SERMs, or selective estrogen receptor modulators, are drugs with many uses. They have always been associated with Men’s medical technicalities, the reason being that they have a great link with hormones and estrogen-related fluctuations.
Depending on the tissue, they can either selectively block or stimulate these receptors. By blocking estrogen receptors in breast tissue, SERMs like Tamoxifen are used to treat breast cancer and slow the spread of the disease. Another SERM, raloxifene, is used to treat osteoporosis and lower the chance of developing breast cancer. Due to their specific effect, which alters estrogen activity in different tissues, they provide a novel therapeutic strategy.
SERMs are often associated with PCT, i.e. Post Cycle Therapies as well.
SERMs are used in Post Cycle Therapy (PCT) for individuals who have used anabolic steroids. By inhibiting estrogen receptors, they aid in the restoration of normal testosterone synthesis. As a result, there is a lower chance of estrogen-related adverse effects like gynecomastia, and hormonal balance is supported during the post-steroid cycle recovery period.
In this article, we are going to attempt to entail the briefings about SERMs and PCT and how are they linked to give better medical results to men.
Before we move ahead, let us understand what PCT is
What is PCT {Post Cycle Therapy}?
According to an article by testosterone.org, it is stated that -
"Post-cycle therapy is a specific protocol that many athletes and bodybuilders use after they stop using anabolic steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs. Some of the most popular post-cycle therapy products include ‘nolvadex’, ‘Clomid’, and HCG injections."
Post-cycle therapy has been a protocol to restore your body to its original hormonal balance and cycle.
Men have often used many steroids and drugs, to bring up some unnatural changes to their bodies. Sometimes it is also done for medical purposes, but most often it is a matter of bulking up your muscles or enhancing your power to some unknown limits.
Restoring natural testosterone production and avoiding the loss of muscle mass gained during the cycle are the main objectives of PCT. This is accomplished by following a carefully thought-out supplement and lifestyle program designed to maintain healthy hormone levels, reduce mood swings, and enhance general physical health.
Moving ahead, let us discuss about SERMs
SERMs: What are they?
As we discussed above, SERMs are special drugs or medications used for various purposes like treating osteoporosis, blocking estrogen receptors, etc.
Let us understand 5 basic functions of SERMs
1. Breast Cancer Treatment: By blocking estrogen receptors in breast tissue and preventing tumor growth, SERMs like Tamoxifen are used to treat and prevent breast cancer.
2. Gynecomastia Treatment: By inhibiting estrogen receptors in breast tissue, SERMs can treat gynecomastia (enlarged breasts) in men.
3. Osteoporosis Management: Raloxifene, another SERM, lowers the risk of fracture and strengthens bones to help prevent and cure osteoporosis.
4. Cardiovascular Health: Although more research is required in this area, several SERMs may have potential cardiovascular advantages.
5. Hormone Replacement Therapy: SERMs can be used to treat menopause symptoms, including vaginal dryness and hot flashes.
Types of SERMs
Tamoxifen: Tamoxifen inhibits estrogen receptors in breast tissue and is primarily used to treat and prevent breast cancer.
Raloxifene: Raloxifene selectively modifies estrogen receptors and is used to control osteoporosis and lower the incidence of breast cancer in high-risk postmenopausal women.
Clomiphene: Frequently prescribed to treat infertility, Clomiphene causes women to release the hormones necessary for ovulation.
Bazedoxifene: Used in hormone replacement treatment for postmenopausal women to treat menopausal symptoms and prevent osteoporosis, bazedoxifene is combined with conjugated estrogens.
Lasofoxifene: Also employed in osteoporosis management and breast cancer prevention in postmenopausal women, Lasofoxifene is a newer SERM with beneficial effects on bone health.
How are SERMs and PCT linked?
Here are 5 ways to understand how are SERMs the plus point in Post Cycle Therapy in Men:
Hormonal Balance: Because they assist in reestablishing hormonal balance, SERMs (Selective Estrogen Receptor Modulators) are perfect for PCT in males. The body's natural testosterone production may be decreased after using anabolic steroids. SERMs stop estrogen from suppressing testosterone, allowing levels to return to normal.
LH and FSH stimulation: SERMs like Tamoxifen and Clomiphene stimulate the secretion of luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) from the pituitary gland. These hormones are essential for the testes' ability to produce testosterone.
Reduced Estrogenic Side Effects: SERMs reduce estrogen-related side effects such as gynecomastia (enlarged breasts), mood swings, and water retention. They stop these problems from happening during PCT by inhibiting estrogen receptors.
Muscle Gains Preservation: Using SERMs in PCT aids in preserving muscle gains made during a steroid cycle. For athletes and bodybuilders who wish to preserve their carefully acquired muscular mass, this is essential.
Safe and Effective: When used for PCT under the supervision of a healthcare practitioner, SERMs are regarded as safe and helpful. They facilitate the return to a natural hormonal state following steroid use, lower the risk of health issues, and enhance hormonal recovery.
Which are the SERMs You Should Choose?
Nolvadex
Tamoxifen citrate is a medication, and its generic name is Nolvadex. It was created to prevent breast cancer in high-risk people from developing and metastasizing to other regions of the body. Nolvadex is additionally prescribed to breast cancer patients who have just had surgery as a deterrence drug to prevent relapses.
Advantages of Nolvadex: According to studies, Nolvadex helps the pituitary gland be stimulated so that it will match its production of luteinizing and follicle-stimulating hormones with how much testosterone the body is lacking so that they won't go over or under what is normal. Although the main purpose of PCT is to restart the body's production of testosterone, having too much of it in the bloodstream will already encourage an increase in estrogen levels.
Torem Fareston
Torem-Fareston is a non-steroidal estrogen agonist/antagonist that is also known by its generic name, toremifene citrate. It was created to combat estrogen activity in and around the breast tissue to considerably slow down cancer progression. Torem-Fareston is used as a deterrent medicine, much like Nolvadex, to prevent relapses following breast cancer surgery.
The advantages of Torem-Fareston: When the body experiences a decline in testosterone levels, Torem-Fareston constructs barriers between the tissues that estrogen hormones typically target and those tissues. This action of Torem-Fareston not only helps isolate estrogen hormones so they won't go to regions where they shouldn't, but it also helps prevent the development of "gyno," or the strange enlargement of male breasts.
Clomid
The main reason for developing Clomid, or Clomiphene citrate as it is commonly known, was to stimulate ovulation in women who were having issues with irregular ovulation and unexplained infertility. By improving the quality of semen, especially for intrauterine insemination, it is also used to treat male infertility disorders.
Even though Clomid is far less effective than Nolvadex and Torem-Fareston when used for PCT, it might nonetheless have the same effects. You would need to take a significantly greater dosage of 150 milligrams of Clomid to have the same outcomes as you would with a weekly dose of 60 to 80 milligrams of Nolvadex.
Advantages of Clomid: One of the primary hormonal control regions of the body, the hypothalamus, houses estrogen receptors that clomid blocks. The success of your PCT will undoubtedly increase when these receptors are controlled since they cause the hypothalamus to produce more luteinizing and follicle-stimulating hormones, which speed up the creation of testosterone.
Bottomline: SERMs are a great choice
In post-cycle therapy (PCT), selective estrogen receptor modulators (SERMs) are essential for men who have used anabolic steroids or other substances that alter their hormonal balance. The body's natural synthesis of testosterone may decline throughout a steroid cycle, and estrogen-related adverse effects may appear.
PCT employs SERMs like Tamoxifen and Clomiphene to block these outcomes. They function by obstructing estrogen receptors in particular tissues, notably the hypothalamus and pituitary gland. By taking this measure, the negative feedback loop that occurs when estrogen levels are high causes the body to stop producing its testosterone.
Men can increase their natural production of testosterone, lower their risk of estrogen-related problems (including gynecomastia), and preserve hormonal balance following a steroid cycle by utilizing SERMs.
Sites Used for References
Written By - Bhagwat Jha
Edited By - Aniket Joshi
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