What Is Testosterone? A Complete Guide Health Centre by Manual Medical Information, Reviewed by Experts

What is testosterone? The ultimate guide

Sometimes low-T is caused by medical conditions, such as genetic diseases or past chemotherapy or radiation therapy. More often, symptoms can be linked to sedentary lifestyle, poor diet, anxiety, or depression. If for some reason you were only able to check either a total testosterone level or free testosterone level. It gives you and your doctor the most actionable information. As I stated above, it’s the free testosterone that’s active and working in the body. The testosterone level in boys and men changes throughout life. They measure testosterone using a blood test for oestrogen levels; https://www.infreiburgzuhause.de/, test, with results provided in nanograms per deciliter (ng/dL).

Make an appointment with your doctor at Ross Medical Group to check your testosterone. A blood test is the only way to diagnose a low testosterone level. Certain blood tests can also be performed to check for other causes of low testosterone. Because of natural fluctuations in testosterone levels during the day, it is best to check your levels in the morning when you are fasting. If we identify a testosterone deficiency, you could be a candidate for testosterone therapy. Testosterone therapy optimizes your hormone levels with the goal of improving your symptoms and your quality of life.

Although it’s much rarer – it’s usually found in those using anabolic steroids but can be a side effect of testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) or adrenal or testicular tumours. Women also produce testosterone, in lower levels, and as well as affecting their sex drive, it helps with energy levels and general sense of well-being. Testosterone increases muscle bulk as it encourages protein formation and induces the retention of nitrogen. Testosterone controls sperm production, sexual drive and sexual performance throughout a man’s life. The amount of testosterone in the bloodstream peaks in a man’s twenties. By age 30 or 35, testosterone levels decrease by about 1% each year.

Testosterone is a hormone found in humans, as well as in other animals. Women’s ovaries also make testosterone, though in much smaller amounts. Testosterone is so much more than its reputation would suggest. Men and women need the proper amount of testosterone to develop and function normally. However, the optimal amount of testosterone is far from clear. Hormonal conditions can be tricky to find and complicated to treat.

They’ll also need to know what other medications you currently take (both prescription and over-the-counter) as well as any vitamins or supplements. Other prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal products may also react with testosterone. Tell each of your health care providers about all medicines you use now and any medicine you start or stop using.

They can talk with you about natural ways to increase testosterone, like exercise. And if appropriate, they can refer you to a specialist called a urologist. Some specific testosterone levels for different ages are listed below. However, it’s crucial to see that they are ranges and to know your goal shouldn’t necessarily be to reach or exceed the high end of the spectrum. While newer supplements that may include these ingredients may be again on the market, there’s no research that indicates that these products are effective at altering your testosterone levels.

With doctor-led guidance before and after testing, NOVI Assessment Max gives you clear, personalized insights and an actionable health plan. This allows you to have a better understanding of your health so you can take the right steps toward better long-term health. Testosterone is part of a group of hormones known as steroid hormones. Other hormones in this group include estrogens, progesterone, and cortisol. Sex drive is a nonclinical term that means enthusiasm or interest in sexual activity.

In females, half of the testosterone is produced by the ovaries and adrenal glands. The remainder is produced through conversion of adrenal androgens in other parts of the body. These latter two hormones stimulate the testis to synthesize testosterone. Finally, increasing levels of testosterone through a negative feedback loop act on the hypothalamus and pituitary to inhibit the release of GnRH and FSH/LH, respectively. Attention, memory, and spatial ability are key cognitive functions affected by testosterone in humans.

It is important to determine if a low testosterone level is simply due to the decline of normal aging or if it is due to a disease. Your testosterone levels vary each day and over the course of your life. Testosterone levels naturally increase during puberty and remain relatively constant until age 30, when they begin to drop. Women also produce testosterone in the ovaries, but levels of the hormone are higher in men. Most of the testosterone that women produce is converted to the female sex hormone estradiol, according to the Cleveland Clinic. For an average man, total testosterone levels of less than 8 nmol/l highly support a diagnosis of low testosterone whereas levels greater than 12 nmol/l are likely to be normal.

At-home test kits for checking your testosterone levels are available without a prescription. The kits provide everything you need to collect a blood or saliva (spit) sample to send to a lab for testing. If you do a home test, share the results with your provider. A testosterone level test alone can’t diagnose any health conditions, but abnormal results with symptoms may be a sign of a health problem. Prohormones can increase testosterone but boost estrogen, the female hormone, at the same time.