I went back through reviews and found others who experienced the same or similar. I know a lot of people did really well on them and love them, but just be aware that this is a possible side effect. And it’s a scary one. I would 100% talk with your medical provider before starting them. My doctor practices functional medicine and is very aware of supplements like this. He told me they can deplete your body of DHEA and cause widespread pain.
Best DIM Supplements Buying Guide
DIM is short for diindolylmethane, a phytochemical made in our bodies from indole-3-carbinol found in cruciferous vegetables like bok, cauliflower, cabbage, Choy, broccoli, collards, arugula, watercress, radishes, and Brussel sprouts. It acts to mediate the functions of estrogen by improving your body’s estrogen metabolism, increasing the concentrations of the helpful estrogens, and reducing the concentration of the harmful ones. Although you can get DIM from the aforementioned natural sources, we are not likely to get what we need from these sources. Let’s face it, as healthy as vegetables are, health benefits and all that, they’re not the tastiest. That’s why nutritional supplements like DIM supplements are becoming increasingly popular. They are an easy and accessible way to fulfill your body’s DIM requirements without having to force all those veggies down your throat.
DIM Supplements: What Are The Benefits?
Before we discuss the benefits, we’ll first discuss how DIM exerts its effects. DIM stimulates the production of 2-hydroxyestrogen, a less potent and beneficial form of estrogen. It also suppresses the activity of 16 alpha-hydroxyestrone, a more potent form of estrogen that has been linked to weight gain and increases the risk of developing certain cancers like uterine and breast cancers. Also, DIM inhibits aromatase, an enzyme that converts testosterone to estrogen.
Now to the benefits, these include:
Studies have shown that DIM can help prevent the growth and spread of breast cancer cells. They may also protect against cervical, colon, ovarian, and prostate cancers.
- DIM has been shown to protect against prostatic enlargement and prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia (PIN) (a premalignant condition) in men
- It has been shown to reduce fat accumulation and boost weight loss
- DIM supplements can help fight hormonal acne
- They can reduce hot flashes in postmenopausal women
- They can reduce PMS symptoms in women
- They can help correct estrogen imbalance in men, reducing the risk of excess breast growth, erectile dysfunction, and infertility associated with estrogen imbalance
What Are The Possible Side Effects of Using DIM Supplements?
According to the current data from studies conducted on the effects of DIM supplements in humans, DIM is safe to use and has not been linked to any severe side effects. However, some mild side effects have been noted. The most common side effects are: an alteration in urine color, increased bowel movement, headaches, and gas. Other less commonly seen side effects include nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, and skin rashes.
However, you should note that even though DIM supplements are mostly safe, you should not start using them or any other supplement without first seeking advice from your doctor. Particular care should be taken with people on other medications, pregnant women, and nursing mothers.
How Do I Decide What DIM Supplements To Get?
Since the potential benefits of using DIM supplements became apparent, there has been a boom in the number of options available to users like yourself. As a result of this, customers now have a wealth of options to choose from when shopping for these supplements. While this freedom to choose is a good thing, it presents a problem. How do we decide what brands are best for us? Well, this section answers that.
Ingredients
The most important consideration when choosing DIM supplements, or any other supplements, is the ingredients the supplement contains. This is especially important for vegetarians and people with allergies. The best brands on the market today are gluten-free, soy-free, dairy-free, vegan, non-GMO, and do not contain any artificial flavorings. For people with allergies, you should look through the list of ingredients provided by the manufacturer before choosing.
Customer and Expert Reviews
Customer and expert reviews are one of the most objective ways of determining the efficacy and most problems/common side effects of any product. Expert reviews, such as this one, typically involve meticulous research into the subject, taking into account tons of factors. And as for customer reviews, they are a practical way of determining the effectiveness and possible downsides to anything as they reflect the experiences of real people, such as yourself. You should be careful with these, though. User experience varies from person to person, so your experience may or may not tally with the general experience. To get a better picture, look at as many experts and user reviews as possible to get as detailed a picture as possible.
You should note that the opinions of these experts and users do not replace your doctor’s opinion. You should make sure to check with your doctor before starting on DIM or other supplements or any other medication. This applies especially if you have any allergies, are on any other medication, are pregnant, or are a nursing mother.
Ease of Absorption
The best brands put certain measures in place to facilitate absorption and consistent dosing. The most common of these is putting in BioPerine, a black pepper extract that has been proven to improve your body’s DIM absorption. Another method that is commonly used is the use of bioavailability delivery systems.
Convenience
How conveniently you can use a product is very central to your user experience. The major factors that influence ease of use are the number of capsules/tablets you are to use per day, how many times you’d have to take it, and the supplement’s taste. Check the manufacturer’s instructions for the recommended dosing. And more importantly, confirm with your healthcare provider.
Home » Weight Loss Supplement Reviews » What Are DIM Supplements and Are They Worth Taking?
DIM Supplement Benefits
DIM is most effective in helping maintain hormonal balance, especially between estrogen and testosterone in both men and women.
In general, DIM’s ability to prevent large increases or decreases in estrogen can help with a number of issues, including acne, menopause symptoms, weight gain and even cancer.
It may also work as a potent anti-inflammatory and antioxidant.
DIM’s ability to prevent both estrogen and testosterone excess may also lower your risk of acne caused from a hormonal imbalance.
Hormonal acne typically appears on the chin, cheeks or jawline and is often linked with the menstrual cycle (you will likely see it appear at the same time in your cycle).
Androgens, including testosterone, can be one of the main culprits when it comes to zits (4).
This is often the case during menopause, when estrogen levels drop and androgen hormones may rise.
While some people may find that a DIM supplement can help reduce hormonal acne, no specific studies have actually looked at the link between DIM and acne.
Estrogen Dominance and Menopause
Estrogen dominance (too much estrogen) can lead to PMS, weight gain, fibroids, endometriosis, mood swings, depression or anxiety (5, 6).
In men, it can cause enlarged breasts or infertility.
Some people use DIM as an estrogen blocker, but it doesn’t actually stop the production of estrogen. Instead, it blocks the aromatase enzyme that converts testosterone into estrogen.
Meanwhile, too little estrogen can also cause issues, which is often the case in menopause. DIM doesn’t increase or decrease the level of estrogen, but it does help the body better metabolize it.
Weight Loss
DIM’s balancing effect on estrogen can also help shed some unwanted pounds.
Too much or too little estrogen can cause the body to store more fat (7).
To make matters worse, both men and women produce estrogen in their fat tissues. So, the more fat you have, the more estrogen you make. Women typically hold this fat in their hips and thighs (8).
Along with balancing estrogen, DIM and its precursor, indole-3-carbinol (I3C), can also suppress adipogenesis, which is the process of producing new fat cells.
One study on mice tested I3C and its effect on weight. The mice injected with I3C showed a decrease in body weight and fat accumulation even when consuming a high-fat diet (9).
A more recent study on mice found even more promising results with the use of DIM. Mice on a high-fat diet showed a reduced risk of obesity and decreased fat tissue when injected with DIM (10).
While little has been studied on the direct impact between DIM and weight in humans, we do know that obesity is often linked with hormonal imbalances. Taking DIM could help prevent this.
Cancer
There’s some promising research around DIM and cancer, particularly in the breast and prostate.
One study on postmenopausal women with a history of early-stage breast cancer found that taking a DIM supplement for 30 days increased the metabolism of one of the “good” estrogens, 2-hydroxyestrone (2-OHE1) (11).
Another found that it inhibited the growth of breast cancer cells in mouse models (12).
DIM has also shown the ability to induce death and autophagy (cell cleansing) in human prostate cancer cells, and even help reduce tumor growth in vivo (13).
It also activates an enzyme called AMPK-activated protein kinase (AMPK), which helps induce apoptosis (cell death) in prostate cancer cells (14).
Other test-tube studies have found that DIM supplementation for 30 days showed anti-cancer activities in cancer cells related to prostate, breast, endometrial, colorectal, pancreatic and leukemia (15).
Another powerful way it works against cancer is via its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects.
Both I3C and DIM can inhibit a pathway linked to inflammation and reduce oxidative stress in the process (16, 17).
Keep in mind that all of these studies have only been done in the lab. There have been few clinical trials, and those have mostly shown little or no significant effect from DIM supplementation on women with a high risk of breast cancer (18).
Summary: DIM is most effective in helping maintain hormonal balance, especially between estrogen and testosterone. It may help reduce hormonal acne and menopause symptoms, and promote weight loss. There’s also promising research that shows DIM may be effective in treating certain cancers. However, most of these studies have only been performed on animals or in test tubes.
Some studies also suggest DIM helps with inflammation, general hormonal balance, sleep, stress management, and more.
The best sources of DIM are cruciferous vegetables and DIM supplements.
Add more DIM to your diet with broccoli, cauliflower, kale, and Brussels sprouts. Or, buy any of the top-ranked DIM supplements listed above.
If you aren’t getting enough cruciferous vegetables in your diet, then DIM supplements may help.
Cruciferous vegetables don’t technically contain DIM: they have a natural chemical called indole-3-carbinol that appears to be linked to DIM. As your body breaks down this natural chemical, it creates DIM, raising DIM levels in your body.
Black pepper in a supplement? That’s right. This version from Naturebell brings in the powerful properties of black pepper to improve overall absorption of the components to get the full effects. This supplement packs in 300 mg of DIM in each serving, so it’s important to keep in mind that this is considered to be an extra-strength option for those who need higher amounts of DIM.
Promote Good Hormonal Health with the Best DIM Supplements
If you’re struggling with hormone-related concerns or issues, taking DIM supplements may bring important benefits to get you back to feeling like yourself. They’ve been used for their relation to cancer-preventing properties, weight loss, acne-fighting, depression management, and preventing other hormone-related conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis.
Keep in mind that DIM and DIM supplements have limited research as to their effectiveness and overall influence on other areas of health.
If you’re considering taking DIM supplements to support your overall health and wellbeing, hormone balance, or cancer prevention be sure to connect with your doctor before starting anything. He or she can help you find the dosage that’s right for you and help to track your progress as you continue to improve your health.
Progesterone has a calming effect on the brain.
Why Might a DIM Supplement Be the Best Option?
If you’re wondering whether or not it would be better to get DIM from cruciferous vegetables, there is a reason that a supplement may actually be better. DIM is very insoluble and not well-absorbed unless it has a “vehicle” to make it more bioavailable. DIM supplements will typically be formulated with a delivery system.
These are one of the most exciting supplements currently available in many ways, but it’s not necessarily as mainstream as some other supplements.