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Yes, your testosterone levels go down as you age—but getting older isn’t the main reason your body puts the breaks on the hormone, according to a new Australian study. Your health habits are the key to keeping T levels high.
Researchers at the University of Sydney took blood samples from 325 men between the ages of 40 and 97 who described themselves as in excellent health. Turns out that the oldest men in that group, on average, had roughly the same levels of testosterone as the youngest guys. The study results were presented on Tuesday at the Endocrine Society’s annual meeting in Boston.
“Most studies focus on getting a representative population sample, which is generally a good idea,” said study author David Handelsman, M.D., Ph.D. “But they can’t separate out the effects of all the diseases that accumulate with age, which is what we did here.”
If your age isn’t to blame, what is? The biggest T-sinking culprits are obesity and heart disease, Dr. Handelsman says. When you’re packing a hefty share of body fat, it causes your body to convert testosterone into estrogen. The link between heart disease is less well understood, but Dr. Handelsman believes that the damage to your blood vessels chokes off the testosterone-producing abilities of your family jewels.
That’s bad news, since chronically low testosterone can lower your sex drive, cause sleep and fatigue problems, and has been linked to depression.
Fortunately, obesity is both preventable and reversible.
Weight training is another way to keep your testosterone levels high—and you only need to lift twice a week to see the benefits. A study from Finland found that men who regularly strength-trained saw a 49 percent boost in free testosterone.
Researchers at the University of Sydney took blood samples from 325 men between the ages of 40 and 97 who described themselves as in excellent health. Turns out that the oldest men in that group, on average, had roughly the same levels of testosterone as the youngest guys. The study results were presented on Tuesday at the Endocrine Society’s annual meeting in Boston.
“Most studies focus on getting a representative population sample, which is generally a good idea,” said study author David Handelsman, M.D., Ph.D. “But they can’t separate out the effects of all the diseases that accumulate with age, which is what we did here.”
If your age isn’t to blame, what is? The biggest T-sinking culprits are obesity and heart disease, Dr. Handelsman says. When you’re packing a hefty share of body fat, it causes your body to convert testosterone into estrogen. The link between heart disease is less well understood, but Dr. Handelsman believes that the damage to your blood vessels chokes off the testosterone-producing abilities of your family jewels.
That’s bad news, since chronically low testosterone can lower your sex drive, cause sleep and fatigue problems, and has been linked to depression.
Fortunately, obesity is both preventable and reversible.
Weight training is another way to keep your testosterone levels high—and you only need to lift twice a week to see the benefits. A study from Finland found that men who regularly strength-trained saw a 49 percent boost in free testosterone.
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