You can listen to the audio of this article on SoundCloud here…

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What this article entails:

• 800+ word article
• Discussion on its’ ingredients: 1) seaweed, 2) rice, 3) fish, 4) ginger, 5) wasabi, 6) avocado and how it affects your androgens

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I will have to say that sushi is one of the most delicious treats for me to eat…

And I can almost guarantee that after reading all the health benefits it has to offer, you’ll want to go and get some sushi right away.

So let’s get started on all these delicious benefits it has to offer…

Seaweed

Seaweed (it’s usually nori used in sushi) is by far the best source of iodine, as well as other rare minerals, 44+, that are not found in foods today, as the soil contains little to none of those nutrients.

Iodine is an antioxidant, antimutagenic and has an anticoagulant effect as well as anti-tumor properties.

A lot of people have a iodine deficiency which then causes hypothyroid. Which is an under secretion of thyroid hormones. Ingesting iodine, with other nutrients at are essential for thyroid hormone production and function such as vitamin E, tyrosine, selenium, etc are the best way to get your thyroid healthy again.

Iodine increases thyroid activity which causes the thyroid to release normal levels of thyroid hormones.

Thyroid hormones:

• increase basal metabolic rate (help burn fat)
• increase protein synthesis (help build muscle faster)
• work in synergy with growth hormone
• increase the body’s sensitivity to catecholamines, such as adrenaline (assists intermittent fasting with weight loss)

But, that’s not all. T3 (the active thyroid hormone) boosts testosterone in three unique ways.

Firstly

T3 synthesizes testosterone in the Leydig cells of the testes, which increase testosterone production. (1)

Secondly

T3 inhibits the aromatase effect. Meaning less testosterone gets irreversibly converted to estrogen. Resulting in more free T. (2)

Thirdly

T3 up regulates androgen receptors… more receptors for testosterone to bind to. (3)

Iodine deficiency leads to hypothyroid which leads to significant increase in estrogen formation and low testosterone, as well as DHT. More on inhibiting the aromatase here and boosting DHT here.

Not everyone can eat sushi everyday, including me, so other great sources of iodine are kelp, dulse, raw and organic milk and yogurt, shellfish and eggs.

Rice

Rice is a good carbohydrate source

1. Lipogenesis (synthesis of fPatty acids) is induced by eating glucose (rice is broken down into glucose) and lowers SHBG (sex hormone binding globulin), resulting in more free testosterone. (4) More on increasing your free testosterone here…
2. Eating a diet high in carbohydrates will protect your testosterone. This one study shows that two groups over trained for 3 days. One group’s diet consisted of 60% carbohydrates. And the others’ 30% carbs. The 30% carb group had a 48% reduction in testosterone, whereas the 60% group only had a 3% reduction. (5)
3. Replenish your liver and muscle glycogen stores.
4. Provides mental and physical energy.
5. Glucose increases insulin which lowers cortisol and also slows down muscle catabolism. More on lowering cortisol here…

Fish

Most sushi usually contain salmon, tuna or shell fish meat.

Meat from sea sources, especially Salmon, is rich in omega 3, vitamin D and good quality  protein, which your body can use to build good quality muscle. Plus, the meat is usually raw, which makes it extremely easy for your body to break down and absorb.

Vitamin D is a steroid vitamin and powerfully boosts testosterone, blocks the aromatase, inhibit SHBG, increase DHT, increase muscle protein synthesis, etc… More on vitamin D here…

Ginger

Ginger is a powerful anti oxidant, and it also has anti inflammatory properties. It is often used in supplements to reduce joint pain, swelling, promote blood flow, prevent nausea, etc…

It also increases your testosterone levels and protects it from oxidative stress. (6, 7, 8)

Wasabi

Wasabi is a cruciferous vegetable. Cruciferous vegetables have a compound called  indole-3-carbinol (I3C) which is metabolized to 3,3′-Diindolylmethane (DIM).

DIM disrupts the metabolism pathways of estrogen and lowers the effect of estrogen in the body. (9) I don’t advise supplementing with IC3 or DIM as it also potent anti-androgens. However the small amount you are going to use with your sushi once in a while won’t make a difference. Also, most restaurants don’t even use real wasabi, but a mixture of mustard, radish, colorants and flavorants. So you get rather just make your own wasabi and take it with to the restaurant and prevent the toxins.

My favorite thing about wasabi is that it produces vapors which stimulate the nasal passages when eaten, resulting in, what I and my wife like to call, a wasabi bomb. It’s a nice burning sensation in your nose that makes your eyes tear up. The feeling gets quite addictive, I must add.

Wasabi is also a powerful anti oxidant, which helps the body get rid of free radicals.

Avocado

Avocado is rich in fatty acids, such as monounsaturated fatty acids, which are very needed for testosterone production.

The free fatty acids in avocados inhibit proteins (albumin and SHBG) to bind to free testosterone and DHT. (10) Otherwise these proteins would bind to testosterone and DHT, making them inactive (more or less useless).

More fats –> more testosterone

Avocados are high in monounsaturated fat. People who follow a diet high in saturated (SFAs), and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), but low in monounsaturated fats (MUFAs) have lower testosterone than people who eat a diet high in SFAs and MUFAs. (11) The PUFAs are potent anti-androgenic. More of fats and androgens here…

Conclusion

Now you can go and get some sushi.

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