There’s an advertisement of a popular beer brand done by Daniel Craig (James Bond) an 007 agent where he was pictured gulping down a bottle of beer at a bar. Looks cool yea? We all know being an 007 agent is associated with being an ‘alpha male’, being a gentleman, a ladies’ man, and the savior of the world from evil men, which is an image most men fantasize about and would like to imitate.
So it makes sense for a marketing agency to choose James Bond for a narrative that beer consumption makes you look cool and it’s an alpha tell. However, studies have shown that beer consumption does more harm to your body than good, asides the intoxicating effect (which is cool if you’re an alcohol consumer), beer can make you effeminate and can make a man infertile. E shock you? let me tell you my story…
I used to be a beer consumer too, I am a slim man and have a flat tummy. I pride myself that my flat tummy was indestructible and no matter what I eat or drink, it’ll remain flat. I was wrong.
Due to frequent consumption of beer, usually 2 or 3 bottles per time (not every day), my tummy started to get big, like potbelly and I was beginning to develop ‘man boobs’. The weight addition wasn’t evenly distributed, just my tummy and effeminate boobs. Imagine these two weight placements on a slim body…not a pleasant sight if we’re keeping it a buck, it’s the direct opposite of what a Bond character should look like.
I also noticed, I had late erections or weak erections and don’t last long in bed if I try to have sex afterward, hence the need for my research about what beer is doing to my body.
THE USE OF HOPS IN BEERS
The four main ingredients in beer are malt, water, yeast, and hops. I won’t bore you with the beer production process (I’m a food scientist by training though). Hops are the flowers or cones of a plant called Humulus lupulus of the family Cannabinaceae which happens to include Cannabis (hemp and Marijuana).
Hops help to keep beer fresher, longer, and retain its foam head- a key component of a beer’s aroma and flavor and that unique bitterness in beers. Brewers guard the hops they use jealously because it is what gives the taste their consumers enjoy and what distinguishes it from other brands. As important as the use of hops is to beer, so does it also have a debilitating effect on male physiology.
A 1951 study discovered that hops contain hormone disruptors and estrogenic properties when women who handled hops for a day when harvesting crops for beer manufacturing will immediately start their periods.
It was found that hops indeed contain high levels of phytoestrogens (substances found in plants that can produce effects like that of the hormone estrogen when consumed). The phytoestrogens found in hops are daidzein, genistein, 8-prenylnaringenin (8-PN) which turn out to be the most post phytoestrogens known to the plant world.
Although the 8-PN concentration in the beer itself is quite low, in 2005, a study showed that the intestinal microbiome is the main culprit in increasing the concentration of the phytoestrogen when consumed.
HOW PHYTOESTROGENS IN BEER AFFECT MALE PHYSIOLOGY
When studied, the urine of men who had drunk even moderate amounts of beer showed that there was an estrogenic effect that lasted for days in their bodies because the microbial community in their gut kept churning out more and more 8-prenylnaringenin after coming into contact with the beer.
It’s also worth noting that estrogenic properties aside, the mere alcohol content in beer has been shown to lower testosterone and raise estrogen levels in men within as little as 3 weeks. In fact, beer is traditionally brewed and consumed by monks to dampen their libido, and the hops promote lactation in nursing mothers.
It’s important to note that men don’t necessarily need to be drinking beer to the point of intoxication for these estrogenic effects to occur, but of course, the more beer a man drinks the more estrogen dominance will affect his biology.
When men live in a state of estrogen dominance, they can become subject to compounding health issues which, like a vicious cycle, perpetuate each other. Estrogenic bodies often retain water and gain weight more easily leading to obesity. When obesity becomes a factor then your quality of sleep, energy levels, and mental health are greatly affected.
It can also be harder to lose weight, even with a healthy diet and exercise, when you’re in a state of estrogen dominance. More estrogen means you’ll have more body fat, and more body fat means you have more estrogen in your system. Studies also show that the increased scrotal temperature and poor-quality sleep due to obesity both have dramatic effects on sperm motility and health.
Furthermore, excess estrogen alone without the added component of obesity has been strongly linked to male infertility. Thankfully, these issues are often reversible by improving diet and lifestyle and by avoiding estrogenic toxicity in our environment.
Optimizing testosterone is also a treatment for repairing the damage done to male fertility by having estrogen dominance in the male body. Normalizing the T can reverse male infertility. This can be done by weightlifting on a regular basis which has been proven to be the best form of exercise for raising testosterone levels.
BUTTOMS UP
The intention of this post isn’t to tarnish any business or brand but to make you aware of what you’re putting into your body. Hops are a highly estrogenic plant, which is the main ingredient in beer next to water.
Drinking beer in excess not only has a sterilizing effect on men but also feminizes their bodies by reducing testosterone and increasing estrogen. We must think critically about why this product has been specifically advertised towards men and to what end.
It’s imperative that we work towards re-establishing safe environments that allow our bodies to function the way they were designed to function. This will require discipline and the willingness to endure the discomfort of breaking social norms and habits like frequent consumption of alcohol.
To optimize our biology, hormone balance is key and knowledge is power. Remember this the next time you’re invited out for drinks with your friends. Exercising moderation and caution is highly recommended.
I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I did writing it, please hit the share button to spread this important gospel.
Stay Manly.
Olowe Segun
Amire Steve
Tolulope
