5 Measures to Prevent Gynecomastia

Gynecomastia, or man boobs, is a condition that is actually quite common, and something that is often suffered in silence. It is when a man develops female-like breasts, which is brought about by a variety of causes. This can be a highly distressing issue as it puts a dent on ones' masculinity. This is reflected on the increasing number of breast reduction or gynecomastia surgery requests. According to the 2013 Plastic Surgery Statistics Report of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, there was an 11% increase fom 2012 to 2013.  

If you are anxious about your man boobs, and may not have the means for radical treatment just yet, there are measures that can actually help you prevent it.

1. Check your medications and consult with your doctor.

As much as a drug contains beneficial action, they also pose a number of side effeects, and for some, it can result in gynecomastia. In fact, drug-induced gynecomastia accounts for 20% of all the cases in the UK.

If ever you notice your breast changing with continued use of a certain drug, inform your doctor immediately. Take note, however, that you should not stop your medication on your own, especially if it is prescribed. It doesn't mean that you should no longer be taking such medications, but when you discuss it with your doctor, he can advise you on a treatment plan that would not make you vulnerable to gynecomastia.

This type of medications creates estrogen-like effects, hence the enlargment of the breast tissue. Here are is a list of medications whose side effects include gynecomastia:

• Antipsychotics
• Tricyclic Antidepressants
• Gonadotrophins
• Cimetidine
• Amiodarone
• Digoxin
• Finasteride
• Flutamide
• Isoniazid
• Methyldopa
• Metronidazole
• Alkylating agents

2. Avoid recreational drugs

Recreational drugs, like marijuana, can also put you at risk for developing gynecomastia. It can alter your hormone levels and eventually tip the balance in favour of estrogen. Aside from all other serious consequences related to these drugs, you can start with gynecomastia as a way to convince yourself to stop using it. Gynecomastia will simply recede once you stop taking these drugs.

3. Regular testicular self exam

You might probably wondering why you ought to be checking what is down there, when the problem is on your chest. But, did you know that one of the reasons for gynecomastia is the presence of tumors?

So the best thing to do is to regularly perform a testicular self exam. Here is how you can do this:

• First of all, it is ideal to do this during or after a shower because this is when the scrotal skin is warm and relaxed. Also, make sure that you are standing when performing the exam.
• Second is to gently hold your scrotal sac to locate a testicle.
• Once you do, hold a testicle with one hand while you gently roll your fingers of your other hand over the surface of the testicle. Try to feel for any lumps or assess any changes to your testicle.
• Repeat this procedure with the other testicle.
  
  
  
  
  

Normally, your testicles should feel firm, but not hard. It is also common that one testicle is positioned lower than the other.

Medical experts, however, do not recommend doing regular testicular self-exams if you do not belong to the high-risk group. This means that you do not have any familial predisposition for testicular tumors, you do not have any past experience with it, or an undescended testicle.

4. Exercise

In some cases, the presence of fat in the chest area worsens gynecomastia, but the problem here is that even spot exercises may not do enough to help. According to an article at askmen.com, you cannot choose the areas where your body is going to lose fat, so you just have to lower it overall.

Cardio and strength training exercises are advised, along with a proper diet. Creating a caloric deficit is  also emphasized to further promote weight loss. This means that you either increase the number of calories you burn with exercise or reduce it by changing your diet. But, you can have better results when you do both.

5. Get pre-existing conditions checked

Gynecomastia is also associated with a number of conditions, such as hyperthyroidism or chronic liver disease. Medical assessment may also be done to rule out other conditions which may be mistaken for gynecomastia, such as, dermoid cyst, sebaceous cyst, mastitis, breast cancer, pseudogynecomastia, lipoma, hematoma, fat necrosis or ductal ectasia.

If you are suffering from a condition that could also lead to gynecomastia, discuss these concerns with your doctor so that he can create a treatment plan that will spare you from it. The goal here would be to treat the pre-existing condition first so that it does not result in gynecomastia.

If your gynecomastia is not relenting to all other treatments, get a consult with Esteem Cosmetic Studio today for surgical intervention. We assure a safe and reliable treatment with our highly experienced board certified surgeons.

Is Tamoxifen an Effective Treatment for Gynecomastia?

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Tamoxifen appears safe and effective in men with painful idiopathic or physiological gynaecomastia and should be considered as an initial option before contemplating surgery, a medical research revealed.

Gynecomastia affects a lot of males in the US alone, although not many come out to share their concerns, leading most of those who have it to suffer in silence. Another thing is that it doesn’t choose any age for it to strike. It can affect infants to men in their old age.

The problem with gynecomastia is that it can be triggered by a number of factors. This includes hormone, obesity, medications, drugs, aging, tumors, hyperthyroidism, and hypogonadism.  Because of the variety of causes the treatment should also be customized for each unique case.

Treatment options include medications, hormone therapy, lifestyle changes and even surgery. But one treatment in particular that we should focus on is tamoxifen.

This particular treatment acts on the hormonal changes that occur on the inside that triggers gynecomastia. The main used of this product is for the treatment of breast cancer, and research found that this is also an appropriate drug to treat gynecomastia.

Tamoxifen treats cancer by blocking strong estrogenic effects in the system which actually encourages the tumor to grow and thrive. With gynecomastia, the ratio of testosterone and estrogen falls out of balance, with the latter increasing in amounts. That is why tamoxifen can be considered a good treatment for this condition because it blocks the increased amounts of oxygen.

Tamoxifen is especially helpful when it comes to treating pubertal gynecomastia. If the condition does not resolve easily, this drug can be given also to relieve the emotional distress that it also causes.

Men who are also into taking anabolic steroids to look buff or improve performance also put their bodies at risk in developing gynecomastia. It can be expected that after a cycle of steroids, there is a good chance that the breast can increase in size. But treatment with tamoxifen gynecomastia can be prevented in the initial stages.

In another situation where men who are also afflicted with prostate cancer take anti-androgen therapy, they may be at a heightened the risk for gynecomastia due to the resulting increase of estrogen in the system.

There are also other instances where the cause for gynecomastia cannot be determined, or what is called idiopathic. For this particular reason, a tamoxifen treatment could be very important especially if the condition is going on for months without any signs of relief.

But it is also important that proper treatment is done so that the drug can reach its desired effect. This means that there should be a right time for the treatment, and it should be done before the breast tissue enlarges for a long period of time. Otherwise, it wouldn’t do enough to create significant relief.

So if you suspect that you may have gynecomastia, immediately consult a doctor so that prompt treatment can be given. In this way you can also save yourself the stress and embarrassment that is associated with the condition. 

Source and Citation 

Hanavadi, S., et.al., (2006). The role of tamoxifen in the management of gynaecomastia. Abstract Retrieved from Science Direct.