Transcription
The driving force behind low testosterone is simple and insidious. You've probably heard about how microplastics or soy or seed oils are ruining men's health, but the real root cause is never talked about. You must solve this first before you ever even think about injecting testosterone.
Here's the six signs of low testosterone that I can spot without drawing your blood or asking about your sex life. First, look at your eyebrows, especially the inner third. If the inner parts of your eyebrows are thin and patchy, it tells me that your body isn't getting a strong growth signal. Testosterone in general helps all of your hair stay thick. When it comes to eyebrows, think unibrow for that highest testosterone and eyebrows that look too far apart when it's low. But that's not the only hair involved. Men have a reduced beard shadow with low testosterone and the hair on their head looks flat, like the hair follicle is thinner than it was before.
Next, there's poor mood or lack of assertiveness. Testosterone helps with a steady energy, drive, and a calm mood. When testosterone is low, men feel tired, edgy, and they yawn more because their energy is flat. They also miss that assertiveness that's commonly found in gentlemen with strong testosterone.
Number three is a bull neck and snoring like a freight train. Yeah, that loud growling snore sound that you make at night is not sexy and it's not linked to strong testosterone. A thick neck and sleep apnea often travel with that low testosterone in a vicious cycle where they have increased weight that leads to sleep problems that leads to dwindling problems with their hormones. And that happens over and over again. It's a race to the bottom for these men.
And when their testosterone gets really low, they suffer with hot flashes. Yes, men get hot flashes, too. That sudden facial flushing and the upper body sweats point towards very low testosterone.
Next, there's poor circulation. Low testosterone decreases the circulation in the hands, feet, and testes. No, I cannot see cold testes from across the room. But low testosterone means there's less nitric oxide, which causes those blood vessels to squeeze instead of dilate. This leads to a chilly set of hands, feet, and slower healing. It also has poor blood flow to the testes where testosterone is made and that is bad news for ongoing and making testosterone.
And number five, their posture starts to collapse inwards. Yeah, when men have longstanding low testosterone, it decreases their bone turnover, which increases the risk of osteoporosis. They have a loss of some height and then that old man stoop, which is called kyphosis. This usually happens with less muscle mass and leg strength. Think they've got a flat butt and thighs and they're slower, more cautious when they go from sit to stand.
And finally, we have belly fat for number six. This is the most common sign, weight gain around the middle section, often with man boobs. Yeah, that's not just chest fat, it's a gland. That rubbery disc of tissue right behind the nipple is called gynecomastia and is a red flag for testosterone that's low. Your extra fat cells are the worst sabotage for your low testosterone. Hang with me. I'll explain why.
But first, a disclaimer. If you have low testosterone, but none of the signs that I just mentioned, that's a double-edged sword. These are signs that insulin resistance is causing the low testosterone. And the upside to insulin resistance for low testosterone is that the solution is simple. If these signs are missing, we should have you looking for other causes.
Insulin resistance is the driving force behind almost all of the low testosterone cases in my clinic. And it's not just my clinic. Obesity is the number one cause of functionally low testosterone worldwide. Functionally low testosterone is what we call it when the testes are doing fine, but the brain isn't sending enough hormone signal to tell them to make testosterone. High insulin works to suppress this signal. If you have a BMI over 25, low testosterone is an insulin problem until proven otherwise. About half of the men with obesity have low testosterone.
So, why not just inject testosterone into everyone? Well, it doesn't fix the root cause and can worsen the problem. Here's the science between insulin and testosterone. Fat tissues change your hormones. Yes, those fat cells have a converter enzyme called aromatase that switches testosterone into estrogen. The more body fat you carry, especially belly fat, the more converters you have, so more testosterone gets converted into estrogen.
Now add high insulin to this mess and testosterone is further blunted. Your liver makes a carrier protein called sex hormone binding globulin that grabs onto testosterone and carries it around your blood. But when insulin is high, your liver makes less and less of this binding globulin. This leads to a higher circulating testosterone without that carrier. We call that free testosterone. And this temporary boost means that your brain doesn't signal for making more testosterone. It thinks you have plenty. The testosterone level looks elevated according to your brain, but the body quickly breaks down the free testosterone and then the cycle continues to worsen.
With insulin resistance, fat cells lock up fatty hormones. Examples of these fatty hormones are testosterone, estradiol, progesterone, or even vitamin D. All of them like all fat molecules live under the dictatorship of insulin. When we lower that insulin, your hormones are liberated from the storage. Many women years after menopause will start a ketogenic diet and begin to menstruate again because they've lowered the insulin. Or folks with that chronically low vitamin D on a ketogenic diet will suddenly have increasing circulating amounts of that fatty hormone called vitamin D. Their fat cells were holding their hormones hostage, and the only way to free it was to shrink the fat cells with lowered insulin. It's the best boost of testosterone you could hope for.
I've written countless prescriptions for exercise and healthy eating. This never works. The ketogenic diet is the strategy that actually leads to the reversed insulin resistance and the liberation of these fatty hormones. It takes willpower to cut those carbs, but you get bacon instead. The best place to start learning the three steps to lower that stubborn blood sugar is next. I'll see you there.