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February 26, 2024 15 mins

In this episode, join Nelson Vergel, founder of ExcelMale.com and DiscountedLabs.com, who shares insights into a hot topic under discussion - the use of HCG in men. Adding weight to the discussion is Alison Woodworth, who possesses vast knowledge on the subject.

The discussion revolves around the usage, composition, and benefits of HCG, or human chorionic gonadotropin, related to fertility and testosterone levels in men. Woodworth elaborates on how it can be crucial in testosterone replacement therapy due to its potential to stimulate natural production while minimizing the effect on fertility.

You’ll also hear about the different studies on the use of HCG, indicating that well-established research supports its usage. However, Woodworth explains that many medical providers are still unfamiliar with this knowledge and may fail to share this information with their patients. She highlights that the lack of HCG prescriptions covered by insurance has led to the cost burden falling on the patients themselves.

Having addressed the approach of using HCG alone in testosterone therapy, Woodworth turns to the best protocols for its use. She discusses the most effective dosages, the methods of administration, side effects, and the reasons why it is typically not administered on its own.

The episode concludes with advice to those finding it hard to locate medical providers educated on the use of HCG. It offers resources and networks that can help such individuals advance in managing their testosterone levels.

Awareness about HCG is still limited despite the prolific research and practical applications. Tune into this discussion for a detailed understanding of the benefits of HCG for men.

For more information: What Every Man Should Know About hCG

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Transcript

Episode Transcript

Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Music.

(00:08):
Hi, everybody. Nelson Vergel here, founder of ExcelMail.com and DiscountedLabs.com.
We're very excited today. We're going to be covering a very hot topic, the use of HCG in men.
And we have a really good expert on this subject, Alison Woodworth.
She is the clinical director of PrimeBody.com.
It's a national network of clinics around the United States.

(00:29):
So thank you so much, Alison, for joining us today.
You're welcome. Thank you for having me, Nelson. Great. So we're going to go
right into it. Many of the guys here have many questions on HCG,
but let's start with the most basic one. What is HCG?
Right. Well, HCG stands for human chorionic gonadotropin, not to be confused
with human growth hormone, or HGH.

(00:50):
Now, this is a glycoprotein hormone that mimics luteinizing hormone in the body, or LH.
Now, in women, LH triggers ovulation, and in men, it stimulates the testes to
produce testosterone. testosterone.
So this hormone can be prescribed for various reasons, including for women or men with infertility.
It can be used for weight loss in combination with a special diet.

(01:13):
I'm sure most of us have heard of the HCG diet by now.
It can also be used in young boys when their testes have failed to descend normally into the scrotum.
And today we'll specifically be discussing HCG's use in men on testosterone
replacement therapy in order to stimulate the body's natural production of both
testosterone and sperm.

(01:34):
So why is it important to use HCG along with testosterone replacement therapy?
That's a great question. So when testosterone is replaced in the body in any
form, whether it be topical or injectable, the body actually senses that no
additional testosterone is needed.
So what happens is the body shuts down the hormone cascade via what we call

(01:55):
a negative feedback loop.
So the gonadotrophins LH and FSH become suppressed. Now, in the body,
LH and FSH stimulate the body's natural production of both testosterone and sperm.
So when they become suppressed, the testicles' production of testosterone and
sperm decreases, and this is actually what leads to testicular atrophy or a

(02:19):
decrease or shrinkage of the testicles when men are on testosterone replacement.
In addition, the suppression of FSH in particular, and also LH,
will decrease the body's production of sperm.
And in fact, up to 40% of men on testosterone replacement therapy will have

(02:40):
impaired spermatogenesis, which is just the production of sperm,
leading to no viable sperm.
And that's in 40% of men on therapy. So that's significant.
Yeah, almost half. half so hcg actually
mimics luteinizing hormone in the body so it will stimulate the testicles to
produce testosterone so we want to give it in combination with testosterone

(03:02):
therapy so that we don't inhibit or decrease the body's production if anything
we want to maintain it and stimulate it to produce a little bit more naturally.
And in giving HCG, it will also maintain the body's production of sperm,
which preserves fertility in men.
So it's very important for patients to be aware of that fact that if they're

(03:22):
on testosterone, up to 40% of them will have no viable sperm.
And so they really should be thinking about HCG use.
And it is amazing that many patients don't know about this, and doctors actually, about HCG.
And the ones that do hear about it think it's just, you know,
a treatment without any research data.
Do we have actually studies on the use of HCG to prevent and reverse testicular

(03:45):
atrophy and improve fertility in men using testosterone?
Right. That's a great question. And what you said is absolutely true.
A lot of providers really aren't aware of using HCG in combination with testosterone
replacement therapy, and they're not even really oftentimes aware of the research that supports it.
So there are several studies that support its use. The first one that I want

(04:08):
to mention was done in 2005.
So that's over 10 years ago now.
And this study was published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism.
So this is a very reputable journal.
And the study looked at the use of a low-dose HCG every other day in combination
with testosterone replacement therapy.

(04:28):
And what they found was that giving HCG actually increased intratesticular testosterone.
Which which is the testosterone that's present inside of the testicles,
to levels higher even than baseline, which was pretty significant.
That was amazing to see that.
A more recent study done by Lipschultz in 2013 also looked at HCG in low doses

(04:50):
every other day in combination with testosterone, either in the form of a topical gel or an injectable.
And they found that giving HCG actually was able to preserve normal semen and sperm parameters.
So this study was very interesting because we traditionally think of FSH as

(05:11):
the gonadotropin that's solely responsible for stimulating sperm production.
But using this protocol with just HCG in combination with testosterone,
men actually were able to preserve their normal semen and sperm parameters.
So that That was really interesting study to see. And that was done pretty recently, just a few years ago now.
Yeah, it's a very good study. And it actually is kind of sad that some men that

(05:35):
want to have kids, you know, are told that they cannot use testosterone or that
they have to get off testosterone if they want to have, you know,
their wife's pregnancy.
So it's really a sad thing that most men out there and doctors don't know about it.
But, and it is a prescription product, right? So how is it made?
Yeah, good question. So like you mentioned, HCG is only available by prescription,

(05:58):
and it can be supplied by traditional pharmacies such as Walgreens or CVS under
brand names like Novarol.
Also, compounding pharmacies are able to manufacture the product in different
vial sizes based on a specific physician order.
And HCG is actually made through either genetic modification or it can be extracted

(06:19):
through pregnant women's urine.
So that's how it's actually made and then applied by the pharmacy that the provider
and the patient choose to use.
One important thing to mention is that prescriptions for HCG are not typically covered by insurance.
They usually don't want to reimburse for it because they consider its use in
men who are on testosterone and want to preserve their testicular functioning

(06:43):
and size and preserve their fertility.
They consider its use off-label still. still.
So off-label basically means that a medication is being prescribed for something
other than its official FDA-approved indication.
So even though, as I mentioned, there are numerous studies supporting its use
in men and it's gaining acceptance by a growing body of medical professionals

(07:09):
and providers, it's still usually not reimbursed by insurance companies. So.
Purchasing the vial through a compounding pharmacy is usually about half the
cost of getting the name brand at a traditional pharmacy.
So that's the route that most patients go, considering that it's not going to
typically be reimbursed by insurance.
Well, thanks for that. How is it administered? Is it injected?

(07:32):
Yep. So it is given in injectable form, and it can either be given subcutaneously,
which is into the layer of fat between the skin and the muscle,
or actually actually intramuscularly into the muscle.
And there is a little bit of debate on which method is actually the best,
but the typical protocol is to inject the HCG subcutaneously with a very fine

(07:55):
insulin syringe. And the needle is very tiny.
We instruct patients to give it in their abdominal area. So it's usually about
two inches away from the belly button.
We teach them to pinch a little bit of the skin and inject right into that area with this tiny needle.
So most patients, even Even those who are a little bit afraid of needles or
the sound of an injection makes them nervous, they're able to successfully take

(08:17):
these injections with very little, if any, pain.
Now, the compounding pharmacies, once the order is called in,
they typically will provide the patient with everything needed to self-inject.
So that would be the vial of HCG. It typically comes in dry powder form,
so the patient actually has to mix it with bacteriostatic water. water.
It usually contains a mixing kit, alcohol wipes, insulin syringes.

(08:40):
So you do need, I would say, a little bit of more than just the vial of HCG
to successfully inject it.
So I would recommend that patients just call their compounding pharmacy or check
with their physician or provider to make sure that all the supplies they need
are sent with their shipment or when they pick it up, it's ready for them to use.
Right. And what are the doses most commonly used? Well, at the moment,

(09:03):
there's no official dosage recommendation for men on testosterone replacement therapy.
But just reviewing the literature and looking at what most physicians and providers
are prescribing their patients, I would say anywhere from 200 to 500 international
units two to three times a week is the standard protocol.

(09:23):
I have seen and, you know, read of providers using up to 1,000 to 5,000 international
units of HCG twice a week.
And with such high doses, there is concern that potentially the latex cells
in the testes would become desensitized or less responsive to HCG over time

(09:44):
if we're using such high doses.
And also, there can be increased conversion or spikes in estradiol and DHT.
So when we give testosterone, the body can convert a portion over to estrogen or to DHT.
So with high doses of HCG, you can see increased levels of those byproducts of testosterone.
And if they go too high, it can cause some side effects.

(10:06):
So it can be used by itself, but it's not a very smart thing to do,
right? That's what you're saying. Yeah, well, it can be used by itself.
And I actually get that question by a lot of men. They say, hey.
You know, my testosterone level is low, but can we just use HCG to just stimulate
my body to produce testosterone naturally on its own? And that's a really good question.

(10:30):
But typically, I don't recommend that to my patients.
And most providers in this field really don't recommend that approach for several reasons.
The first would be using such high doses of HCG to stimulate the body's production
of testosterone would cost quite a lot. You would need really high doses to
do that without testosterone.
Second would be, and this is just based on, I would say, mostly my personal

(10:55):
experience working with patients and also other providers in the field.
We found if we just give HCG alone, patients oftentimes don't see as many of
the subjective benefits of therapy compared to testosterone delivery systems.
In terms of sex drive, well-being, response to therapy, they just don't seem
to have as many of those subjective benefits.

(11:17):
Another reason, like I mentioned previously, is with high doses of HCG,
the testes could become desensitized to it over time and may not be as responsive.
So maybe temporarily it would work pretty well, but then over time,
the levels would really probably drop back down a little bit.
The body became less responsive. And then the last point, which I also mentioned

(11:39):
previously, with higher doses of HCG could cause higher levels of estradiol and DHT.
So most providers, including myself, would recommend to patients,
okay, if you're clinically deficient, you're low in testosterone,
and, you know, we really want to give you the full benefit of therapy,
I would recommend HCG in order to maintain and stimulate the body's natural

(12:00):
production of testosterone a a little bit, and then give testosterone on top
of that to get the patient to an optimal level of testosterone so they can see all the benefits.
Why withhold that from them? And also just try to give HCG almost fighting this
losing battle over time.
So that's what I personally recommend, and most providers in this field would
most likely agree with that. Good. There's a lot of frustration.

(12:23):
I mean, in my site on Excel Mail, there are over 12,000 guys there.
And a lot of them, the new ones, are coming every day. I have many coming.
They're are very frustrated because they cannot get their doctor to prescribe HCG.
How does somebody find a doctor, a provider that is educated on the use of HCG,
man? Right. That's another great question.
And I hear that from new patients all the time that, you know,

(12:46):
I would say patients in general are more educated nowadays with sites like Excel
Mail, like you mentioned, watching, you know, videos, webinars like this.
They really come to the point where they're educating themselves,
themselves coming in telling their physician or provider, I've read about HCG.
I really don't want to experience testicular atrophy on my testosterone.

(13:06):
I might want to have children at some point in the future. What about prescribing
it for me? And oftentimes the physician's answer will flat out be,
no, I don't prescribe it.
Often because they're just not familiar with it. They haven't read the studies to support it.
And also it still is considered off-label. So it's understandable some of them
maybe just don't have the experience with it yet, but that can be be frustrating for a patient.

(13:27):
So I would recommend if someone's looking for a provider, they can always call
their local compounding pharmacy and just say, you know, I'm on testosterone.
I'm wondering which providers in the area locally are you seeing right prescriptions
for testosterone in combination with HCG?
So that could be a really good way to find someone.
Or on websites like mine. Or on Excel Mail, yes.

(13:50):
Yeah, that's a great site. And I personally learned a lot from that site.
It's great. There's so much literature on there.
The discussion boards and the forums just have very, I would say,
engaging and interesting conversations.
So I would definitely recommend checking it out. Thank you. You know,
I also have a Facebook group with 5,800 guys called testosterone replacement discussion.

(14:11):
So, you know, we get guys, frustrated guys from all over the world just posting
daily about their lack of access for HCGM.
Many help them because, you know, obviously there's a network of people already
obtaining it through their doctors. So this was really great information.
I really appreciate the time that you took to explain this very hot topic.

(14:32):
And hopefully we'll have a few more of this in the future. And thank you so
much for all of you out there that are watching this video.
And as I said, xlmail.com, you can come and visit and register with us.
Or check primebody.com is a network of national clinics that may provide some
of these products by prescription to you.
So thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you, Alison.
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