Lack of Energy May Mean Lack of Testosterone – DrAxe.com

When most of us hear the word testosterone we think of puberty and men in their twenties sowing their oats. We also tend to think of bulky body builders pumped up and maxed out. However testosterone plays many more roles in the health of both men and women than many of us realize.

And low levels of testosterone in both sexes may cause serious negative health consequences.

Whats more is it seems that testosterone levels in both men and women are getting lower at earlier ages. In fact, its estimated that twenty-five percent of men over the age of forty-five have low levels of testosterone, or hypogonadism as its called. Thats about 15 million American men, according to an article in the New York Daily Times.

What exactly is testosterone, you may wonder? Testosterone is the main hormone in the male. Its what we attribute to making men manly and propelling their sex drive. Technically speaking, it is an androgen, a hormone found more in males but also in females. Produced by the testes in men and the ovaries and adrenal glands in women, this anabolic steroid is often used to bulk up muscles and retain protein in the muscles enabling growth.

Testosterone levels in both sexes naturally decline with age; in men the decline begins around age forty and in women this slow decrease begins in the twenties and continues into the forties and menopause.

But testosterones role in both men and womens bodies goes beyond the sex drive and muscles. In fact, low levels of testosterone are now being associated with a number of serious health issues in both sexes.

Low testosterone is associated with increased risk of coronary artery disease (CAD), diabetes, osteoporosis, infertility, and more.

When it comes to testosterone levels, symptoms, and health issues theres some controversy as to which causes which.

For example, in men who are obese its found they have lower levels of testosterone. But its well known that obesity in men changes the male hormones into female ones. So is it the obesity causing the lower testosterone levels or the lower testosterone levels contributing to the obesity problem? A classic chicken or the egg question.

Medical professionals speculate that low testosterone could be anindicator of a general health decline that should not be ignored.

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Lack of Energy May Mean Lack of Testosterone - DrAxe.com

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