Xenoestrogens are estrogenic xenohormones that disrupt the endocrine system. This introduction of estrogen-mimicking compounds into our environment has adverse effects to health, for both men and women.
What are estrogenic xenohormones?
Estrogenic xenohormones are chemicals that when introduced to the body, mimic estrogen.
Let’s assume that men and women have a baseline amount of estrogen that their bodies produce in order to be at a state of equilibrium. Given the introduction of xenoestrogens, our bodies enter an unnatural state with undesirable effects to health. Imagine you live next to a lake. Freshwater, with a ton of fish that are happily enjoying the well-balanced ecosystem. One morning, ten thousand dump trucks pull up and dump a trillion pounds of salt into the lake. It literally becomes a saltwater lake overnight. The conditions of that lake change dramatically. Every fish in that lake, with a body designed for freshwater, is going to have a bad time.
Why do they disrupt the endocrine system?
Xenoestrogens disrupt our endocrine system because, simply put, they are unnatural. They’re unnatural chemicals and byproducts of industrial engineering that our bodies are not designed to ingest. Xenoestrogens bind to the same receptors in our bodies that natural estrogen does. Because these synthetic chemicals can activate estrogen receptors, they disrupt the body’s normal hormonal balance. This can lead to ⟐ Estrogen dominance.
What happens when we are exposed to xenohormones?
Urine bisphenol-A level in relation to obesity and overweight in school-age children:
”[…] higher urine BPA level […] was associated with more than two-fold increased risk of having weight >90(th) percentile among girls aged 9-12 […]”
Are they real?
The general population is exposed to a number of hormonally active compounds on a daily basis. These compounds were introduced in the living environment during the last few decades, the majority of which are xenoestrogens. Chemicals like polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB), dichlorodiphenyl-trichlorethane (DDT), some drugs (e.g., antiepileptic drugs), fungicides, cotinine, phytoestrogens, mycotoxins, bisphenol A (a plastics additive), phthalates, alkylphenols, and metalloestrogens mimic oestrogen action, affect oestrogen levels, or bind to oestrogen receptors.