While you may assume you will always have plenty of testosterone coursing throughout your body as you get older, the fact is that likely won’t be the case. In fact, testosterone levels begin to decrease as early as when a man reaches his 20s or 30s. Once this starts, it can have a significant impact on your health if you’re wondering how, here are some things you’ll want to keep in mind.
Your Desire for Sex
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When male hormones become unbalanced, one of the most upsetting side effects you may start to notice is a reduced desire for sex. This can be linked to your body’s pituitary gland, which is responsible for sending hormones throughout your bloodstream that alert your testicles that it’s time to start producing lots and lots of testosterone. When your testosterone levels are where they need to be, it not only keeps your penis healthy but also makes everything around you look better, smell better, feel better, and even taste better.
Increased Fat and Decreased Muscle
If you are a man who has always prided yourself on having a muscular physique, you need to realize that having low levels of testosterone can lead to having a body with increased fat and decreased muscle mass. As this takes place, this can also mean your bones can become more fragile, putting you at greater risk of developing osteoporosis and making it easier for you to suffer broken bones or fractures.
Trouble Sleeping
As doctors learn more and more about sleep, it becomes clear that getting a good night’s sleep is crucial to you staying healthy. When your male hormones like testosterone are low, one problem that results is trouble with sleep. This can involve a variety of issues, including disrupted sleep patterns, insomnia, and even the development of sleep apnea. Though researchers are still not sure how low testosterone leads to sleep apnea, you need to take this condition very seriously. If sleep apnea is not properly diagnosed and treated by a doctor, it can put you at much greater risk of having a stroke or heart attack.
Difficulty Dealing with Stress
Along with your levels of testosterone going lower when you are under lots of stress, your body can also start producing less of the stress hormone cortisol. When this happens, it means your adrenal glands have been overworked and can no longer perform at peak efficiency. The result of this is what’s known as adrenal fatigue, which over time can lead to you experiencing other problems such as:
- Erectile dysfunction
- Memory loss
- Depression
- Fatigue
If you start noticing these problems becoming part of your daily life, it’s a good idea to use a hormone balance test kit to see if you’re suffering from low-T or other hormonal problems. If the test results give you cause for concern, schedule an appointment with your doctor to talk over things in greater detail.
Thyroid Gland Problems
When male hormones are having problems, you can expect this to lead to problems with your thyroid gland eventually. Specifically, your doctor may find you are suffering from either hypothyroidism or hyperthyroidism. Hypothyroidism means your thyroid gland is not working as hard as needed, while hyperthyroidism means the gland is working too hard. In either case, the effects on your health can include fatigue and weight gain with hypothyroidism. If your thyroid gland is working too much, you’ll have more energy, which sounds great. However, you’ll also find yourself losing weight when you don’t need to, which is a problem that needs to be corrected.
Eating a Healthy Diet
What you choose to eat on a daily basis can play a large role in how your male hormones will perform in the years ahead. While you cannot necessarily stop your body from losing testosterone as you age, you can slow down the process by eating a diet filled with fruits and vegetables, protein, and whole grains. If you choose to instead focus on eating fast food and other types of junk food, this can speed up your body’s loss of testosterone, meaning you can look forward to feeling more fatigued, becoming overweight, and possibly developing Type 2 diabetes, which can produce a whole new set of health problems.
Bottom Line
Using a test kit to check your body’s hormonal balance is one of the smartest things you can do for your health. By understanding all you can about male hormones, you can take the steps necessary to keep your testosterone levels as high as possible.
