Homovanillate which implies low dopamine levels. As mentioned at the start of the article I have been experiencing recently low motivation.
