Buriti (Mauritia Flexuosa) Pulp and Oil as an Adjuvant in Testosterone Replacement Therapy

Abstract

Aging is a physiologic and multi factorial process and oxidative stress plays a major role in it. It is expected, as men age, the decline of testosterone levels and that some develop hypogonadism. Hypogonadal men have a lower antioxidant capacity than normogonadal ones, and therefore are more exposed to oxidative stress damage. Testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) has been widely used to ameliorate the symptoms inherent to testosterone deficiency. The use of androgenic hormones in the United States has more than tripled over a ten-year period (2001 to 2011), although the harm and benefits of this therapy are not fully consolidated in the literature. This minireview proposes the use of Buriti, an Amazonian fruit rich in oleic acid, betacarotene, vitamin E, tocopherols and many other nutrients, as adjuvant in TRT. As a potential phytoterapic, Buriti may potentialize beneficial effects of TRT as well as lessen its deleterious effects.