Natural Testosterone Hormone Replacement

Sexual health is a very important function to most men.  Erectile Dysfunction (ED) is the inability for a man to attain or maintain an erection sufficient enough for intercourse.  ED and decreased libido is a trend increasing amongst aging men in the United States which tends to causes embarrassment, sexual frustration and leads men who experience this condition to feel less “manly” than those who do not.  Often times, ED occurs as part of the normal aging process in men, however it may occur in younger men as well due to either lowered hormone levels or psychological causes.

The majority of men who experience ED also exhibit other signs of Andropause as well.  Andropause, also termed “Male Menopause,” typically results from a drop in the primary sex hormone, testosterone, just as women experience menopause from a resultant change in their hormones as they age.  The loss of testosterone, which can happen to men as young as 35, is gradual, with testosterone levels dropping just 1 percent to 1.5 percent annually.  Unlike the precipitous loss of estrogen which menopausal women face, the gradual loss of testosterone may take years to exact its mark on men.

The most common signs and symptoms of Andropause include:

• Erectile Dysfunction – difficulty attaining/maintaining erections
• Lowered Libido
• Mental decline – irritability, depression and anxiety
• Fatigue
• Enlarged Prostate causing urinary difficulties
• Weight gain
• Loss of muscle mass/muscle weakness

Naturopathic physicians take a full individualized history from you to determine if you are experiencing symptoms of andropause.  They most often spend up to an hour and half with you on your first visit to really get to know you as a person and to know your full history before starting with any laboratory tests or with any treatments.  Andropause seems to be a multi-factorial process but most often occurs when testosterone levels in men decline with age.  Symptoms of andropause may also be caused by or be mimicked by other conditions like adrenal fatigue, hypothyroidism and environmental toxicity.  With lowered testosterone levels, not only can men have the unwanted symptoms of andropause like lack of libido, erectile dysfunction and a decrease in energy but they can also be predisposed to developing other more serious conditions like cardiovascular disease, obesity, insulin resistance and diabetes, osteoporosis, and Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH).

Both simple blood tests, like a male hormone panel, and other specialized tests like a thyroid function test, an adrenal function test, or an IgG Food Allergy test can determine the underlying cause of your andropausal symptoms.  Other specialized tests like a Cardiovascular Risk Assessment can determine your risk of developing other conditions like cardiovascular disease and even insulin resistance or diabetes.   Although medications are not a naturopathic physician’s first choice for treating the symptoms of andropause, naturopathic physicians do have prescription rights in the state of Arizona and may decide to prescribe you a medication if they feel it necessary.

With the use of natural Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy (BHRT) in conjunction with many other natural treatment options, like botanicals, nutritional supplementation, and acupuncture, andropause can be managed effectively and help men regain and attain optimal health as they age.

Contact Dr. Matthew Cavaiola at East Valley Naturopathic Doctors to schedule your FREE 15 minute consultation TODAY.  (480) 985-0000.

All of us have experienced some sort of physical pain at one point in our lives. How we choose to deal with the pain varies from person to person, yet for most of us, despite what we do to help our pain, it inevitably returns. Naturopathic Physicians work with you and take a natural approach to treating and preventing future occurrences of pain. Naturopathic Physicians use therapies like clinical nutrition, acupuncture, and prolotherapy and run specialized laboratory tests like an IgG Food Intolerance Test or a Neurotransmitter test to treat and determine why your pain may be occurring.

Naturopathic Physicians are trained in treating and curing pain as result of a whole host of both acute and chronic conditions. Acute conditions like motor vehicle accidents, sprained ligaments and strained muscles and chronic conditions like Osteoarthritis, Rheumatoid Arthritis, low back or knee pain respond favorably to naturopathic treatments. These naturopathic treatments have been shown to be superior when compared to the treatment of pain with standard medications, steroid injections, or surgery.

Arthritis and many chronic pain syndromes are a result of widespread uncontrolled inflammation in the body. Inflammation can occur due to a variety of reasons, however the largest percentage of inflammatory type reactions in the body are due to an inflammatory type diet. Arthritis and a whole host of other conditions stem from poor diet and nutritional imbalances. Naturopathic physicians can help you to find out what foods are causing an inflammatory reaction in your body and gain control of pain and other symptoms of inflammation. The most reliable approach to determining inflammatory dietary foods in the diet is by performing an IgG Food Intolerance Test. Naturopathic physicians recognize the individual variability in everyone and realize that everybody has different foods that cause inflammation so an IgG Food Intolerance Test shows what foods in particular are toxic for YOUR system.

Acupuncture dates back over 2500 years and is great for helping people deal with and cure both chronic and acute pain syndromes. Acupuncture is based on the concept of energetic balance. Energy is thought to run smoothly through channels or meridians in a healthy individual. When there is an energetic imbalance, illness often ensues. Treatments are based on assessing the flow and distribution of this vital energy within its pathways, and influencing health and sickness by stimulating certain areas along these meridians. Naturopathic Physicians are trained in acupuncture and commonly use this form of medicine in conjunction with other therapies to bring a person to wellness. Often patients feel great after the first treatment, but it usually takes 5 treatments to see the maximum benefit.

Prolotherapy is another wonderful treatment modality that Naturopathic Physicians can use to help treat both acute and chronic pain. Prolotherapy is a leading anti-aging treatment for painful joints characterized by diminished function and pain due to stretched or strained ligaments and tendons. Once stretched or weakened, ligaments are not able to return to there original strength or length without outside assistance. Nutritive injections strengthen ligament and tendon attachments in the ankle, knee, hip, shoulders and even along the spine. The injections stimulate the growth of new collagen and ligament fibers resulting in stronger ligaments, more stable or tighter joints, improved joint function and reduction in pain. Prolotherapy solutions do not contain cortisone, which may end up weakening the strength of the joint. For pain in your feet, ankles, knees, hips, back, shoulders, or hands, Prolotherapy is the best anti-aging treatment for your joints.

To schedule a FREE 15 minute consultation to have a Naturopathic Physician help you with your pain, contact Dr. Matthew Cavaiola at East Valley Naturopathic Doctors at (480) 985-0000.

Conceiving a child can often be a challenging and stressful event in the lives of a couple. Despite the fact that most of the pressure seems to reside on a woman’s shoulders to get pregnant, factors related to a man’s fertility are equally important and just as much emphasis should be placed on men’s infertility as women’s.

Infertility is defined as the inability to achieve a pregnancy after one year of unprotected intercourse. Conception is normally achieved within 12 months in 80-85% of couples using no contraceptive measures. Therefore an estimated 15% of couples attempting their first pregnancy will have difficulty conceiving.

An estimated 6% of adult males are thought to be infertile. While certain cases of male infertility are due to anatomical abnormalities such as varicoceles, ductal obstructions, or ejaculatory disorders, an estimated 40-90% of cases are due to deficient sperm production. Factors that may affect sperm production or motility include tobacco use, excessive alcohol or marijuana usage, excess body weight, certain medications, environmental toxins, restrictive underwear and temperature extremes. Chronic underlying infections, diet and endocrine abnormalities can also play a crucial role in male fertility.

Naturopathic doctors take a holistic and individualized approach to male infertility. They take a thorough history from a patient to determine all of the underlying factors that may be contributing to the inability to conceive and are able to run both simple and specialized laboratory tests. One such specialized laboratory test is a blood Hormone Profile test. If certain hormones like testosterone or estrogen are abnormal, this could potentially contribute to male infertility. Other potential tests to determine the nature of male infertility include Heavy Metal Toxicity testing, Environmental Toxicity Testing, and Adrenal Function Testing.

Naturopathic doctors can tailor personalized treatments to a patient to improve the likelihood of a couple conceiving a child. Nutritional supplementation of vitamins, amino acids, minerals and antioxidants help to correct any nutritional imbalances that may be present and reverse the deleterious effects of environmental toxins that both may play a role in male infertility. Certain botanical medicines and acupuncture have also shown to be powerful naturopathic treatment options to benefit male fertility.

To schedule an appointment with Dr. Matthew Cavaiola to discuss improving male fertility, please call East Valley Naturopathic Doctors at (480) 985-0000 today.

With aging it is almost universal in men to have an enlarged prostate gland. It is most commonly seen in men over the age of 40, and 50% of men over the age of 50 have enlarged prostates. Although an enlarged prostate, or benign prostatic hypertrophy (BPH), may not cause men any difficulties in everyday functioning, often it can lead to problems with urination such as decrease in force of urination, sensation of incomplete voiding, increased frequency in urination, and dribbling of urine. As men age, testosterone in the body is converted more into dihydrotestosterone (DHT) in the prostate which has a direct relation to increasing prostate size. Simple blood tests and physical examination of the prostate can help naturopathic physicians determine if men have BPH or a more serious condition like prostate cancer. Naturopathic modalities like botanical medicine, nutritional supplementation and acupuncture can all help men with this condition.

Although BPH is a rather benign condition, it has similar signs and symptoms to prostate cancer which may be a more serious diagnosis in men. Like BPH, prostate cancer can be asymptomatic and it may not cause any problems in men until it is advanced in its progression. However, it may also lead men to have urinary urgency, hesitancy, need to urinate during sleep, poor urinary stream, and dribbling. Prostate cancer accounts for 70% of all male cancers and only lung cancer has a higher mortality rate. Incidence also increases with age, with 80% of new cases occurring after 65 years of age. It is important for men to begin screening for prostate cancer at age 50 and at 40 years in African-Americans or in men who have a family history of prostate cancer. To help naturopathic physicians screen for prostate cancer and other illness they may perform simple blood tests, a physical examination of the prostate, along with a Men's Wellness Exam.

Prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia, or PIN, is a condition in which the cells on the prostate gland's surface divide more rapidly than the rest of the prostate cells. Research shows that men diagnosed with PIN have a sharply increased risk of developing prostate cancer. It has been postulated that there seems to be an inflammatory component to this condition that typically respond favorably to naturopathic treatments. Recent literature has shown that natural cyclooxygenase (COX) inhibitors, like Zyflamend, have been linked to decreasing the amount of inflammation in not only the body, but specifically the prostate gland itself, and thus helping to reverse PIN. Naturopathic physcians use tests like IgG Food Intolerance Testing and other tests designed to measure the amount of inflammation in your body and doing so can help them tailor individual anti-inflammatory diets and natural protocols to decrease this inflammatory process taking place.

Prostatitis is an inflammation of the prostate gland that can often lead to pain in the low back, abdomen or the pelvic region. It can also lead to urinary difficulties like difficulty urinating, frequency and urgency of urination, and the need to urinate during sleep. Prostatitis can be classified as either bacterial or non-bacterial prostatitis, often presenting with similar signs and symptoms. Most conventional physicians believe that cases of prostatitis are of the bacterial form and treat prostatitis with broad spectrum antibiotics, like Ciprofloxacin. What often occurs is that the symptoms of prostatitis and the general inflammation of the prostate are not made better by this treatment. As most naturopathic physicians would agree, prostatitis is not caused by bacteria in the prostate but most frequently due to fungus, like Candida, in the prostate – hence why prostatitis is not alleviated by antibiotics. In fact, it is estimated that prostatitis is of the non-bacterial form 95% of the time. Naturopathic physicians use treatments like both natural and, if necessary, prescription anti-fungals, botanical medicine, and omega fatty acids to treat both the underlying infection and inflammation of the prostate causing the prostatitis. Often times, food allergies over time can lead to the inflammation seen in prostatitis and can often exacerbate the underlying fungal infection occurring. Therefore, naturopathic physicians can also perform a specialized IgG Food Intolerance Test to determine what foods you are sensitive to. The reduction in consumption of these foods in conjunction with the aforementioned natural treatments can help to reduce the severity and the incidence of prostatitis.

Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) is a controversial, but informative blood laboratory test that is used to determine the degree of underlying inflammation occurring in the prostate gland. While most conventional physicians would agree that only PSA values over 4.0 up to a level of 10.0 are indicative of serious prostate conditions, naturopathic physicians take a more cautious approach. Naturopathic physicians believe that a PSA level of 1.0 or greater indicates some degree of chronic prostatitis and that even PSA levels from 0-4, what is considered “normal” amongst conventional doctors, could still potentially be prostate cancer. As PSA levels climb, the underlying inflammation and/or chronic infection becomes worse in the prostate and predisposes a man to developing prostate cancer later in life. It is estimated that men with a PSA between 2 and 4 have a five to nine times greater incidence of developing prostate cancer within the next subsequent 10 years. Therefore, naturopathic physicians work with you to not only screen for this underlying chronic inflammation that is occurring in the prostate but also to treat the underlying inflammation/infection using natural therapies described above.

To schedule an appointment with Men's Health Specialist, Dr. Matthew Cavaiola, NMD, please call East Valley Naturopathic Doctors at (480) 985-0000!

It is estimated that today there are over 78 million Baby Boomers currently living in the United States. The Baby Boomers are the generation that was born between the years 1946 and 1964. As the Baby Boomers age, so comes with it a subsequent decline in their health and well-being.

Just as women experience declining estrogen levels in menopause from their 40’s through their 60’s, men experience a similar decline in levels of their primary hormone, testosterone, as they age. This decline in testosterone in aging men has been termed “andropause.” The loss of testosterone, which can happen to men as young as 35, is gradual, with testosterone levels dropping just 1 percent to 1.5 percent annually. Unlike the precipitous loss of estrogen which menopausal women face, the gradual loss of testosterone may take years to exact its mark on men. Declining testosterone levels in men can impact men’s health in a variety of ways – from declining energy levels to increased risk for cardiovascular disease.

Naturopathic physicians take a full individualized history to determine if men are experiencing symptoms of andropause. They most often spend up to an hour and half with patients on their first visit to really get to know them as a person and to know a full history before starting with any laboratory tests or with any treatments. Andropause seems to be a multi-factorial process but most often occurs when testosterone levels in men decline with age. Symptoms of andropause may also be caused by or be mimicked by other conditions like adrenal fatigue, hypothyroidism and environmental toxicity. With lowered testosterone levels, not only can men have the unwanted symptoms of andropause like lack of libido, erectile dysfunction and a decrease in energy but they can also be predisposed to developing other more serious conditions like cardiovascular disease, obesity, insulin resistance and diabetes, osteoporosis, and Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH).

Both simple blood tests, like a male hormone panel, and other specialized tests like a thyroid function test, an adrenal function test, or an IgG Food Allergy test can determine the underlying cause of andropausal symptoms. Other specialized tests like a Cardiovascular Risk Assessment can determine the risk of developing other conditions like cardiovascular disease and even insulin resistance or diabetes. Although medications are not a naturopathic physician’s first choice for treating the symptoms of andropause, naturopathic physicians do have prescription rights in the state of Arizona and may decide to prescribe a medication if they feel it necessary. With the use of natural Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy (BHRT) in conjunction with many other natural treatment options, like botanicals, nutritional supplementation, and acupuncture, andropause can be managed effectively and help men regain and attain optimal health as they age.