Hi! Newby here & 'diet aid of questionable value'. Any use in even trying it?

[Blue2]

Hi guys! I am new on here and like many others I have been cursed with the the dreaded gyne since secondary school, it just never went away.    I just had to be the unlucky ones who didn't manage to loose it during maturity, but hey, I am obviously not alone! This thing has become the bain of my life and I think I am now ready to do something about it, but before I start looking for a good surgeon, I was wondering if anyone had tried 'diet aid of questionable value' and had any positive results with it? The hype on the internet seems too good to be true (as most things usually are!), but I am prepared to try anything once if there is an outside chance it may work. I wouldn't say I have a severe case of gyne but bad enough to stop me taking my shirt off in the summer, using public swimming baths or using locker rooms at my gym. I have been an avid weight trainer, especially in my early 20's but would certainly not class myself as bodybuilder, and I have NEVER touched steroids. I have to say that I have let myself go a bit lately but my motivation has taken a real beating over the last two years as my wife was diagnosed with cancer and is still fighting it hard. So my traing has taken a back seat and now my gyne is worse than ever. Had my first trip back to the gym tonight to try and shift as many pounds as possible before the summer onslaught! I also have a poor functioning liver which doesn't make me ill or anything, but I am sure this has contributed to my gyne. So is surgery the only way I can rid myself of this problem? I will attempt to take some pics of my chest when I can figure out how to work the timer on my camera!

Sorry for the long first post but I am just glad to finally find a forum whre I can speak to like minded people who share the same problem as me.

Cheers guys!

[Time_to_fix_it]

Hi and welcome to the boards,

Firstly .. if you've had gyne for some time, and it is glandular gyne, then I'm afraid your choices are very limited.  That is live with it or have surgery.  Once it has become established for over a year then it's form changes and no drugs or treatments have been found to have any effect.

Secondly .. it would certainly appear that 'diet aid of questionable value' IS too good to be true.  A while ago there was a thread on here about it and it took a hammering.  I have no experience of it myself but I would use the old adage .. if something seems too good to be true then it most probably is.

Have a good browse of the boards here.  Run searches on any topic that comes to mind.  Feel free to ask questions, we are here to help if we can.

 

[Blue2]

Thanks for the reply mate. I guessed that this would be the case. I really couldn't see how a suplement would help. I suppose it could help you loose weight and strip some fat from the chest but it aint going to remove glandular tissue is it?

So what's the general concensus on here about the best surgeons to choose from? I am in the Liverpool area but wouldn't mind travelling if it made a difference to the level of care you were likely to get.

[Time_to_fix_it]

I suppose it could help you loose weight and strip some fat from the chest but it aint going to remove glandular tissue is it?

Nope.

So what's the general concensus on here about the best surgeons to choose from? I am in the Liverpool area but wouldn't mind travelling if it made a difference to the level of care you were likely to get.

There are 2 or 3 private surgeons who appear to have the necessary experience to carry out this surgery.  I used Levick in Birmingham, but there is Karadis in London as well.  Both charge in the region of £4000.  Other people from this site have travelled to Poland and Spain where the costs are significantly cheaper (around half the price).  No surgeon will get it right every time, and I always say have realistic expectations of the final result.  Don’t expect perfection but do expect significant improvement.  Again I suggest you read the UK section of this forum and the Diary section. Other peoples experiences are invaluable.  It’s a lot to take in but I always feel any research a person does is worthwhile.

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Right this is the important bit.  You mentioned in your first post that you think you have a “poor functioning liver” problem that may be related to your gyne.  This is of course quite possible.  The way I understand things is that the liver does a number of tasks including producing the aromatase enzyme that enables our bodies to convert testosterone into oestradiol.  Basically liver disease is one of the factors that is listed as being a potential cause for gynecomastia.  Too much aromatisation and you end up with lowered testosterone and increased oestradiol.  When that test/oestradiol balance is upset in favour of oestradiol, gyne can result.

If you would like to read further on this then I would suggest you do a Google search for the following medical paper ... “Aromatase and Gynecomastia by GD Braunstein”.  It does get a little heavy in places but it is absolutely brilliant for understanding many of the causes of gyne, not least the role of this particular aromatisation process.

Having said all of the above, the main point I am trying to make is that if a person has an ongoing medical problem that may be causing his gyne, then I would strongly urge that person to get that medical problem fixed or brought under control BEFORE considering surgery.  The last thing anyone wants is to have the gland grow back after surgery simply because the underlying medical problem had not been resolved.

It may well be that you have already addressed your liver problem, but if you haven’t then I would urge you to visit your doctor and get some tests done to find out what is going on and how to fix it.  Don’t worry; there are ways to control excessive aromatisation if that turns out to be the cause.  The old adage of “knowledge is power” is exactly right.  Get to know your problem and you are more likely to be able to fight your way through the maze of doctors (and their ignorance of men’s hormones) to get a problem fixed.


You are doing the right thing by coming onto this forum and asking questions, it is only by sharing knowledge and experiences can we make the best choices.