hormones

[b33]

alright, i don't know much about this stuff, ill be completely honest...but i have heard that gynecomastia is just a hormonal imbalance.  does that mean that you have an excess of estrogen?  or does it mean you don't have enough of testosterone?  im going dig deep into myself (its embarrassing, but its the internet)

-i don't have much hair on my legs
-it seems like i have gone through puberty forever (at least 2-3 years and notice very little)
-started growing downstairs hair (pubical) when i was like 13
-i have a little bit of hair on my legs.  i got a lot more hair on my legs in the past year, but still isn't very hairy
-my voice has dropped a lot in the past two years - i have noticed and people have told me
-i have a little bit of armpit hair.  not too little, but definitely not a lot
-i grew 4 inches (the most ever) in the past year, and it seems like i am still growing - about 5'4 and supposed to be about 5'6-5'8 or so
-i have had gyno for about 2 and a half years (im skinny, so i know it is just the gland type, where it feels like a rock under my nipple)

what i am asking is this:

1. do i have any shot at still losing it naturally?  my cousin who is a nurse, said it should go away, and most kids lose it in under 3 years...but every day i am inching closer to the 3 year mark

(if no to number 1)

2. say i dont have enough testosterone...would there be a supplement i could take that could increase it and get rid of it?  i have heard both yes and no.

3. for people that lost it naturally or know someone that did: do you just wake up one day and notice it gone?  or is it a slow process, and over time you notice it going down, and eventually it will go away?  im hoping it is more of a sudden thing, cause over the past 2 years i have noticed that it increased for a while...then have yet to notice it go down much, if at all.

thanks guys

[Paa_Paw]

It seemed like I was in puberty forever too. I had sparse hair on my torso and could get away with shaving only twice a week. My voice had changed in my teens, but only slightly and It remained very high for a male. I also had frequent Migraine headaches. Between the ages of 36 to 42 my body and facial hair started to grow much more agressively, the headaches stopped, and my voice dropped to that of a tenor. In that same period, I grew an inch and a half taller and my shoe size increased from 8 to 9 Although it remains quite narrow. I still have no hair on my legs.

All of this means nothing. I'm 72 years old, have 8 children, 25 grandchildren, and 3 great-grandchildren. My gynecomastia has not changed in years.

As to your questions:
1  When the condition resolves, it does so over a period of a couple of years. But if the condition has been stabilized for a couple of years there is virtually no chance that it will resolve.
2  This may come as a surprise, but too much Testosterone could cause Gynecomastia. There is very little chance of any medication getting rid of Gynecomastia but a great chance that you could make things worse. Leave hormone treatments to the professionals. See an Endocrinologist for information about these matters.
3  When the condition does resolve on it own, it does so gradually.

[Jopet]

yes... Grand PP was right. too much testosterone will be converted into estrogen.
You should seek specialist for that.

[kingboob]

It could possibly be a hormone problem if you are still going through puberty....... growing 4 inches in a year suggests you are right in the middle of a growth spurt, so you may be lucky.

Your doctor really should be the first person to ask.

Please don't mess about with any herbal supplements which claim to raise testosterone or lower estrogen or whatever.  - This is a good way to screw up your endocrine system and hormone balance for good.

[GoldenGate]

The people above are right on the money, I just wanted to reiterate that you should not take anything that messes with your hormone levels.  It is much, much more complicated that estrogen vs. testosterone levels, progesterone being one of the other hormones that is neither an androgen nor estrogen.  Supplements will only hurt your delicate balance and screw things up more in the long run.

[b33]

i wasn't really planning that much on taking some of these supplements.  i heard some can cost up to like $200...and right now i rather use that money towards a car, being 16 years old.  but thanks for the answers guys.  i can't tell for sure that it is going down, but it seems like my left one has gone down some and my right one hasn't changed much.  it feels like my left is about half the size of my right (still looks the same) and i don't remember it being this small before.  it seemed like before they were both the same size. 

i could be wrong.  would this possibly be a sign?  one starting to go down before the other?

and i think i could be extended longer than the normal "deadline" doctors and people say.  i always hear 2-3 years for some people...but hitting puberty a couple of years ago, and seeming like i am not even that far through it (still little armpit hair, very little leg hair, still about 3 inches or more from what i am supposed to be in height, and very little facial hair) makes me think that i could possibly lose it a little after 3 years.

[Grandpa Bambu]

I think i could be extended longer than the normal "deadline" doctors and people say.  i always hear 2-3 years for some people...but hitting puberty a couple of years ago, and seeming like i am not even that far through it (still little armpit hair, very little leg hair, still about 3 inches or more from what i am supposed to be in height, and very little facial hair) makes me think that i could possibly lose it a little after 3 years.

I conducted a poll 2 or 3 years ago on who with G were 'late bloomers'. There were quite a few guys who responded. I feel that there is 'some' connection between 'late bloomers' and Gynecomastia.

Don't get your hopes up here dude... I was the same as you... little facial hair, was shorter than normal in my early to mid teens. Then all of a sudden at 17-18, I shot up to 6 foot tall. Which, by the way is what most G guys are... 6 foot+....

GB...

[b33]

well there is no way i am getting to 6 feet.  i would love to, but with my mom being 5'0 and my dad being 5'8, i dont see it happening at all.  and were you 5'4 at 16?  seriously though i would definitely rather be 6 feet tall, with this minor gyno than 5'7 without gyno.  i can always get gyno fixed with surgery.  i can't get height fixed as easily.

[Grandpa Bambu]

Dude...

My mom is 5 foot nothing, and my dad is 5' 10". So don't count yourself out on being 6'+.... 

Yes, I was about 5'4" (approx) when I was 15-16. I put on some major height in a year or two...

A coincidence? I think not.... 

GB...

[b33]

oh that is awesome.  if i honestly grow to 6' tall or anywhere near it i would be so happy.  i wouldn't even care about this gyno.  so much to do when you are that tall. 

also, what makes it like that?  is there something that triggers because of the gyno, that makes you just spurt up? i really want to look into it.

[Grandpa Bambu]

what makes it like that?  is there something that triggers because of the gyno, that makes you just spurt up? i really want to look into it.

I'm not sure of the reasoning dude.

When I went for my consult with Dr. Fielding, he told me that the majority of his G patients were 6'+... Also, many of the guys here are 6'+... Ask guys how tall they are yourself. You'll be amazed at how many are 6'+...

Im 20 years old, 6ft, and around 200 pounds.

15 years old 6 foot 150 poounds.

Hey guys, after losing weight for the past year I have finally begun to maintain my weight at about 195 pounds and I'm 6' tall.

Hey, i am 20 and 6 foot around 175pounds.

Hello. I'm 18, 6 foot even, weigh 160 pounds.

I weighed myself and I weighed 270 lbs (6'3 at that time).

I'm about 6 foot tall and weight about 175lbs.

Im 15 weigh 178 and 6ft 1.

I'm 6'3 about 290.

My condition is very similar to yours. I am 6'-0" and weigh 200 lbs.

Now, I'm 6'1", I've trimmed down to about 200 pounds and I'm 22 years of age.

This quote sounds familiar...

It was worst in high school, i was about 5'5 or 5'4 (i couldnt even look through the hole in my front door without using a chair) and then in the 11th grade I grew about half a foot (and am now 6 feet).

And that's just a select few...

There are 'some' guys who are under 6'... but the majority are at, or over, 6 feet... Interesting huh?


One day I was thinking about how I was a 'late bloomer'. I then ran a poll (prolly could find the thread if you would like...) on this site on the topic of being a late bloomer. Quite a few guys responded positive to the question. Do a forum search for 'Late Bloomer'... There's two pages of posts...

I have no hard facts here but I'm positive that there is a connection between being tall (6'+), being a 'late bloomer' and Gynecomastia...

As for your height dude, I'm not saying that you will be 6'+, just don't rule it out because of your parent's height.  

Yeah, when I was 13, 14 or so... I was much shorter than my brother who got height very early in his teens. I thought that I'd never be very tall... However, after my sudden growth spurt at 17/18 (approx) I was 6' nothing and taller than both my parents (5'0/5'10), and my brother who is 5'10"....  

GB...

[GoldenGate]

That is some VERY interesting empirical data you have gathered!

It makes we want to start digging through research papers.  Have people posted any research to this site before that I might be able to more quickly browse?

The more I read the more I am fascinated by learning about all of the complex physiological and pyschological issues associated.

[Paa_Paw]

GB,
 
I'm 5' 10".

[londonlad]

And I'm 5ft 8!

[b33]

thanks GB.  that definitely makes me feel a little better.  i mean the past year or two, i have been just hoping to get to 5'7 after my doctor told me i would probably end up being around 5'5-5'6...and even if im not 6' tall, it seems like i could still get to 5'7 easily, based off some of that.  if i could be 5'8, i would be satisfied...if i could be anywhere close to 6 feet tall, i would never complain again