Testosterone levels declining...

[mike7]

I searched multiple times and different phrases and couldn't find this on the site. Thoughts?


Testosterone levels in men decide over past two decades, study shows.

Testosterone levels in American men have been declining steadily over the past two decades, a new study in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism concludes...


“Male serum testosterone levels appear to vary by generation, even after age is taken into account,” said Thomas G. Travison, Ph.D., of the New England Research Institutes (NERI) in Watertown, Mass., and lead author of the study. “In 1988, men who were 50 years old had higher serum testosterone concentrations than did comparable 50-year-old men in 1996. This suggests that some factor other than age may be contributing to the observed declines in testosterone over time.”...


For men 65-69 years of age in this study, average total testosterone levels fell from 503 ng/dL (nanograms/deciliter) in 1988 to 423 ng/dL in 2003.

 

[Re-Ride]

If only the value of the USD had declined a mere 16% from1988 to 1996. Why does declining T surprise you? Chemical food "analogs" instead of food. Ever increasing use of pesticide, hormones antibiotics and fertilizers by corporate farming on dead depleted soil. High levels of electromagnetic radiation permeating every space day and night. Widespread sophisticated disinformation campaigns in place to perpetrate corporate fraud, distract and confound consumers. Describing how our environment has become severely compromised, who profits from the degradation and why no none gives a hoot would take pages.

 

[Vitamin_C]

Re-ride is correct, we are half the men our ancestors were in my opinion. There is an attack on hormones, whether deliberate or not, men are becoming timid and weak as a sex. There is a myriad of reasons but food, toxins, and certain pharmaceuticals are the main culprits in my opinion.

 

[Vince]

Maybe because everyone has gotten so fat?

 

[torrential]

Obesity is a symptom, not the cause.

 

[HarryCat]

IMO the reason is there isn't a need for high levels anymore. We don't have to physically fight for food and mates anymore and we don't have to do physical labor. Overall life is less stressful. I saw a video of the inside of an auto factory from early last century, at one point on the assembly line 2 guys where pounding in rivets with hammers, imagine doing that for a 10 hour shift.

 

[Vince]

Obesity is a symptom, not the cause.

I would have to disagree, bigger fatter stomachs = estrogen = less testosterone

 

[torrential]

Vince, I don't disagree with you but higher E in a broad population is a very likely to be a symptom of what Re-Ride highlighted at the beginning.

HarryCat, did you see the movie Wall-E? Remember what happened to the humans for whom all of life's challenges and stressors were removed?

That's what's happening to us, at least to those of us who don't fight it by lifting heavy things just for fun, pretending to chase or escape once in a while, who climb, fight, take risks, and otherwise intentionally stress our bodies and brains. Who would disagree that you have merely to look around to see that as a species we're getting fatter, dumber (grass chewers with no predators don't need fast brains - think cow vs gazelle), and maybe happier, too. Ignorance is bliss, after all, and if all of your friends and family are fat, dumb, and happy, what is there to complain about?

 

[torrential]

Speaking of long term changes, here's one: It was easier for men and women to lose weight in the 80's than it is today.

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1871403X15001210

Secular differences in the association between caloric intake, macronutrient intake, and physical activity with obesity

Conclusion: Factors other than diet and physical activity may be contributing to the increase in BMI over time. Further research is necessary to identify these factors and to determine the mechanisms through which they affect body weight.

 

[mike7]

So, when people say a 30 or 40 year old is OK with a 500 TT level it doesn't quite make sense to me being that the average for a 65 year old used to be 500, not too many years ago. Wouldn't you want your levels to be higher than your grandfather's?

 

[Vettester Chris]

IMO, I think it's a lot of all the talking points above! I agree that the environment, hormones, chemicals, etc., play a big role with the state of our endocrine system. However, coming at it from a cultural standpoint, we are also seeing an increasing beta-mentality approach with physical assertion and activities; all too evident with the millennial generation.

When I was a kid, it was like "everyone" was out playing football, riding bikes, chasing girls lol, or whatever. It's a different climate now with technology and other variables that make it easy for people to just sit on their butts. To boot, society seems a bit more empathetic with this approach, compared to how it's been in recent generations. Just my POV, could be wrong ...

 

[Vitamin_C]

I can't imagine the testosterone levels of men 2000-3000 years ago. I bet old men were walking around with 900+TT. Modern day men SHOULD have healthy testosterone but the fact is our androgens are declining with many men. I mean autism, cancer, auto-immune disease, etc are all increasing, we are doing something wrong. Yes, we are living longer, but the quality of life is decreasing.

 

[Jackie Treehorn]

When I was a kid, it was like "everyone" was out playing football, riding bikes, chasing girls lol, or whatever. It's a different climate now with technology and other variables that make it easy for people to just sit on their butts. To boot, society seems a bit more empathetic with this approach, compared to how it's been in recent generations. Just my POV, could be wrong ...

Very true. It's a different world today compared to the one where I grew up (60's-70's). When we were kids, we walked or rode our bicycles everywhere. Getting a ride to somewhere in the car from Mom was a rare occasion. We played outdoor sports daily. Staying inside the house was punishment. You hardly ever saw any fat kids back then...they were the exception, not the rule.

Fast forward to today. The Internet, video games, fast food on every corner, Mom driving the kids to school every day, it's no wonder we've become a nation of obese people.