# sweet potato and estrogen



## PRD (Sep 4, 2010)

Couldn't find a thread on this already..

Ive been reading a lot recently on sweet potatoes and the effect they have on the body, after a physiologist I know told me that I should avoid sweet potatoes like the plague due to them increasing the body's estrogen (therefore supressing natural test)

Obviously If you're not natty, this won't really have any effect on you at all due to the additional test and other drugs like tamoxifen.

However if you are natural should sweet potatoes be avoided?

I've seen a lot about both sweet potato and yam increasing estrogen, however I've also read that the amount is very minuscule , does anyone have any knowledge in this area ?


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## PRD (Sep 4, 2010)

> Phyto-oestrogens- These are naturally occurring plant oestrogens. They have a balancing effect on our hormones. For example if we have a low oestrogen these will increase our levels. If our oestrogen is high these will block there actions and therefore the net effect is a lower functioning oestrogen. Foods high in phyto-oestrogens are soy, miso, tofu, alfalfa, mung-bean sprouts, sweet potato, yams, red clover, linseeds, flaxseed oil, most nuts and celery, to name a few.


this is suggesting that they can either raise or lower estrogen accordingly...


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## comfla (Feb 26, 2013)

sounds like overblown nonsense


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## ah24 (Jun 25, 2006)

Question:

Do many natural BBers consume sweet potato? (Yes).

Has it done them any harm? (No).

What shape is the physiologist in? I can imagine him looking somewhat like this:


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## PRD (Sep 4, 2010)

ah24 said:


> Question:
> 
> Do many natural BBers consume sweet potato? (Yes).
> 
> ...


it may not do them any harm however it could be a hindrance, that's why im asking


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## latblaster (Oct 26, 2013)

Load of tosh....where is the Physiologist based?


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## ah24 (Jun 25, 2006)

PRD said:


> it may not do them any harm however it could be a hindrance, that's why im asking


Let me ask you this: Has it been a hindrance for them?

I've dieted using sweet potato, I know many BodyBuilders (natty) who've used it. They've all got lean.

My opinion is, things like this give people excuses when they're lazy on their diets. Same thing as peanuts - supposedly peanuts have a fungus on them that are estrogenic. Yes, I actually had an overweight member at my old gym tell me the reason he was overweight (we're talking 25+%) because he was eating a clean diet but ruining it with a tablespoon of peanut butter of an eve - due to the estrogen.

Hmmm.


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## L11 (Jan 21, 2011)

I had quorn, sweet potato and a glass of soy milk the other day and now I have a vagina.


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## rectus (Jan 18, 2012)

L11 said:


> I had quorn, sweet potato and a glass of soy milk the other day and now I have a vagina.


Wanna meet?


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## dtlv (Jul 24, 2009)

Well sweet potato does contain phytoestrogens... but here's the thing, not all phytoestrogens raise estrogen and many actually suppress estrogenic effects.

There are several types of phytoestrogen, isoflavones, flavones, lignans, and the balance of type, and the individual properties of each specific type of phytoestrogen, will determine the overall effect.

There are actually a lot of foods typical to bodybuilders menus that contain active phytoestrogens in fairly high degree - wheat, rice, oats, olives, flax seeds, coffee, cabbage, soy protein and many leafy greens, white potatoes and most root veg... the impact upon free T and E levels however is not in a range that affects androgenic or anabolic status, and where it does the effect is often localised and generally positive for health (lowering prostrate cancer risk but not diminishing androgenic expression or overall or free T levels for example), and is dwarfed by the effect other things can have like the suppressive effect upon T caused by prolonged calorie deficit, a low carb to protein ratio, or the deleterious effect of too little dietary cholesterol, omega 3 PUFA's and saturated or monounsaturated fat.

Anyway to say something is bad because it contains phytoestrogens is simply not adequate, the precise PE's involved need to be identified, as does the degree of their effect upon various physiological markers before any claims can be made... ninety percent of what is written about phytoestrogens and bodybuilding is broscience or a load of assumptions based on a flawed generalised idea of what phytoestrogens do IMO.


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## BM1991 (Jul 2, 2013)

If this were true I should be positively female by now.


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## PRD (Sep 4, 2010)

dtlv:4650815 said:


> Well sweet potato does contain phytoestrogens... but here's the thing, not all phytoestrogens raise estrogen and many actually suppress estrogenic effects.
> 
> There are several types of phytoestrogen, isoflavones, flavones, lignans, and the balance of type, and the individual properties of each specific type of phytoestrogen, will determine the overall effect.
> 
> ...


Thanks this is the sort of answer I was looking for, that makes more sense now


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