Happy Saturday, and welcome to The Morning Dose, your one-stop shop for all things peptides, TRT, fitness, anti-aging, and everything in between.
Weโve got a great newsletter for you today, so grab some coffee, and get ready to learn.
In this weekโs edition of The Morning Dose:
โ๏ธ Enclomiphene vs. TRT
๐ง Peptide Spotlight: Liraglutide
๐งฌ Research Spotlight: Ultra-processed Foods Linked to Dozens of Negative Health Outcomes
๐ค Peter Attia and Derek from More Plates, More Dates
Letโs inject this.
โ๏ธ First time reading? Iโm Matt, and this is The Morning Dose. Every week, our team scours hundreds of sources to bring you need-to-know news and insights you wonโt find elsewhere. All in 5 minutes.
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โ๏ธ Enclomiphene vs. TRT
Letโs kick this week off by taking a closer look at enclomiphene, which is popping up everywhere in the anti-aging and biohacking corners of the internet.
Many TRT clinics now offer this medication, and Iโm constantly bombarded by ads promoting enclomiphene as the far superior option to TRT, claiming itโs a โnaturalโ way to increase testosterone production. In fact, some clinics only offer this treatment, rather than testosterone therapy.
Letโs look at what it is, how it works, and how it compares to traditional TRT.
Enclomiphene is a selective estrogen receptor modulator, or SERM, like its popular sister medication, Clomid. To get even more technical, Clomid contains both enclomiphene AND another compound called zuclomiphene.
In other words, enclomiphene is essentially a purer version of Clomid, with the zuclomiphone removed to minimize some of the nasty side effects, including mood swings, headaches, blurred vision, and more.
When you use a SERM, it will block some of your bodyโs estrogen receptors. This triggers your brain to produce more LH and FSH, two hormones that increase activity in the testes, resulting in higher levels of testosterone and sperm production.
Thatโs why SERMs are often used as post-cycle therapyโif your testes arenโt producing testosterone, adding SERMs should theoretically get your body to restart itโs own production.
These days, weโre seeing many clinics offering enclomiphene as an alternative to TRT, since it can boost your testosterone levels without injections. Youโll receive the benefits of higher testosterone levels, without shutting down your natural production, a side effect of TRT.
So is enclomiphene truly a better option than TRT? Maybe.
While it does seem to increase testosterone levels, itโs not as predictable or reliable as administering standardized doses of testosterone on a regular schedule.
However, the benefit is that without testosterone therapy, you donโt have to worry about shutting down your natural production or interfering with fertilityโwhich is always important to consider before using hormones.
The second issue is that while some men suffer from low testosterone due to pituitary issues and a lack of LH and FSH production, other men simply canโt produce enough in the testes. You can send as many signals as you want by taking SERMs, but if your testicles canโt produce what your body demands, youโre still going to have low testosterone.
If you want to avoid TRT for fertility reasons, or you want to try and boost your bodyโs own production, we suggest speaking with your doctor about giving enclomiphene therapy a try.
Just know that it may not be quite as effective as true TRT, and if your issues are in the testes themselves, enclomiphene isnโt going to help you.
To learn more, check out our complete guide to enclomiphene.
๐ Peptide Spotlight: Liraglutide
For this edition of peptide spotlight, letโs take a closer look at Liraglutide, another popular weight loss peptide thatโs recently hit the market.
Liraglutide is FDA-approved to manage blood sugar in patients with type 2 diabetes, but just like other GLP-1 peptides, it has powerful impacts on weight loss.
Weโre not going to cover how GLP-1s work in this email, as weโve done so in the past. If youโre curious to really dig deep into Liraglutide, be sure to check out this comprehensive Liraglutide guide that was recently written by our head coach and resident peptide expert, Daniel Louwrens.
Similar to other GLP-1s like semaglutide and retatrutide, liraglutide primarily works by improving your bodyโs insulin response and minimizing hunger, while slowing gastric emptying.
By significantly decreasing your appetite, GLP-1s make fat loss significantly easier, and generally come with several other beneficial impacts, as it may offer neuroprotection, and both improve insulin sensitivity and cardiovascular health.
Now the important question โ is Liraglutide better than the other weight loss peptides on the market?
No. In fact, studies have shown that semaglutide resulted in better weight loss results than liraglutide.
However, pharmaceutical GLP-1s continue to be in high demand with soaring prices, so if youโre looking to use a weight loss peptide and canโt get your hands on any of the other options, this is still a very powerful peptide that can assist with weight loss.
๐งฌ Research Spotlight: Ultra-processed Foods Linked to Dozens of Negative Health Outcomes
In a brand-new study that was just published in The BMJ, researchers examined the impact of consuming ultra-processed foods on various health outcomes by looking at the results of over 45 meta-analyses, which provided data on a total of over 10 million participants.
UItra-processed foods are packaged foods that are usually completely altered from their original state. Cereal, crackers, hot dogs, candy, ramenโฆ all those snacks many of us grew up on.
According to the study, โDirect associations were found between exposure to ultra-processed foods and 32 (71%) health parameters spanning mortality, cancer, and mental, respiratory, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, and metabolic health outcomes.โ
Of particular importance, the researchers linked regular consumption of ultra-processed foods with a 50% increased risk of death related to cardiovascular diseases, a 12% higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes, and a 53% higher risk of developing anxiety and depression.
Not to mention, processed foods are generally very high in calories and engineered to taste very good, which can make maintaining a healthy bodyweight quite challenging.
The research is abundantly clear. We should avoid ultra-processed foods as much as possible.
Now, does this mean you can never enjoy dessert again, or your favorite childhood snacks? Of course not.
But these foods should always be consumed in moderation.
If youโre eating lean proteins, fruits, vegetables, and whole grains 90% of the time, youโre probably fine.
On the other hand, if you canโt remember the last time you ate a vegetable or most of your food is coming from boxes on a shelf, we strongly suggest correcting your diet and moving away from processed food consumption.
Save processed food for a treat, not your daily food intake.
๐ค Peter Attia and Derek from More Plates, More Dates
If youโre a fan of podcasts, we highly recommend checking out the recent conversation between Peter Attia and Derek, owner of the popular YouTube channel More Plates, More Dates, and owner of Marek Health.
For those who donโt know Derek, while he isnโt a physician, heโs widely considered to be an expert on all things peptides, hormones, and health optimization. Heโs appeared on Peterโs podcast, The Drive in the past, and Peter invited him back for more.
Many of you probably know Peter Attia, the author of the legendary book Outlive, but if you donโt, heโs a physician whoโs become known for his focus on anti-aging and longevity.
You may not agree with everything said in this podcast, but itโs a fascinating discussion between two of the more influential people in the health space. Although, fair warningโthe podcast is nearly three hours in length.
Peter and Derek spend nearly three hours discussing a variety of topics, including:
The impact of testosterone and DHT
TRT in women
Why TRT is so popular in younger men, and the dangers of using underground labs to source your testosterone
How popular compounds like Clomid, enclomiphene, and HCG interact with TRT protocols
Gene therapy and myostatin inhibition for muscle loss
Derekโs best fat loss tips
And much more.
This is a long one, but itโs worth a listen, either on YouTube, or in your favorite podcast app. Look for Episode 291, โRole of testosterone in men & women, performance-enhancing drugs, sustainable fat loss, & more.โ
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Youโll be able to ask your questions, get feedback from our head coach, Daniel Louwrens, and interact with other members of the Muscle and Brawn community.
-The Morning Dose
PS – Have questions or suggestions? Hit reply and let us know what you think.
Disclaimer: This content is NOT medical advice. The information included in these emails is intended for entertainment and informational purposes only.
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