In the past century the life expectancy of men has almost
doubled. More and more men are living into their 50s, 60s, 70s and more. We are
starting to notice a positive trend with men taking control of their health and
exercising regularly, consuming a healthy diet, getting enough rest to help
them maintain energy, vitality and fight off disease and illness. Another trend
amongst middle-age men is that many are opting to optimize their hormones
levels through TRT, also known as testosterone replacement therapy.
What is testosterone
replacement therapy?
To understand what TRT is, one needs to ask the question, what is testosterone?
Testosterone is the hormone which is responsible for the
developing external genital in men, as well as their secondary sexual
characteristics. It is produced and regulated by the endocrine system in a
complex series of events beginning with the hypothalamus and involving the
pituitary gland and testes.
Testosterone
Testosterone is pivotal in developing lean muscle mass,
increasing bone mineral density, the production of red blood cells and helping
regulate sexual and reproductive functioning in men. Testosterone plays in extremely
important role in a male’s energy level, mood and well-being. As men age, they
begin to lose between one and 2% of their total testosterone each year.
In men, having low testosterone or sub optimal hormone
levels, is known as male hypogonadism. There are many factors which may
influence a body in not producing enough testosterone. There could be issues
with the testicles, pituitary gland or hypothalamus. It’s often extremely
difficult to pinpoint which of the areas may be responsible for low testosterone
levels, mostly due to the fact that it’s usually several contributing factors
which leads to the diagnosis of “Male Antopause”, or Low T.
Learn
more about the androgen deficiency in aging males test and take an online quiz
to see if you may have low T here: https://novagenix.org/how-to-test-for-low-t/
So what are some of
the signs of low testosterone in men?
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Decreased muscle mass
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Increased gain in abdominal fat
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Low energy and fatigue
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Brain fog and difficulty concentrating
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Irritability and moodiness
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Erectile dysfunction
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Infertility
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Decreased sex drive
How can I raise my
testosterone levels?
There’s two ways that one can raise their testosterone.
Trying to raise your levels naturally takes a lot of work and may only be
minimally effective. Ironically these are things that we should all be doing
anyway, regardless of what our free and total testosterone levels are!
Strength training and exercise.
One of the most important and effective ways to remain
healthy is a consistent exercise routine. This will avoid many issues with
mobility and lifestyle related diseases and illnesses. It also will help
increase testosterone levels in men. Weight training in particular, is
associated with higher testosterone levels, as well as an increased lifespan.
High intensity interval training is also a good option in linked to better
overall health and higher testosterone levels.
Proper nutrition
One of the single biggest factors in optimizing a man’s
natural testosterone levels is the diet they consume. Having a balanced diet
certainly will maximize the bodies potential to synthesize hormones. Making
sure there is a balance between protein, fats and carbs is extremely important
as well as consuming enough cholesterol, vitamin D rich foods and being well
hydrated can all help improve testosterone production.
Vitamin D and zinc
Both vitamin D and zinc are linked to testosterone
production. Obviously too much is a bad thing, however taking a vitamin D and
zinc supplement as recommended by your physician can help optimize your ability
to manufacture testosterone naturally. A
diet that is rich in healthy, whole foods are one of the best ways to take in
micro nutrients, however vitamin and mineral supplementation may help improve
body‘s metabolism and ability to maintain the right hormonal balance.
Eliminating stress
By minimizing stress as much as possible, you will decrease
your cortisol levels. Studies are showing the dangers of long-term stress on
persons overall health. This stress will elevate quarters or hormones which
will decrease testosterone level significantly. Often cortisol increases are
associated with weight gain which also accelerate the process of lowering
natural testosterone in men. But eating right, having a well balanced diet rich
in whole foods and exercising regularly, One can help minimize some of the
physical damage caused by elevated stress, however having healthy relationships
and balance between family, friends and work, the source of stress may continue
to be an issue. If not dealt with, it will be a long term endocrine disruptor
and ultimately lower testosterone levels. One way this can be done is by
getting lots of sleep.
The importance of getting rest and sleep for increasing testosterone.
Equally as important as diet and exercise in many physician’s
opinion is rest. It’s easy to see the detrimental effects that lack of sleep
has on someone. You only need to look into a person’s eyes to see the negative
effect that lack of rest has on a person. In a short amount of time, the body
will begin to decrease production of several important hormones. Testosterone
being one of them. There are studies dating back to 1997 that have been
performed which have demonstrated that an extra hour of sleep a night will
increase a man’s testosterone levels on average by 15%.
One of the reasons why one may want to increase their
testosterone levels is to improve their overall health. Studies have shown links
between low T and obesity and increased disease risks as well as early
morbidity. A healthy endocrine system and well optimize testosterone levels can
help men take positive steps towards improving their overall health and
quality-of-life.
The secondary option to increase testosterone levels is by
utilizing supplemental testosterone injections. This is known as testosterone
replacement therapy or TRT. For many men, with low testosterone Who have tried
to increase it naturally, testosterone replacement may be an option, when
natural methods fail to bring values within healthy normal ranges. Supplemental
testosterone injections with other medications May be an option for men who
have hypogonadism.
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