Testosterone serves various other vital purposes, including regulating bone health, blood cell synthesis, and not just only sexual desires and hair growth.
Although it is true that men’s testosterone levels typically decrease with age, deficient testosterone levels can occasionally result in undesirable symptoms. Changes in lifestyle and hormone replacement treatment are two strategies to raise testosterone if needed.
Continue reading to learn more about this crucial hormone and how it affects your health.
What Does Testosterone Do?
In the body, testosterone serves a variety of crucial functions, including:
- Growth of the testes and penis
- The voice becoming deeper with adolescence
- Pubic and facial hair growth that begins before puberty; later in adulthood, it may contribute to balding
- Muscle mass and power
- Development and strength of bones
- Libido or sex drive
- Creation of sperm
Additionally, testosterone might support a regular mood. This hormone might have additional significant roles that are still unknown.
Signs and Symptoms of Low Testosterone in Men
Individual differences exist in the indications and manifestations of hypogonadism, or low testosterone. But among the most typical signs of low testosterone that Irene observes in her patients are:
- Decreased libido
- Low energy
- Loss of muscle mass
- Rise in body fat
- Mood swings
- Loss of body hair, such as pubic or armpit hair
- Feelings of depression
- Low self-esteem
- Thinner bones
It’s critical that you get in touch with a healthcare professional if you are having these symptoms to find out if low testosterone or another medical issue could be the cause.
Conditions and Illnesses that Impact Testosterone
There are several conditions and illnesses that impact the production of testosterone among men:
- Men may see a decrease in testosterone as a result of illnesses or disorders impacting the testes, such as direct trauma, amputation, infection, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy
- Tumours in the pituitary gland or hypothalamus, drugs (exceptionally anabolic steroids), certain infections, and autoimmune diseases
- Testosterone can also be impacted by genetic disorders, including hemochromatosis, which is caused by an aberrant gene that causes excessive iron to build throughout the body, including the pituitary gland, and Klinefelter syndrome, in which a man has an extra X chromosome.
In addition to ovulation removal, disorders of the pituitary, brain, or adrenal glands can cause a testosterone deficiency in women. Similar to aging men, estrogen therapy lowers the body’s level of free, active testosterone via raising sex hormone-binding globulin.
Treatment with Testosterone
Testosterone therapy is authorized for the management of delayed male puberty and abnormally low testosterone production resulting from pituitary, hypothalamic, or testicular dysfunction.
Men who exhibit symptoms like these, along with noticeably low levels of active (free) testosterone, may be candidates for testosterone therapy.
- Widespread weakness
- Low vigor
- Crippling weakness
- Depression
- Issues relating to sexual function
- Issues related to thinking
It’s not always evident how testosterone levels and these symptoms are directly related, though, as many men with normal testosterone levels experience identical symptoms. The question of which men ought to receive additional testosterone treatment has so generated some debate.
Women’s Testosterone Levels
You would be wrong to believe that testosterone was solely significant in men. Both the adrenal gland and the ovaries create testosterone. In females, it is one of several androgens (male sex hormones). It is believed that these hormones have a significant influence on
- Ovarian health
- Bone vigour
- Sexual activity, such as a typical libido (albeit the data is inconclusive)
Can Testosterone be Consumed Too Much?
The overabundance of naturally occurring testosterone among men is not a prevalent issue. That could surprise you, considering the seemingly obvious signs of high testosterone that people point to, such as road rage, fathers fighting at Little League games, and promiscuity.
This might be partly because it’s hard to define what constitutes “normal” testosterone levels and behaviour. Testosterone levels in the blood can fluctuate significantly over time and even within a day.
Furthermore, a condition that appears to be associated with an excess of testosterone (see below) may not be related to this hormone.
Sportsmen who take anabolic steroids, testosterone, or similar substances to enhance muscle mass and athletic performance are the primary sources of information about abnormally high testosterone levels in men.
Issues with men’s artificially elevated testosterone levels include:
- Low sperm counts, shrinking of the testicles, and impotence (seems odd, doesn’t it?)
- Heart muscle damage and increased risk of heart attack
- Prostate enlargement with difficulty urinating
- Liver disease
- Acne
- Fluid retention with swelling of the legs and feet
- Weight gain, perhaps related in part to increased appetite
- High blood pressure and cholesterol
- Insomnia
- Headaches
- Increased muscle mass
- Increased risk of blood clots
- Stunted growth in adolescents
- Uncharacteristically aggressive behavior (although not well-studied or proven)
- Mood swings, euphoria, irritability, impaired judgment, delusions.
Is it Possible to Have Too Low Testosterone?
Among the signs of a testosterone shortage in adult males are:
- Decreased face and body hair
- Reduction in muscle mass
- Low sperm count, tiny testicles, impotence, low libido, and infertility
- Enlarged breast area
- Hot flashes
- Depression, inability to concentrate, and irritation
- Hair loss on the body
- Fragile bones and a higher chance of breaking
When they take testosterone replacement therapy, the symptoms or conditions that some men with low testosterone are experiencing may improve.
For instance, testosterone replacement therapy can strengthen bones and lower the risk of fracture in a man with osteoporosis and low testosterone.
Unexpected as it may seem, symptoms of low testosterone can also trouble women. For example, decreased testosterone production may result from issues with the pituitary or adrenal glands. Women who are affected may experience:
- Sadness
- Poor concentration
- Decreased bone strength
- Low libido
What are the Risks of Testosterone Treatment for Aging Normally?
Risks associated with testosterone therapy include:
- Severe sleep apnea is a potentially dangerous condition in which breathing ceases and resumes regularly.
- It results in skin responses such as acne.
- It is encouraging the growth of prostate cancer that already exists, as well as benign prostatic hyperplasia, a noncancerous enlargement of the prostate.
- Breasts are getting bigger.
- We are reducing the amount of sperm produced or shrinking the testicles.
- Overstimulating the synthesis of red blood cells raises the possibility of a blood clot developing. A clot can come loose, enter your circulation, and end up lodged in your lungs, obstructing blood flow (pulmonary embolism).
Furthermore, some studies indicate that testosterone therapy may raise your chance of developing heart disease. Further study is required.
Is It Possible to Increase Testosterone Naturally?
There are some possible ways to increase testosterone levels. Here are some of them:
- Improving diet
- Increasing muscle mass through cardio and strength training
- Getting more sleep
- Take testosterone booster
- Reducing stress levels
- Treating diseases such as obesity, metabolic syndrome, diabetes, and sleep apnea
Final Thoughts
Testosterone has various uses and benefits for our bodies. We should know the correct quantity of testosterone that is necessary for both men and women to grow and operate and how much testosterone is ideal.
A thorough discussion with your doctor is necessary to determine whether to start testosterone replacement medication and the appropriate dosage, even in cases where an abnormally low level is confirmed by a follow-up test.
