Yeah, it makes more sense to do nothing and then complain that nothing is different.
Or take 12mg proviron or anavar and lower your shbg without suppressing your HPTA at all.
In my case im not exactly experiencing side effects that im aware of. Again healthy sex drive, functional johnson, energy levels etc. But im more so curious about what others have done. Definitely would rather avoid pharmacology if this is something people generally resolve with diet or supps like boron and zinc.
I tried a lot of dosages and stuff. Like everyone says about boron 6 to 9mg a day for a month is the best thing to do, you can find it on Amazon. A couple weeks break is almost mandatory after a month at this dosage since it can rebound estrogen production after a while with no breaks
Prolactin im fairly certain i have not checked. Estradiol i checked in early 2022. Estradiol was 33.9pg, and within the reference range. My free test was actually almost double what it is right now, but SHBG was higher as well.
I'm in the exact same boat. I have a genetic polymorphism for higher SHBG so maybe you do too.
I have never been able to find anything to "fix" SHBG. And I think I've tried everything.
I am trying stinging nettle root recently to help bind it up; not sure if it does anything. Maybe increasing DHT would help bind some more.
I think it's okay to be high-normal at least. Insulin is supposed to drive it down.
Having T bound by SHBG will at least keep it around awhile rather than having it rapidly cleared, so it does serve a purpose. T tends to be high when SHBG is high.
It is definitely possible. Both my mom and dad struggled with hormone stuff so it may be likely. If i am not mistaking, high SHBG is usually correlated with high total T and lower free T so its not exactly the best combo. Ive heard that the high total T is a response to the high SHBG to normalize free T levels.
I think the first place I found it was FitnessGenes; their newer stuff is not so good though. I think Self Decode tests for it also. I am looking for a better gene analysis company.
I believe the SNPs are rs6257, rs6259 and rs1799941 but there may be others also.
[https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23001781/](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23001781/)
Countervailing study: [https://academic.oup.com/jcem/article/96/4/E719/2720893](https://academic.oup.com/jcem/article/96/4/E719/2720893)
It could explain why I always suffer from low estradiol problems. It would be interesting to try an experiment to push SHBG down to the 30s-40s just to see what it "feels" like.
Thanks for that. Ill see what i can find locally cause i know Kaiser wont do anything remotely close to that. I think it would be interesting, what if i have been suppressed since puberty and missing out on free gains and other test benefits?
Of course. Trying to keep things stable and sustainable! If i could get within normal SHBG range and benefit from a little more free T i would love that.
Dealing with the same issue currently. What I’m trying is working to finish up my cut quickly since being in a deficit raises SHBG, taking boron, reducing caffeine intake greatly, and increasing my daily carb intake.
You can't really "lower" your SHBG to increase free T. Any decrease in SHBG is just going to lead to a compensatory decrease in TT to maintain the same free T levels, bc free T is what is maintained by the HPTA, not total T. You maybe potentially could (if you're lucky) if your levels were so ungodly high that they were causing axis suppression in general, but you're not there yet. Your HPTA is functioning perfectly fine. Focus on increasing your testicular testosterone production in order to increase your free T level. Get healthy as fuck.
Right there with ya. My previous bloodwork had me at like 917ng/dL TT with the same SHBG value. So not sure if there is much more i could try besides tongkat etc. Not really interested in boosting my TT unless it will help.
I see. Good to know, i was just reading up on it and it appears that hemachromatosis and high shbg are definitely related. Any idea where i can get the C282Y gene tested?
So, with the contribution so far, i have a few options.
Im going to start with eating more avocado and prune juice since they are high in Boron. Ill also supplement with a little Boron on top of that to try and cover my basis. Ill do a 2-3 month trial of this, and repeat my bloodwork. It was suggested in the comments to get my iron levels tested for hemachromatosis, which can be a cause for high SHBG as well. Ill update this post in a few months if i can with results.
You can try what Paul Saladino did, which is 50-60ml blood donations per week. I also have high SHBG and high Total T. It is doing something for sure, maybe too early to tell, but 2 days after my 60ml draws my libido shoots up, then settles back down
Ill have to look into this. Im honestly not sure weekly donations is something id want to do. In my case, the weekly needles would bother me more than being asymptomatic
Fair enough. It’s not that bad, you get used to it quick I’d say it worth testing for few weeks but yea obviously your call. You’ll reduce your heart attack risk by about 95% also, and reduce forever chemicals if you stick at it a few years
Im definitely going to test for the genes and recheck my iron sat plus ferritin. If it came down to me having genuine risks the bloodletting would be much more appealing
Proviron will lower it pretty quick
It seems pretty evident that exogenous usage of hormones is linked with higher free test
Yeah, it makes more sense to do nothing and then complain that nothing is different. Or take 12mg proviron or anavar and lower your shbg without suppressing your HPTA at all.
Man my brain would be like "you already use anavar just up the dose and get jacked!" But your answer makes sense
I don't know how much 10mg every day would suppress you. Nuking your SHBG is also not awesome. 10mg EOD is probably just fine long term for nattys.
In my case im not exactly experiencing side effects that im aware of. Again healthy sex drive, functional johnson, energy levels etc. But im more so curious about what others have done. Definitely would rather avoid pharmacology if this is something people generally resolve with diet or supps like boron and zinc.
only androgenic hormones
Works for natties?
Boron is supposed to help lower SHBG
It did in my experience
What sorta protocol was successful?
I tried a lot of dosages and stuff. Like everyone says about boron 6 to 9mg a day for a month is the best thing to do, you can find it on Amazon. A couple weeks break is almost mandatory after a month at this dosage since it can rebound estrogen production after a while with no breaks
Have you gotten e2 and prolactin checked as well?
Prolactin im fairly certain i have not checked. Estradiol i checked in early 2022. Estradiol was 33.9pg, and within the reference range. My free test was actually almost double what it is right now, but SHBG was higher as well.
I'm in the exact same boat. I have a genetic polymorphism for higher SHBG so maybe you do too. I have never been able to find anything to "fix" SHBG. And I think I've tried everything. I am trying stinging nettle root recently to help bind it up; not sure if it does anything. Maybe increasing DHT would help bind some more. I think it's okay to be high-normal at least. Insulin is supposed to drive it down. Having T bound by SHBG will at least keep it around awhile rather than having it rapidly cleared, so it does serve a purpose. T tends to be high when SHBG is high.
It is definitely possible. Both my mom and dad struggled with hormone stuff so it may be likely. If i am not mistaking, high SHBG is usually correlated with high total T and lower free T so its not exactly the best combo. Ive heard that the high total T is a response to the high SHBG to normalize free T levels.
How did you test for polymorphism? I know my mother had PCOS so there is a decent chance i just inherited hormone stuff.
I think the first place I found it was FitnessGenes; their newer stuff is not so good though. I think Self Decode tests for it also. I am looking for a better gene analysis company. I believe the SNPs are rs6257, rs6259 and rs1799941 but there may be others also. [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23001781/](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23001781/) Countervailing study: [https://academic.oup.com/jcem/article/96/4/E719/2720893](https://academic.oup.com/jcem/article/96/4/E719/2720893) It could explain why I always suffer from low estradiol problems. It would be interesting to try an experiment to push SHBG down to the 30s-40s just to see what it "feels" like.
Thanks for that. Ill see what i can find locally cause i know Kaiser wont do anything remotely close to that. I think it would be interesting, what if i have been suppressed since puberty and missing out on free gains and other test benefits?
Protein intake is good?
Have had multiple high shbg readings throughout different dieting periods. But protein intake has been solid and tracked yes.
Injecting testosterone crushed mine
pretty sure you don’t want to crush shbg too low either so be careful
Of course. Trying to keep things stable and sustainable! If i could get within normal SHBG range and benefit from a little more free T i would love that.
Dealing with the same issue currently. What I’m trying is working to finish up my cut quickly since being in a deficit raises SHBG, taking boron, reducing caffeine intake greatly, and increasing my daily carb intake.
You can't really "lower" your SHBG to increase free T. Any decrease in SHBG is just going to lead to a compensatory decrease in TT to maintain the same free T levels, bc free T is what is maintained by the HPTA, not total T. You maybe potentially could (if you're lucky) if your levels were so ungodly high that they were causing axis suppression in general, but you're not there yet. Your HPTA is functioning perfectly fine. Focus on increasing your testicular testosterone production in order to increase your free T level. Get healthy as fuck.
Right there with ya. My previous bloodwork had me at like 917ng/dL TT with the same SHBG value. So not sure if there is much more i could try besides tongkat etc. Not really interested in boosting my TT unless it will help.
50mg day proviron
This is perfectly fine bloodwork.
[My Recent Bloodwork](https://i.imgur.com/qBKbKD4.png) My SHBG is a bit low at 8.4 nmol/L
Holy shit. Your shbg is so low and your total T is so high it doesnt even measure free? Lmao. Are you natty?
As natty as the Liver King brotha🫶
High ferritin increases SHBG production. Something to consider.
Get iron saturation tested. Your ferritin level is on the border of hereditary hemochromatosis territory.
I see. Good to know, i was just reading up on it and it appears that hemachromatosis and high shbg are definitely related. Any idea where i can get the C282Y gene tested?
LabCorp does it: https://www.labcorp.com/tests/511345/hereditary-hemochromatosis-dna-analysis
So, with the contribution so far, i have a few options. Im going to start with eating more avocado and prune juice since they are high in Boron. Ill also supplement with a little Boron on top of that to try and cover my basis. Ill do a 2-3 month trial of this, and repeat my bloodwork. It was suggested in the comments to get my iron levels tested for hemachromatosis, which can be a cause for high SHBG as well. Ill update this post in a few months if i can with results.
You can try what Paul Saladino did, which is 50-60ml blood donations per week. I also have high SHBG and high Total T. It is doing something for sure, maybe too early to tell, but 2 days after my 60ml draws my libido shoots up, then settles back down
Ill have to look into this. Im honestly not sure weekly donations is something id want to do. In my case, the weekly needles would bother me more than being asymptomatic
Fair enough. It’s not that bad, you get used to it quick I’d say it worth testing for few weeks but yea obviously your call. You’ll reduce your heart attack risk by about 95% also, and reduce forever chemicals if you stick at it a few years
Im definitely going to test for the genes and recheck my iron sat plus ferritin. If it came down to me having genuine risks the bloodletting would be much more appealing
Primobolan lowers SHBG.