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What is Gynecomastia?

The experts could have come up with a better name for it other than “man-boobs”. Gynecomastia affects 1 in 3 males all around the world. And if you’re part of the male population, you’re just as much at risk as any other guy on the planet. But what is Gynecomastia and why do some guys have it?

Definition

It’s known as the accumulation of subcutaneous adipose tissues in the chest area. In layman’s terms, it’s having a lot of fat in your chest.

These fatty tissues are a result of a problem with the male and female hormones in your body: testosterone and estrogen.  You already know that testosterone is the male hormone while estrogen is its female counterpart. Although we humans are classified according to sex, we have varying levels of both these hormones at any given time in our lives.

And when there is an imbalance in the level of these hormones, the body responds accordingly. When a man has less testosterone than estrogen, male Gynecomastia happens. The body tends to produce more fat to be stored in the chest, causing the area to swell, hence the boobs.

Be careful not to confuse Gynecomastia with being obese or overweight. Those are two different things. Gynecomastia is not a result of extra fat. It’s a result of the body creating more fatty breast tissue in the body of a male.

You might also hear doctors refer to the condition as bilateral Gynecomastia. This simply means that the body has enlarged both of the breasts in a man. And to answer that question you just thought of, yes. It is possible to have Gynecomastia in just one breast.

It mostly happens to young boys who are going through puberty. You will know that during this time, a teenager’s body goes through a lot of bodily changes. Some of these changes affect their hormonal levels.

It can also happen to older men. During the later years of their lives, men tend to produce less testosterone to counteract the amount of estrogen in their bodies. This is what causes the increase in their breast size as they grow old.

But no matter what age you get it, no man wants to sport a pair of breasts. But sometimes, you can’t just blame it on your hormones all the time.

Causes of Gynecomastia

In essence, Gynecomastia is a swelling of the breasts caused by excess breast tissue that the body keeps on making. And when it comes to telling the body what to do, our hormones are the best. But they’re not the only causes of man-boobs.

People with liver and kidney diseases can also have Gynecomastia as one of their complications. These organs play a very important role in regulating the things that we eat. And when they start to malfunction, the body might respond awkwardly by developing tissue and fat deposits in the chest area.

Interestingly, heavy drinkers and those who smoke weed are also at risk as these substances are also known to cause male breast enlargements. On top of a sedentary lifestyle, alcohol and marijuana have been linked to man-boobs.

If you’re on certain antibiotic medication or treatments for testicular cancer, you can also end up having man-boobs as a side effect of these treatments.

Gynecomastia Symptoms

During the onset of the condition, a typical male may begin to feel tenderness in their chest area. This can be accompanied by an increase in the size of their areola areas. In some severe cases, you might also see some nipple discharge when it begins to happen.

When you begin to notice these changes, it’s best to see a doctor right away to diagnose what’s happening. Aside from Gynecomastia, the symptoms could be signs of a different problems such as kidney failures or breast cancer. When the doctor rules out everything else and confirms it’s a case of man-boobs, there are several solutions available to you.

Gynecomastia Treatments

If you’re young, you’re in luck. Gynecomastia is known to be common among adolescent males who are going through puberty. Doctors will most definitely tell you that those growths will go away in about six to eight months. In worse cases, they could take up to a year. But the bottom line is that they are a natural occurrence and they fix themselves on their own.

In other cases, you can also opt for Gynecomastia medication. You can get testosterone substitutes to counteract the effect of estrogen in your body. Doing so will help reduce the size of those breasts with continuous use.

On the other hand, you can also go for drugs such Gynexin which directly attack the fat cells in your breast tissue to reduce the swelling and return your chest to how it’s supposed to be.

Finally, if you’re a little desperate and you want to get rid of the problem right away, you can always go for surgery. Here, doctors will physically remove the breast tissue from your chest either by scraping it out or by using liposuction. If you have about $4,000 at your disposal, this immediate relief from man-boobs is just a doctor’s visit away.

As mentioned earlier, if the condition is brought about by hormone imbalance, it doesn’t have any major health implications. But even so, it can really put a damper on a man’s confidence. That’s why it’s important to deal with Gynecomastia as soon as it is diagnosed. Fortunately, there are treatment options available that happen faster than just “waiting for it to go away”.

So what is Gynecomastia? They’re more than just man-boobs. They’re a strange occurrence that mostly happens to young adult males but can also happen to older men. They may go away in due time but you can have it treated using safe and inexpensive options like Gynexin.