Firstly, the role of testosterone in people’s bad behavior is a myth. In reality, testosterone plays key roles in our overall health and diseases that may even surprise you.
Did you know that testosterone is a key factor in prostate cancer? Or that women need testosterone as well? Yeah, there is a lot more to testosterone than meets the eye.
The integral role of testosterone
Testosterone is a key hormone for men and plays several roles like;
- The growth of the testes and the penis
- The deepening of your voice during the period of puberty
- Growth of pubic and facial hair that begins during puberty.
- Male pattern hair loss and balding.
- Strength and muscle size
- The strength of your bones and its growth
- Libido or your sex drive
- The production of sperms
Male adolescents with low levels of testosterone may not be able to experience normal masculinization. For instance, their facial and body hair may be scarce, their voice may not deepen enough, and or their genitals may not grow properly.
Testosterone can also help balance and normalize your mood. This hormone may have even more functions that have yet to be discovered.
The brain sends signals to the pituitary glands which is at the base of our brain, which controls the production of testosterone within men. This gland relays signals to the testes to produce this hormone.
What regulates the amounts of this hormone in our blood is called a “feedback loop.” When the levels of testosterone get too high, the brain would then send signals to the pituitary glands to decrease its production.
If you ever thought that the testosterone hormone is only important for men then you would be wrong. It is also produced in the adrenal gland and ovaries. It is one of several other androgens or male sex hormones that can be found in females.
It was found that these hormones play an important role in the following;
- Strength of the bones
- Ovarian function
- Libido and sexual behaviors however the evidence is not yet conclusive on this.
There is a proper balance between testosterone, androgens, and estrogens for the ovaries to properly work normally. The specifics are not yet certain, but androgens may play a vital key role in brain functions particularly for mood, cognitive functions, and sex drive.
The dangers of too much testosterone
One of the reasons this happens is because it is challenging to define what is considered normal testosterone levels and normal behaviors. The levels of blood testosterone change over time and it even changes during the day.
Plus, what may appear to be a symptom of an excess of testosterone may in reality be linked to something else.
Most of what we know about incredibly high levels of testosterone in men come from athletes who consume anabolic steroids, testosterone, and other related hormone medication for them to increase their muscle mass and their performance in athletics.
The problems linked with extremely high levels of testosterone in men involve the following;
- Shrinking of our testicles or impotence which leads to a low count of sperms
- The increase dangers of a heart attack and the damage of the heart muscle
- Difficulty in urinating and the enlargement of our prostate
- Liver disease
- Acne
- The retention of fluids that causes the swelling of our legs and feet
- High blood pressure as well as high cholesterol
- The increase in our appetite which leads to weight gain
- Headaches
- Insomnia
- The increase in our muscle mass
- The risk of blood clots is increased
- Adolescent growths are stunted
- Abnormally aggressive behavior although this has not been proven
- Swinging of moods from euphoria to irritability, impairment of judgments and delusions
Within women, the most common reason for high levels of testosterone is due to polycystic ovary syndrome also known as PCOS. It is a common disease among women that can affect 6% up to 10% or premenopausal women.
The women with PCOS show that their ovaries have multiple cysts. The symptoms for PCOS would include the following;
- irregular periods
- excess hair or rough hair on the face, extremities and or the pubic area
- decreased fertility
- male-patterned baldness
- thick skin
- darkened areas of skin
- weight gain
- anxiety and depression
One of the treatments used for PCOS is spironolactone which is a diuretic or more commonly known as a water pill. It blocks the actions of the male sex hormones, testosterone.
Other experiences women may have due to high levels of testosterone from their medication or another illness is a reduction of their breast size and the deepening of their voice, similar to many of the other issues men may have.
Not enough testosterone
In the past few years, researchers and pharmaceutical companies have dedicated their focus to the effects of testosterone deficiency, particularly in men.
When men age their testosterone levels gradually decrease from 1% to 2% every year. It is a stark difference to the rapid decrease of estrogen for women who are going through menopause.
The testes as we age produce less testosterone and there are fewer signals that are sent from the pituitary glands that instruct the testes to produce more. While a protein that is called the sex hormone-binding globulin increases with age. All of this decreases the free active form of testosterone in our bodies.
More than one-third of men who are aged above 45 may already have a decreased level of testosterone that might not be considered as average or normal. Although, as I said, defining the ideal amount of testosterone levels is somewhat controversial and tricky.
Testosterone deficiency symptoms in men include the following:
- reduced facial and body hair
- decrease of muscle mass
- the decrease in libido, sperm count
- impotence and infertility
- increase in breast size
- hot flashes
- depression, poor concentration, and irritability
- the increased risk of a fracture due to brittle bones
Some men have a deficiency in testosterone levels that have any of the above-mentioned symptoms that can improve after they take testosterone replacement therapy.
It can be a surprise, but women can also be affected by the symptoms of testosterone deficiency such as the decrease of their bone strength, depression, poor concentration, and even low libido.
There are some instances where having low levels of testosterone isn’t a bad thing. For instance, prostate cancer because having high levels of testosterone can stimulate prostate cancer and the prostate gland to develop.
However, it is important to note that it isn’t clear if testosterone replacement therapy can cause cancer.
What can affect testosterone levels?
Men may experience a decrease in their testosterone due to diseases and conditions that directly affect the following;
Testes
- Castration, injury, chemotherapy, tumors, and radiation treatment
Pituitary and hypothalamus glands
- Medications particularly steroids, tumors, HIV/AIDS, specific autoimmune diseases, and infections.
Genetic Disease
- Klinefelter syndrome where a man has an extra x chromosome and hemochromatosis where an abnormal gene causes high amounts of iron to accumulate in the body.
For women, conditions that can affect their testosterone levels can be due to diseases directly correlated to the pituitary, adrenal glands, or hypothalamus and the removal of their ovaries. Estrogen therapy for women reduces the amount of free active testosterone in their bodies.
Testosterone replacement therapy
This is an approved treatment for the delay in male puberty, the decreased production of testosterone, and certain female breast cancers that are inoperable.
With that said it is possible, that testosterone treatments can improve the symptoms in men with testosterone deficiency such as;
- low levels of energy
- frailty that is disabling
- depression
- cognitive issues
- problems with sexual function
But there are a lot of men who have normal levels of testosterone and yet show similar symptoms so, the direct link between testosterone levels and the symptoms is not always clear.
Because of this, there are some controversies about which male patients should be treated with replacement therapy.
The effectiveness of testosterone treatment for women has shown an improvement in their cognitive and sexual function due to menopause. So, it makes sense for women who have low levels of testosterone to get the replacement treatment.
Some people have normal levels of testosterone and are still sometimes treated with testosterone by their physicians or they get the medication on their own because some people recommend it as a form of remedy for aging.
This applies to both men and women. But the risk for taking it when your body produces the correct amount is a cause for the discouragement of widespread usage.
In Summary
There is so much more to testosterone than what its reputation implies. Men and women both need the correct amounts of testosterone for their bodies to grow and develop normally but the ideal amount of testosterone is still unclear.
It is easy to check your testosterone levels through a blood test. What is challenging is interpreting and analyzing the results especially since the levels of testosterone can vary throughout the day.
There needs to be more research conducted for us to measure the optimal amounts of testosterone and how to respond to the results.
