There has been some news recently that estrogen in chicken and beef may be contributing to hormone-dependent cancers. This is from a study in the US. The study was presented in early June at the American Society of Clinical Oncology annual meeting in Chicago. It showed that U.S. chicken and beef contain relatively high levels of estrogen.
Can you have too much estrogen in your system?
Estrogen dominance occurs when estrogen is found in excessive concentrations and compromises the delicate balance of other hormones. In women this can lead to hormonal problems, ovary troubles and tender breasts. The article does not go into symptoms for males.
According to the article, these are all estrogenic foods
- Soy
- Commercially raised meat
- Conventional produce
- Plastic wrapped and canned foods
- Caffeine
So, as you can see from that list – estrogen is very difficult to avoid.
Does excessive estrogen consumption cause “Man Boobs”
That’s what we call them in Australia. Another affectionate term is “Moobs”. I don’t know anyone who has them, but I see my fair share on the beach and under too-thin shirts on public transport. There is a bit of a theory here in Australia that eating too much chicken causes man boobs.
To quote a reputable source:
“…he informed me that he avoided eating commercially produced chicken because he had done some research, and found that chicken meat caused manboobs. “It’s the hormones see,” he reliably informed me. Now I can guarantee you that if you are an Australian, you have spoken to someone who believes commercially produced chickens in Australia contain growth hormones and that that is the reason why some girls are reaching puberty earlier or are the cause of manboobs or some such thing.”
This awesome blog post is from a “research scientist who has worked in the fields of freshwater ecology, biological conservation, behavioural ecology, invasive species management and plant pathology” named Mike, but who does not want to reveal his last name. I should mention here that Mike does not agree. He points out that in Australia, commercial chickens are no longer fed hormones. The quote is from his mechanic who is not a scientist, but his attitude seems to reflect an Old Wives’ Tale touted by many Aussies. But not just Australians think this way…
Soy makes your boobs grow too
Now I have not experienced this personally (thank god because I have already blogged about how my big boobs are not as fun as you think) but there have been reports in Hollywood of actresses eating soy products to gain weight.
Actress Jessica Chastain (who is vegan, incidentally) said that she ate lots and lots of soy ice cream to play Marilyn Monroe in the movie The Help.
She says, “I had to be soft and curvy, so I ate a lot of soy. Soy helps you become curvy because it has oestrogen in it. So what I would do—and this is really gross—is buy cartons of soy ice scream, microwave it and drink it. It was disgusting, but wait until you see my boobs in the movie.”
I have not seen the movie, so I cannot vouch for her boobs.
Alyce Vayle Author 