What Is Phase 3 Hormone Detox?
One of my absolute favorite topics in all of science is the detoxification of your hormones, specifically estrogens. Estrone (E1) and estradiol (E2) generally go through 3 phases of breakdown in order to render them water soluble. This means you can then eliminate them through your kidneys into your urine or through your intestines into your stool. This is final step is known as phase 3 detoxification. It’s important this phase is working well as it gets your hormones OUT of the body similar to your sewer line drawing all the waste from your house...
DIM or Sulforaphane for Estrogen?
The answer is - it depends! First, this might sound greek if you’re not familiar with supplements or foods that support estrogen detoxification! I have another article on [DIM here](https://www.drcarriejones.com/articles/when-do-i-take-dim) to catch you up. It comes from mature broccoli and supports phase 1 estrogen detoxification. Sulforaphane predominantly comes from young broccoli sprouts and supports phase 2 estrogen detoxification! My personal favorite is to start with eating broccoli sprouts or using a broccoli sprout/sulforaphane product. This essentially works to open all the drains in your house so the water can drain out to the sewer line. In fact, sulforaphane seems to activate over 500 genes in your body..
What Is “Estrogen Dominance?”
The phrase, ‘estrogen dominance’ gets used a lot in functional, integrative, holistic, and naturopathic medicine. However, it is not well recognized in more conventional medicine despite the symptoms women are having. I’m here to help clear this up and provide more understanding about what it means!
When Do I Take DIM?
DIM (or diindolymethane) is a popular ingredient often added to supplements that focus on estrogen detoxification. It ultimately comes from the cruciferous family, such as cauliflower and broccoli, and supports phase 1 detoxification. What does that mean?
The estrogens in your body go through a multi-step detoxification process. The purpose of this is to break down the estrogens into products known as metabolites that must be neutral and water soluble. This makes it easier for your body to eliminate them in your stool or urine. Because it’s a multi-step process, there are some pathways that are more helpful to the body and others that have risks or side effects associated with them. Supplements and foods, such as DIM and broccoli, partially help this process BUT not everyone needs DIM!
MTHFR vs Methylation?
They are not the same thing but they are related. MTHFR (Methylenetetrahydrofolatereductase) is an enzyme (by the genetic snp of the same name) that is essentially responsible for taking all the folate you eat and turning it into 5-methyltetrahydrofolate. Why do you care?
Methylfolate is very important for the Methionine Cycle.