Iron, estrogen & RLS

[707twitcher]

Just wondering if anyone is aware of any connection between iron & estrogen (from an RLS perspective)? I'm a 73 year-old male, and I've had high-ish estrogen levels for at least the last 7 years (42-49; normal level should be below 41). I think there is some correlation between high estrogen and high iron. My serum iron level is fairly high (155), while my ferritin is fairly low (51). Because of my high iron, my iron saturation is faily high (46%). My endocrinologist has no clue as to why my estrogen is high, and trying to remedy that is not worth messing with the drugs that might do so.

I just started supplementing iron a few weeks ago to see what that does for my RLS, and plan on having my levels tested in another month or so to see what effect that might be having. My assumption is that raising my ferritin level is worth trying, even though my saturation level is fairly high.

Thanks for any thoughts....

[SueJohnson]

Interesting. For females estrogen which increases during pregnancy and which is taken after menopause as HRT makes RLS worse. for most.

[Madlegs1]

Beer drinkers tend to have higher estrogen!?🍻

"Beer contains phytoestrogen and prolactin. These two chemicals can increase the estrogen levels your body produces. If this happens too much, your body will react and decrease testosterone levels—which can put you at risk for low T.12 Jun 2020"

[707twitcher in reply to Madlegs1]

Interesting. Guess I’ll have to cut back my beer consumption from four bottles a year to two😂.

In my case, my high estrogen is accompanied by very high testosterone, which also has my endocrinologist puzzled.

[Madlegs1]

You're a medical conundrum. 🤔

[CsiguZ]

High estrogen might be related to your genetics. You could try Diindolylmethane supplement. Diindolylmethane is natural compound found in broccoli, brussels sprouts, and cabbage and can balance healthy hormone metabolism, especially estrogen.

[ChrisColumbus]

Just looking this up, there are at least two forms of oestrogen in men and there is some variation in what is considered as 'normal' levels.

In adult males Estrone levels are typically given as10-60 pg/ml or 12-72 pg/mL (depending on source).

"Normal total Estradiol levels in men are somewhere between 20–55 pg/mL (2.0–5.5 ng/dL) and 10-40 pg/mL (1.0-4.0 ng/dL), depending on whom you ask."

So, depending on who you ask your oestrogen levels *may* not be particularly high.

We have similar problems with 'normal' levels of serum ferritin: there is considerable variation between sources.