By Amy Norton

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Older men with low levels of the hormone testosterone may die sooner than other men their age with normal testosterone levels, a study suggests.

Researchers found that among 794 generally healthy older men, those with the lowest testosterone levels were 40 percent more likely to die within the 1985-2004 study period.

The findings do not mean, however, that older men should start taking testosterone supplements to achieve a longer life, the study authors are quick to point out.
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Frequently testosterone deficiency are traceable to excess estrogens , alluded to earlier as hormonal equivalent to the eternal battle of the sexes. Often testosterone secretion will be solidly within normal range , but estrogen production may be two or three times the expected.

That excess estrogen has many effects on the male body , one has to do with sex hormone binding, which are produced in tthe liver and bind with sex hormones in the blood. We have seen that while the hormones are bound with SBG , they cant be utilized by the body. An excess of SBG causes a functional testosterone deficiency, whether or not adequate testosterone is being produced by the testses.
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Anorchism, the complete absence of testes, can be mistakenfor cryptorchidism , although it is not as common. The scrotum of course is empty. The body characteristics are similar to those of a male with undescended testes. If human chorionic gonadotrophin does not lead to increased urinary estrogen and testosterone levels and an increasingly masculine body, anorchism is the likely diagnosis. There simply are no testes for HCG to stimulate.

The only solution is lifelong androgen replacement.

You don’t have to exercise to get the benefits of growth hormone. But raising growth hormone levels without exercising is like driving a amercedes on a regular gas instead of high octane fuel ; it works but you won’t get great performance. Growth hormone releasers wills still melt away fat while building muscle. Growth hormone and exercise are like caviar and champagne , they bring the best out in each other. Stimulation of growth hormone enchances your capacity for intensive exercise , while strenuous workouts increase growth hormone and testosterone levels.

There are two forms of exercise that stimulate growth hormone and they do it in two different ways. Aerobic exercise results in persistant long term release of growth hormone in the plasma for about two hours or longer after you stop exercising. Resistance exercise like weight training cause the spurts of growth hormone that stimulate IGF-1. For best results high intensity exercises should be done first , followed by moderate to low exercises afterwards.

Some examples of exercises and intensity..

Flax seeds are a great source of fiber, lignans, protein, fat, vitamins, and minerals. Flax seeds are an excellent source of fiber. They contain both soluble and insoluble fiber. They also contain a special fiber called mucilage. Mucilage helps stabilize blood sugar levels, and is a natural laxative.

Dietary fiber is important because it keeps the digestive system functioning properly. It enhances our body’s ability to use other dietary nutrients. Fiber goes through our digestive tract almost completely undigested. Once it reaches the colon and/or the large intestine, fiber is then broken down.

Dieting lacking sufficient fiber can lead to:

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Longjack (Eurycoma Longifolia Jack / Tongkat Ali / Malaysian Ginseng / Pasak Bumi) is a bitter tasting herb extracted from the Eurycoma shrub grown in Malaysia and Asia. The Eurycoma Longifolia Jack extract is taken from the roots of the plant.

As a dietary supplement Longjack is available in powder or pill form , and it is included in many popular health products.

Longjack is believed to stimulate the production of endogenous testosterone and to reduce the levels of bound and metabolically inactive testosterone in the body. It is believed to achieve this feat through the Leutinizing Hormone (LH) pathway. Consequently, users of Longjack commonly report an association between Longjack administration and increased feelings of well-being, improved mental focus, and improved immune system function and reductions in body-fat.

Longjack administration may be efficacious for athletes looking to improve strength, muscle tone and performance.

Athletes looking to improve performance will benefit from Longjacks ability to boost testosterone, protect and boost immune function, enhance muscle tone and strength, as well as its ability to reduce body fat levels.

Longjack supplementation is ideal after a cycle of anabolic or androgenic steroids. Longjack supplementation at this time will offset testosterone down-regulation and encourage testosterone up-regulation. This will help the chemically assisted athlete avoid the hormone “crash” that is typical post anabolic or androgenic steroid administration.

Leptin is released by fat cells in amounts mirroring overall body fat stores. Leptin is a protein hormone that plays a key role in regulating energy intake and energy expenditure, including the regulation of appetite and metabolism. In addition to regulating both appetite and metabolism, it also regulates testosterone levels as well. In the Archives of Andrology, researchers examined a sample of 77 men (ages: 20 to 60 years old) to determine what factors correlated to testosterone suppression. After careful analysis, testosterone suppression was related to BMI, waist circumference, insulin resistance, and high leptin levels10. There have been several studies in healthy young men and older men that have reported that high leptin levels are associated with decreased testosterone levels12, 13. Recently, it was reported that testosterone and its active metabolite dihydrotestosterone (DHT) were able to suppress leptin secretion and leptin mRNA in human adipocytes, suggesting a direct effect of testosterone and its metabolites at the level of adipocytes13.

Obesity is clearly associated with lower levels of testosterone and free testosterone, the decrease in serum hormones are thought to be mediated by: 1.) reduced sex hormone binding globulin (low levels of sex hormone-binding globulin are considered to be due to hyperinsulinemia, predicting the later onset of insulin resistance) 2), reduced LH amplitude, and excess estrogen; however excess estrogen may not be the only fat derived hormones suppressing testosterone, leptin may be an even greater suppressor of testosterone than estrogen.

In one study, males who were of normal weight and moderately obese had blood samples drawn to determine hormone levels in addition to body fat distribution. The obese men had ~30-40% lower testosterone levels than the normal weight men; more important, the degree of testosterone suppression was related to leptin, but not to estrogen levels or other hormonal variables (10). Another interesting finding was that male obesity reduced LH-stimulated androgen secretion and was inversely correlated with leptin levels (the higher the leptin levels, the lower the LH production). The impaired androgen response to LH was due to a defect in the enzymatic conversion of 17-OH-progesterone to testosterone. This is in conjunction with another study, which reported that excess leptin produces a significant decrease in the amount of LH produced from the hypothalmus (11). The results of the study strongly suggests that excess bodyfat which increases leptin levels can lead to reduced androgen levels by inhibiting LH production in the brain.

The abrupt drop in LH levels in the most viscerally obese subjects may reflect a sudden incapacity of the pituitary to keep up its LH secretion. The identification of a possible link between visceral obesity and decreased LH levels might be due to excess free fatty acids. Excess free fatty acids have been linked with inhibition of another pituitary hormone- growth hormone. In addition to the suppression of LH pulse amplitudes and aromatization of androgens to estrogens, some have suggested that putting on bodyfat with an increase in leptin levels directly suppresses testosterone at the testicular level. Isidori et al proposed that elevated leptin levels may directly inhibit Leydig cell (testosterone producing cells) function (16).

All bodybuilders need to increase calories during the off-season to put on quality muscle but this does not give you the green light to eat everything in sight. Some bodybuilders put on as much as 30-50 pounds in the off-season. The following research may persuade bodybuilders to not put on excessive amounts of fat in the off-season.

Although it could play a factor , there are also other factors to consider such as enviroment , social skills , money , ect.

I wouldn’t say it is the main influence of being shy with women. Some people are just more prone to be shy , infact our society pretty much accepts that as the psychological norm at times. Though testosterone does have a direct influence on sex drive , assertiveness , as well as well being , so it would play a biological factor.

Squeeze all of the gel from the foil packet, the tube, or the number of pumps if using the pump bottle, into a cupped palm. Gently press your two palms together. When you separate your hands, you will have very nearly half of the gel on each palm. Do not rub your hands together. Try to keep the gel on the palms, instead of getting between the fingers. Then simply cross your arms, wiping the gel over your shoulders and upper arms. Thus apply most of it across your upper arms and shoulders. Absolutely avoid the area where they draw the blood from. Finish off by wiping what is left down your FLANKS (sides of your abdomen—not the middle). Then thoroughly wash your hands. Once you have washed them, there is no worry whatsoever about accidental transferal to others, as there is none left on the surface to transfer. Studies have shown this, and also that merely putting on a T-shirt to cover the exposed areas will do the same for the rest of you. If you had to, you could shower in an hour or so, without appreciable loss of testosterone delivery, as the gel soaks into the skin, and the skin acts as the actual reservoir for dispensation of the drug. You wouldn’t want to do this all the time, but swimming or showering in a pinch can be done. It’s still a good idea to take a quick shower before engaging in intimacy.

For maximum effect, apply the gel within 3 minutes of showering.

You want a delay of at least two hours after application before drawing labs.

QUESTION ASKED ONLINE :

I have been a bit worried about a lack of libido for the last year or so. I am still able to have sex but it seems like I am just not that interested a lot of the time. My current girlfriend and I have a great relationship, but frankly I am disinterested in sex a lot of the time (it’s not her - I rarely jack off these days either). We have sex maybe once every 10 days but otherwise I am just tired or disinterested. I have been seeing docs all year and getting various tests done, and over the last month I have had my free test, thyroid, etc checked several times. My free test consistently comes back at less than half of what is considered low normal range.

I don’t have the sheet but the range was something like 36-80 and mine came back as 14. I have never used any hormonal products in my life but I have always had a lower than average sex drive and I also have a very small bone structure (which is really strange, because my dad and grandpa are both big boned). I have put on some muscle clearly with weight training but I mean I have been training hard and consistently as well as eating a shitload of protein/food for like five years and I still can barely bench 2 plates.

My doctor has given me the option of going on HRT. I told him I would like to think about it. I have had several tests done and consistently shown very low free test like I said. He mentioned a transdermal cream called androgel.

I am really eager to fix my low libido because this girl and I have a great relationship except for my lack of sexual desire, but I don’t want to jump into something that I will probably need to continue for the rest of my life. Are there any other people around my age who are on HRT? My insurance will cover it entirely so I am not worried about that.

What do you think I should do? As of now I am going to go see my doctor tomorrow and pick up a script.
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Growth hormone reverses the age-related decline of sexual vigor and performance. And it does this at every level of bodily orginzation , from the cells to the organs to whole systems. At the cellular level , it increases protein synthesis and cell division involved in regrowth of organs. On the tissue level, the anabolic effects of nitrogen retention build muscle mass.

On the hormonal level , there is a direct feedback between the pituitary hormones and the gonadal hormones of the ovaries and testes. In many men, taking HGH is enough to bring testosterone levels up to normal. It is also interesting to note , says Karlis Ullis , M.D. , that growth hormone plays a role in both male and female infertitily, improving the effects of the reproductive hormones in the production of sperm and eggs. “This shows one , there is an enhancement factor and two , it is rejuvinating. It also crosses into the brain and seems to activate the whole nervous system. People report more pleasure , which could be because it sensitizes the nerve endings”.

On a systemic level, growth hormone improves cardiac function and circulation of the blood to every part of the body. When more blood is pumped into the penis , erections are firmer and can be sustained longer. Growth hormone has been shown to increase the HDL cholesterol. In one study , raising the level of HDL cholestrol increased the likelihood of an erection, perhaps by increasing peripheral circulation via the plaque removing properties of HDL. Growth hormone also accelerates the repair of tiny tears in the penis and vessel damages that come from trauma during intercourse, from riding bicycles or other activitys.