LOW TESTOSTERONE
The production of testosterone begins in the brain where, if it detects a condition of low testosterone in the blood supply, it biochemically prompts the male testes to produce more. Yet in most healthy adult men, this system of natural hormone replenishment begins to function less efficiently after they have completed their third decade. After age 30, the body’s production of testosterone, along with other crucial biological functions, begin to gradually but continually slow down. If serum (blood) testosterone levels drop to a very low point, the signs of low testosterone will often manifest as symptoms that can interfere with the daily enjoyment of life and even lead to unforeseen obstacles to enjoying good health. So for these core reasons and others, men are having their testosterone levels checked and discussing their concerns about Low T with their medical providers. Many of them are relieved to discover that testosterone deficiency is a medical condition that is relatively easy to treat.
How to Increase Low Testosterone Levels
For testosterone to be able to perform all of its beneficial functions within the body, it must be freely available to cell receptor sites throughout the body. Therefore, treatment for Low T is focused on how to increase testosterone levels that are unbound and available, or “free.” Modulating hormonal levels and restoring them to their youthful peak is the whole purpose of Low T prescription programs. By incrementally replacing the supply that is no longer being produced within, a person who is burdened by deficiency symptoms can successfully banish them and feel in control of his or her life again. Her life? That is correct. Women can also suffer from the draining symptoms of low testosterone levels and while they less commonly seek therapy for this condition than men, new medical evidence and an emerging awareness of its role in women’s health has resulted in an increase in the number of adult females getting tested for the detection of insufficient testosterone levels.
What is Low Testosterone?
Whether the reasons are environmental, biological or societal, endocrine research has indicated that men are experiencing Low T and its symptoms at a younger age than that of previous generations. Perhaps that is the reason why they are no longer waiting until their retirement years to get around to checking into what is low testosterone and how doctors are presently treating this condition. When a person’s T levels decline into the sub-normal range, which technically advanced blood tests can confirm, the resulting psychological and physiological changes can present health challenges and setbacks. The combination of measurably sub-par T levels and the onset of previously non-existent symptoms is what medical professionals refer to as Low T, andropause or low testosterone. The most pronounced effect of the cessation of male hormone production is the arrival of sexual difficulties that involve issues of diminished performance and desire in both males and females.
Symptoms of Low Testosterone
The depletion of testosterone can impact people in ways they never imagined. Perhaps because so much emphasis has historically been placed on the sexual slump it customarily causes, the further symptoms of low testosterone are often overlooked or underestimated. However, male hormone depletion is very often responsible for inexplicable and sudden feelings of irritation, along with apathy about former activities and hobbies. Anxiety and panic attacks can also be prompted by Low T, as well as abrupt mood swings. With the accurate treatment for low testosterone levels, these objectionable manifestations of hormonal deprivation can be wiped out, and replaced by a renewed sense of emotional contentedness. The wellness advantages provided to patients using an augmentation program benefit the mind and body as a whole, which is why a great number of them report feeling entirely transformed by their therapy.
What Causes Low Testosterone in Men?
In an article that is available through the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) it was stated that in the past two decades, Low T has become an increasingly global problem. It suggested that the rapid growth of what causes low testosterone in men is a condition the article referenced as “global aging,” which was defined as a situation where increased life expectancy is not matched by greater health expectancy. Adverse external conditions can certainly act as bad influences on hormonal levels, and also the alarming increase in higher levels of obesity is a bad omen for seeing an elevation in both testosterone and HGH deficiency among adults. As a general rule, doctors and clinicians who know how to test for low testosterone are capable of testing for growth hormone deficiency as well, since it is not unusual for both conditions to be present concurrently.
Signs of Low Testosterone
Due to the propensity of the warning signs of low testosterone to advance insidiously, it is highly likely like only a small percentage of the roughly 5 million men in the US that the National Institutes of Health has estimated are affected by Low T realize that they have this condition. Much like diabetes and other progressively developing disorders, the signs that a hormone deficit exists can be easily misinterpreted or brushed-off in the beginning. Yet as the condition progresses and is left untreated, those early, negligible signs can evolve into the unmistakable signposts of what causes low testosterone in men. The NIH also estimates that 20% of men in their sixties have Low T, 30% of those in their seventies, and more than 50% of those who are have reached their eighties, which is why previous generations who did not have access to, or even an inkling of, biosynthetic testosterone replenishment attributed their increasingly detrimental symptoms that were prompted by Low T as the unavoidable signs of age. For members of the currently aging adult population with hormonal deficits, science has produced a viable alternative.
Low Testosterone Treatment
Information is a two-way street, particularly when it is in reference to using a medically stipulated low testosterone treatment regimen for the first time. Guidelines for the treatment of insufficient testosterone recommend that it should respond to specific symptoms of hypogonadism, which is one of the medical terms for Low T. Rather than use a blanket approach that treats all affected individuals identically, today’s health care professionals know better, and they use their resources of past experience and contemporary research to provide patients with an even more positive and beneficial therapeutic experience. They know that there is not one all-purpose prescription for low testosterone that should be used for all patients and individualized programs have become the hallmark for providing effectiveness as well as patient safety. Doctors today are well aware of the contraindications, precautions and testing that separates top-level therapeutic programs from all others. Yet they cannot do it alone. It is the ongoing exchange of information between physicians and their patients that will allow them, working together, to achieve the elimination of the patient’s condition of Low T.
How to Test for Low Testosterone
Some individuals who have been there compare having a severe testosterone deficit to feeling similar to an unending depressive episode. However, by seeing a physician who knows how to test for low testosterone well before things get that unfortunate point, a person can avoid experiencing these kinds of life-altering symptoms that accompany the advanced stages of deficiency. Just a simply performed serum testosterone blood test can extract the vital biochemical intelligence that is used, together with symptomatic evidence, to determine whether low testosterone treatment is indicated or not. Either way, it is extremely valuable to learn the status of hormonal levels and stay on top of any permutations that may occur. Since not all physicians are equally proficient in utilizing hormone level testing, it is advisable to locate those who have experience in hormonal replenishment therapy for adult patients to arrange for Low T testing. It could be that the most noteworthy aspect of any conversation regarding testosterone levels is that men can benefit from becoming aware of that their levels are.
Treatment for Low Testosterone Levels
The natural decline of androgen hormones, which all males will experience as they become older, is not the same condition as having a clinically verified male hormone deficit. Prescription treatment for low testosterone levels was developed for adults with medically verifiable deficiencies, as evidenced by specific serum test results and particular symptoms. Despite the reluctance to endorse that is prevalent among the more conservative members of the medical community, times have changed and people today are far more proactive about their own health issues. From learning how to increase low testosterone levels to becoming fully engaged with the treatment process, current generations have learned that they must act as their own best wellness advocates. Whether a person has been beset by a sharp decline or gradual diminishment of essential male hormone supplies, the resulting complications and symptoms are nothing to take lightly.
Low Testosterone Symptoms
It is bad enough that low testosterone symptoms can be seriously disruptive to a person’s current well-being and lifestyle, but many people do not realize that they can also represent a future health hazard. It was recently shown by new research that testosterone has different implications at different levels for different tissues, which can appear as symptoms related to bone density and fractures, the body’s lean-to-fat ratio, and cardiovascular health. Endocrinologists and other specialists are continually researching how much testosterone is needed for sustaining wellness and they are constantly working on optimizing how to treat low testosterone in ways that will best benefit the patients who require supplementation therapy. Clinicians understand that the criteria for treatment depend on individual levels and symptoms that can and will vary between patients, which is why the medical community consistently recommends individualized, case-by-case analysis for every person with Low T symptoms who is weighing their medical treatment options.
How to Treat Low Testosterone
One of the key findings in a 2012 summary study determined that current practices used for how to treat low testosterone have a good safety record. That finding is important for anyone who is contemplating treatment to be aware of, as is the finding in the same study that concluded that any possible unwanted side effects are usually reversible by simply ceasing therapy. The study observed that doctors specializing in hormone replacement typically concentrate on restoring low levels back to what is considered the range that would be within normal modalities for the patient’s age, which is the medically appropriate methodology. To better understand what would a doctor prescribe for low testosterone for any prenominal patient, it is always going to be helpful to stay informed about what new knowledge the medical field is acquiring from their ongoing studies and evaluations. Most doctors will encourage their patients to weigh both the potential benefits and the potential risks associated with any treatment that they have not previously received.
How to Increase Low Testosterone Levels in Men
The most effective way to evaluate an individual’s low testosterone symptoms is to weigh them alongside periodic checking of his serum testosterone levels before, during and post-treatment. Doctors and researchers agree that there is no substitute for using test data and it is particularly critical to hormone supplementation, where fluctuating levels are the only scientific measure that is available. In order for medical providers to continue to advance the mission of how to increase low testosterone levels in men, it is absolutely necessary for them to track results, norms and anomalies for as many decades as possible. All current indicators strongly imply that future use of Low T therapy seems certain, especially since it has already been in use for well over a half-century. When contemplating treatment, men must decide what their goals are and if they include maintaining a healthy, normal and active lifestyle, the answer might be to eliminate their Low T.
How to Increase Low Testosterone Levels in Women
Multiple contributors can cause an adult female to become androgen deficient and early trials on how to increase low testosterone levels in women have supported the use of bio-identical supplementation. However, since females have much smaller amounts of male hormone in their systems than men, the dosages that doctors prescribe for men are far too high for women. By individually compounding the appropriate dose that a woman with insufficient T levels requires, physicians can aid her in restoring hormonal equilibrium and its resulting benefits. Obviously, there is also great variation in the ranges that recommend what is low testosterone in men compared to the ranges for women. Overall, an adult female’s testosterone supply peaks at around the age of twenty and slowly declines to about half of that amount by the time she is in her forties. Continuing clinical trials and adjustments in dosing protocols will yield additional evidence regarding the use of female testosterone replenishment programs.
Prescription for Low Testosterone
For professional guidance in how to increase low testosterone levels in men using prescription therapy, both general practice physicians and specialists such as urologists rely on the expertise of distinguished organizations such as The Endocrine Society, the NIH and medical schools throughout the country. The ultimate recipient of the benefit of this accumulated expertise is always going to be the patient. Published by The Endocrine Society, there are clinical practice recommendations and guidelines that indicate which individuals should not receive a prescription for low testosterone treatments, along with which individuals should. Among those men for whom therapy is not recommended are:
- Men with prostate or breast cancer
- Men with severe lower urinary tract infections
- Men with class III or IV heart failure
- Men with thick, viscous blood, or a hemocrit that is greater than 50%
- Men with a nodule on the prostate that can be felt during a DRE
Always consult the professionals at Kingsberg Medical for the final word on whether a prescription for low testosterone should be issued in a particular set of circumstances.
What Would a Doctor Prescribe for Low Testosterone?
Since the situation is a feasible one, what would a doctor prescribe for low testosterone levels in a patient with absolutely no symptoms at all? It sounds like a trick question, yet it is possible for an adult to have below average testosterone levels and be asymptomatic. One of the first steps that doctor might take would be to check on other potential causes for the deficiency. However, it also within the realm of possibility that the below normal levels are what is actually normal for that person. Knowing how to increase low testosterone levels in women and men requires doctors who comprehend the individual nuances that are interconnected to prescribing effective treatment, or in some cases, no treatment whatsoever. When treatment is warranted, many of them prefer to prescribe relatively inexpensive injectable testosterone because it has been in use the longest, and they can depend on it to consistently deliver the desired results.