The testosterone effect

Low testosterone is increasingly recognised as a complex condition linked to many bodily functions and overall health.

LOW testosterone causes symptoms that can adversely affect a mans quality of life and disrupt his daily routines.

Men with low testosterone also have a strong likelihood of developing the various conditions of metabolic syndrome, which increases the risk of heart disease and diabetes.

Previously, we have emphasised the message that testosterone deficiency is not to be taken lightly or to be brushed off as a side effect of aging. This message is also underscored in a new book by consultant urologist Datuk Prof Dr Tan Hui Meng, Testosterone: Secret To Healthy Aging For Men, which takes a comprehensive view of testosterone deficiency, its effects, the safety and efficacy of testosterone replacement therapy (TRT), and how TRT complements general health maintenance.

We need to change our mindset regarding testosterone from thinking of it merely as a sex hormone to accepting its role in influencing overall mens health.

In the book, Prof Tan reiterates that men lag behind women in terms of health status and outcomes. This discrepancy is the result of healthcare policies and resource distribution that disadvantage men, as well as mens own attitudes that put themselves at risk. It is a universally-known fact that men practise poor preventive health or health maintenance. Many men only seek healthcare when they are severely ill, as a result of years of unhealthy lifestyle practices.

Men have to realise that there is no shortcut to maintaining good health. Staying healthy and well begins as early as young adulthood (between 18 and 39 years), through middle age (40 to 64 years), and well into old age (65 years and beyond).

Prof Tan also emphasises that nothing occurs in isolation in health. That is why testosterone deficiency and its treatment have to be viewed within the overall context of health maintenance.

As Prof Tan explains in great length in his book, the hormone has effects on many systems in the body, travelling as far as the brain and bones. In fact, one of the most significant effects of testosterone is on the heart. Research shows that there is a strong link between mens sexual health and the heart.

For instance, we now know that erectile dysfunction (ED) and testosterone deficiency are not just sexual dysfunctions, but are also risk factors for heart disease and metabolic conditions. Heart disease and metabolic conditions are serious problems for men today, therefore, testosterone deficiency and ED, as markers for heart disease and metabolic syndrome, should be instantly recognised and treated.

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The testosterone effect

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