Association between lipid profile and circulating concentrations of estrogens in young men

Abstract Objectives Men show higher rates of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality than pre-menopausal women and this sexual dimorphism may be related to sex-specific effects of sex steroids on cardiovascular risk factors. Unlike androgens, estrogens were not extensively investigated in relation to cardiovascular phenotypes in men. Methods We examined associations of estradiol and estrone and their precursors (total testosterone and androstenedione) with traditional cardiovascular risk factors (lipids, blood pressure, body mass) in 933 young (median age: 19 years), apparently healthy Polish men. Results Total estradiol was associated with total cholesterol ( p = 0.006) and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) ( p < 0.001) and estrone showed the strongest associations with both total cholesterol ( p < 0.001) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) ( p < 0.001) in the unadjusted ANOVA analysis. In the multivariable adjusted models in which other independent variables were held as constant one standard deviation increase in estradiol level was associated with 6%-standard deviation increase in total cholesterol (standardized β = 0.06, p = 0.038) and 6%-standard deviation decrease in HDL-cholesterol (standardized β = −0.06, p = 0.036). An increase in estrone levels by one standard deviation was associated with respective 12%- and 13%-standard deviation increases in total cholesterol (standardized β = 0.12, p < 0.001) and LDL-cholesterol levels (standardized β = 0.12, p < 0.001) after controlling for other predictors of lipids. Estrone correlated linearly with androstenedione ( r = 0.28, p < 0.001) but there was no correlation between estradiol and testosterone. Estrogens retained their independent associations with lipids after adjustment for their biochemical precursors in the multivariable analysis. Conclusions Increased levels of estrogens are associated with unfavourable lipid profile in men and this association is present early in life, before apparent manifestations of cardiovascular disease.