High Normal Levels?

[JRos895]

Is there any research to suggest that “high-normal” levels are best for overall health and sexual function?

Everyone always talks about how men should aim for “high-normal” levels but I have always felt better just in the “mid-normal” range.

I feel like advocating for “high normal” T levels is analogous to how there was advocacy for “low normal” estrogen levels—it’s based off zero research and a cartoonish approach to hormones.

@Cataceous I feel like you could provide insight here.

 

[Cataceous]

I think these recommendations stem in part from misguided more-is-better thinking. As I recall, there is research showing that if one has testosterone in the normal range then increasing that level does not improve libido or sexual function. It's a different story with muscle bulk and such, but that shouldn't be much of a consideration for the average guy focused on feeling good and preserving good health.

Speculating, it's possible that the best level for an individual is something close to his normal level when younger. This says that about half the guys on TRT should be aiming for total testosterone under 650 ng/dL. A more conservative position is that even our youthful levels could be too high for us as we age—perhaps creating imbalances as other hormones attenuate, etc.

I have a good-sized collection of anecdotes where guys report eventually finding that they do better overall on lower doses of testosterone. I don't completely discount opposing anecdotes, in which dose increases seem to produce better results. But these typically involve edging into supraphysiological territory, which suggests there's compensation occurring for some other lack of balance—and this assumes that it's not simply a honeymoon effect that will eventually fade.