Artichoke, the Mediator for Sex Steroid Hormone Metabolism, According to Studies

By Kyle J. Norton

Artichoke may have a profound and positive effect on sex steroid hormone metabolism with no side effects, according to studies.

The steroid hormones are hormones made mainly by endocrine glands such as the gonads (testis and ovary), the adrenals and (during gestation) by the fetoplacental unit.

In other words, steroid hormones can be grouped into two classes: corticosteroids (typically made in the adrenal cortex, hence cortico-) and sex steroids (made in the gonads or placenta).

Metabolism plays many important roles in steroid hormone action in reaching the target of production and stopping production when the target is reached within the target tissues.

The function of sex steroid hormone is to influence the maintenance and growth of muscles, and the decline in androgens, estrogens, and progesterone due to aging are associated with the loss of muscular function and mass.

In male puberty, testosterone, the sex hormones produced by luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), plays an important role in the physical changes associated with puberty, and in testicular maturation.

In female puberty, increased hormones luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) stimulates the production of hormones including estrogen and progesterone, leading to breast change and menstrual period.

In the reproductive function, sex steroid hormones stimulate the development of the maturing ovarian follicle and control ovum production in the female and sperm production in the male.

In the nonreproductive function, receptors for estrogens, progesterone, and androgens are associated with the function of bone, brain, cardiovascular system. The results suggested that sex steroid hormones may play a critical role in the pathophysiology of some diseases (osteoporosis, Alzheimer, atherosclerosis).

Artichoke is a perennial thistle of Cynara cardunculus species of the Cynara genus, belonging to the family Carduoideae native to Southern Europe around the Mediterranean.

The herbal plant has been used in traditional medicine as a liver protective and detoxified agent, and to treat digestive disorders, abdominal pain gas and bloating, etc.

Researchers on finding potential and natural ingredient for the mediation of the sex steroid hormones and metabolic activity examined the effects of a combination botanical supplement on premenopausal women.

The placebo-controlled, parallel-arm, pilot study tested the effects of two naturopathic interventions over five menstrual cycles in 40 healthy premenopausal women.

Participants were given either dietary changes (3 servings/d crucifers or dark leafy greens, 30 g/d fiber, 1-2 liters/d water, and limiting caffeine and alcohol consumption to 1 serving each/wk; n = 10), and placebo (n = 15).

During the early follicular phase, the botanical supplement decreased dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), an endogenous steroid hormone(-13.2%; P = 0.02), which has been found to affect how estrogen works. Increased expression of DHEA is associated with the sensitive conditions of breast cancer, uterine cancer, ovarian cancer, endometriosis, or uterine fibroids and dehydroepiandrosterone-sulfate (-14.6%; P = 0.07).

Compared to placebo, the formula also inhibited the levels of dehydroepiandrosterone-sulfate (DHEA-S), an endogenous androstane steroid that is produced by the adrenal cortex and a possible markers for hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) function in patients with large pituitary adenomas.

Furthermore, the combination reduced the expression of androstenedione, a steroid hormone in a normal range and improved the production of the hormone testosterone and enhanced recovery and growth from exercise, and increased sexual desire and performance. Overexpression of androstenedione has been found to facilitate the growth of endometrial cancer.

Levels of estrone-sulfate a form of estrogen found to alleviate symptoms of menopause as hormone replacement therapy also decreased by the injection of the formula. Increased levels of estrone-sulfate are involved in the onset of Cancers associated with the response to estrogen.

Also compared to placebo, no other trends or statistically significant changes were observed. In other words, comparing dietary changes with placebo, no statistically significant differences were observed other than those mentioned above.

The findings strongly suggested that the formula may have strong activity against the overexpression of certain steroid hormones involved the risk of mammary cancers.

Taken altogether, artichoke used alone or combined with other herbal medicine including Curcuma longa, Rosmarinus officinalis, Schisandra chinensis, Silybum marinum, and Taraxacum officinalis may be considered mediation of steroid hormones against the onset of certain cancers in premenopausal women, pending to the confirmation of larger sample size and multicenter human study.

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Author Biography
Kyle J. Norton (Scholar, Master of Nutrition, All right reserved)
Health article writer and researcher; Over 10.000 articles and research papers have been written and published online, including worldwide health, ezine articles, article base, health blogs, self-growth, best before it's news, the karate GB daily, etc.,.
Named TOP 50 MEDICAL ESSAYS FOR ARTISTS & AUTHORS TO READ by Disilgold.com Named 50 of the best health Tweeters Canada - Huffington Post
Nominated for shorty award over last 4 years
Some articles have been used as references in medical research, such as international journal Pharma and Bioscience, ISSN 0975-6299.

References
(1) A pilot and feasibility study on the effects of naturopathic botanical and dietary interventions on sex steroid hormone metabolism in premenopausal women by Greenlee H1, Atkinson C, Stanczyk FZ, Lampe JW. (PubMed)