Slashdot Mirror
Testosterone Tumbling in American Males
An anonymous reader writes "Yahoo is running a story about a study that concludes that testosterone levels are falling across all age groups among American men. It says 'The testosterone-fueled American male may be losing his punch'" I leave it to you all to draw your conclusions about this, but I still wonder what my hours of laptop-fu does to me.
Having being diagnosed, and having surgery and chemotherapy for this (like Lance Armstrong et al), there is a worrying trend. There is no known cause of this cancer scientifically proved, but after getting this cancer, and speaking 'hear say' to consultants, doctors. etc. one theory is that estrogen (oestrogen), the female hormone, is being dumped into the environment from products (baby products, nappies etc.). This chemical doesn't break down in nature - so drinking water, cows milk, fish, meat... all contain this bumped chemical up that would not otherwise be there. Too see how bad it is, there are even scientific reports of fish changing sex in estrogen rich rivers - do a google on this. This is not a subject to laugh at.
Common plastics used to package convenience foods have estrogenic side-effects. If you buy cabbages and beets and bread in paper bags, and stuff in cans, that's great. But buy and store cabbages and beets in plastic bags, plastic refrigerator cartons and it's like getting a little dose of estrogen. Buy microwave dinners in plastic, sitting in plastic-lined little plates, and it's like getting a little dose of estrogen. Buy bread in plastic, soda in plastic, milk in plastic-lined cartons, meat wrapped in plastic, orange juice in plastic, eggs in plastic cartons, and frozen fruits in plastic bags -- Get your Estrogen here, boys!
== buddha is as buddha does ==
Obesity is linked to increased risk of diabetes, diabetes is associated with lower testosterone levels. The article has it wrong - low testosterone does not cause diabetes, it's the other way around. Hypogonadism is a well-known effect of diabetes.
There's your link.
Light a fire for a man and he'll be warm for a day. Light a man on fire and he'll be warm for the rest of his life.
As a web-page of NYUMC suggests, Tai Chi may be of help.
Quote: Enhanced Endocrine and Immune System
One study found that tai chi was associated with increased blood levels of a number of hormones, including thyroid hormone, testosterone, and estradiol. Another study found that tai chi was associated with an increased number of T cells (cells involved in the immune response).
CC.
TaijiQuan (Huang, 5 loosenings)
What does testosterone have to do with the gender of the child? The gender is a result of chromosome combination. The woman contributes XX, and the man XY. Depending on whether your "X" or "Y" chromosome gets used, the resulting child will be male or female.
Interestingly, spermatozoids carrying the "Y" swim faster, and can be told apart from the "Y" ones that way.
I was diagnosed with low testosterone six months ago, but don't know what caused it. I exercise regularly, and wonder if the long-distance cycling I do is tough on the 'equipment'. I also had radiation treatment for lymphoma in that area five years ago. That seems more likely, although the doctors took pains to make sure everything was shielded properly. I'm 40 years old. The important thing to know is that low testosterone can cause mood disorders, lack of focus, depression, and other symptoms. It's worth seeking treatment if your levels are abnormally low.
Yes, "Y" spermatozoids are faster, but "X" ones live longer. So, if by the time they're inside and no egg is there to be fertilized, chances are that "Y" ones will die, and "X" will win if an egg is released afterwards.
For the record, there's no data that suggests a correlation between testosterone levels and homosexuality. In fact, physicans once tried to "treat" homosexuality with testosterone injections, and the subjects just became more homosexually active.
http://alternatives.rzero.com/
yup, google estrogen and "nonyphenol" or "bisphenol A" (there's others too) heating in microwave ovens likely increases the dosages, never thought of that until now. crap.
What I've heard, testosterone is related to sexual drive. I know some mid-age women that have been treated with testosterone to cure their lack of interest in sex, and it works. Like the parent said before me, it has nothing to do with homosexuality. At all.
Here's the obligatory link to more info on the estrogen-plastic issue.
In light of this revelation, it is important to note that according to research, the amount of estrogen one would ingest from plastic doesn't compare to the rate of testosterone aromatization in a young healthy male (let alone a steroid laden jock). The bottom line is that a body needs both estrogen and testosterone (though amounts do differ between M&F).
I'm not fat, just big boned...
Quite probably, yes. Adipose cells make an enzyme called aromatase, which converts testosterone into estrogen for the fat cell's use. (estrogen actually makes fat more metabolically active, so it's not really a bad thing per se) This, however, has the effect of lowering free testosterone in the body as a whole. If you lose fat, your testosterone levels WILL increase.
However, keep in mind humans are the only animal species that actually get overall, most of their testosterone from DHEA rather than free testosterone in the blood. In addition to stimulating androgen receptors directly, DHEA is also metabolized by local tissues into testosterone (and estrogen) as needed. So free testosterone is one part of the picture. Androgen receptor sensitivity and density also matter, but I'm uncertain as to what factors dynamically affect those in adults.
Indeed, polycarbonate - which is in pretty much everything - is made from a chemical originally used as a synthetic estrogen, bisphenol A. Bisphenol A will leech from polycarbonate food or drink containers, especially ones cleaned with very hot water, or with bleach. (Some plastics are safer: #1 PETE, #2 HDPE are fairly safe from leaching and are easy to recycle, #4 LDPE and #5 PP are also said to be safe for food storage.)
Many other chemical pollutants are also xenoestrogens. And there's also the widespread use of hormones in animal farming, as well as medical uses which means excess amounts being urinated out and ending up in the water supply.
Tom Swiss | the infamous tms | my blog
You cannot wash away blood with blood
Are you suggesting that I'm fapping my way to femininity?
Makes sense.
Game... blouses.
The other possibility is the males' levels of testosterone are dropping because they are biologically less able to produce it than they were in the 1980s. The Testosterone level in a male goes in parallel to his level of zinc intake. If you are a male who is zinc deficient, you are going to lack testosterone too. A decline of zinc in the American food supply or a changing American diet which contains less zinc rich foods like beef is going to lower the males' average testosterone level. Low zinc levels causes anorexia in females, which also seems to have worsened since the 1980s.
As a biologist, may I just say there is no evidence backing up this 'theory' of yours reguarding overpopulation and homosexuality.
What whith the ubiquity of pr0n, avaliable readily for free and without embarrassment on the Intarweb Tubes, the testosterone no longer has a chance to build up in the male body.
Interesting? You don't ejaculate testosterone, you know. I'm no specialist, but I don't see why there would be a "build up".
Toit mentions wanting to take a
I am the wife of one such "pussified" (as Toit puts it) man. My husband has diabetes and many of the usual complications that come with it, one of which is low testosterone (less than half the "normal" amount). You know what? I'm GLAD his attitude is the way it is. If anything, the reduced testosterone level has served to soften the hard shell he says he used to have. He's well aware of my feelings as well as his own, and he's not afraid to show them. He loves me deeper than words can describe, and I love him equally. He loves nature, cares about his and my health, and...well, you get the idea. I don't expect I'd find any of this in the macho type Toit is trying to rally.
The way I figure it, the average Slashdot user is getting close to that time in their lives when they feel the desire to find a mate and maybe start a family. For the group of you folks who fall in line with Toit's attitude, face this fact: After hundreds of years of you men telling us women to shut up and get in line, your type is being phased out, whether you like it or not. The world does not need your crap anymore, nor does it need the sterotypical southern belle attitude some women used to have, either. Rather, all need to move away from the extremes toward some common, middle ground where men AND women can be happy.
Baby products and "nappies" don't contain estrogen to be dumped into the evironment. The reason beef contains so much estrogen is because we inject young steers with estrogen to make them grow more. It tricks their bodies into growing at a much faster rate like it did as a fetus and young infant.
The terms were defined as such to resolve ambiguity back in the 19th century to better describe intersexed, homosexual, and transsexual people.
Way to "revise" history. The usage of the word gender to describe someone's personality as opposed to their biological sex was invented in the middle of the 20th century. It is technical jargon used by social scientists and psychologists. I'm really tired of seeing people "corrected" when they use gender as a synonym for sex. When the the Merriam-Webster Dictionary lists "sex" as a definition, it's good enough for me. Stop trying to impose what you were told in your Humanities electives on the rest of us.
If you can read this sig, you're too close.
Frankly, I haven't seen any information to indicate that. All I'm aware of is that AWOLIE/DESERTER Bush trained on the standard "vomit comet" at Lackland OTS, but never actually flew any jet fighters, period.
This is typical historical revisionism (the entire essay, that is). Reminds me of those times back in the late '60s and early '70s (back in the old 20th century) when I was classified 1A (draftable, that is) and the women in Human Resources told me I should be a man and go enlist to fight in Vietnam. Of course, I waited until I was actually drafted - I'm no imbecile, after all.
Then, upon my return, those same women told me they didn't want to hire any "baby killers."
The essay's author, Kim du Toit, failed to mention what branch of the military she/he served in? I recall from my family history that my ancestors were among the minority who actually participated - and some died - fighting in the Revolutionary War. My, how easy it is for those who are exempt or draft dodgers to judge the rest of us......
I think that's exactly what's happening. I think that over the last 1000 years Western Society has moved away from the model of "women as property of the most violent male" and "rape to procreate", and that these extremes are best left behind.
What the fuck, man?
You're reading too many "women's studies" books or something. Western society was never based on these principles. You are seriously fucking twisted.
~/ssh slashdot.org ssh: connect to host slashdot.org port 22: too many beers
Chicks dig it when you read the primary sources.
/ jc.2006-1375v1
BTW, always ask who paid for the study. In this case, it's the National Institutes of Health (not the Testosterone Salesmen of America). That's why they have to post the manuscript free online.
http://jcem.endojournals.org/cgi/content/abstract
This version published online on October 24, 2006
Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, doi:10.1210/jc.2006-1375
A population-level decline in serum testosterone levels in American men
Thomas G Travison*, Andre B Araujo, Amy B O'Donnell, Varant Kupelian, and John B McKinlay
New England Research Institutes, Watertown, MA, USA
Context. Age-specific estimates of mean testosterone (T) concentrations appear to vary by year of observation and by birth cohort, and estimates of longitudinal declines in T typically outstrip cross-sectional decreases. These observations motivate a hypothesis of a population-level decrease in T over calendar time, independent of chronologic aging.
Objective. To establish the magnitude of population-level changes in serum T concentrations, and the degree to which they are explained by secular changes in relative weight and other factors.
Design. A prospective cohort study of health and endocrine functioning in randomly selected men of age 45-79 y. Three data collection waves: baseline (T1: 1987-89) and two follow-ups (T2: 1995-97, T3: 2002-04).
Setting. An observational study of randomly selected men residing in greater Boston, MA, USA.
Participants. Data obtained on 1374, 906 and 489 men at T1, T2, and T3, respectively, totaling 2769 observations taken on 1532 men.
Main outcome measures. Serum total testosterone and calculated bioavailable testosterone.
Results. We observe a substantial age-independent decline in T that does not appear to be attributable to observed changes in explanatory factors, including health and lifestyle characteristics such as smoking and obesity. The estimated population-level declines are greater in magnitude than the cross-sectional declines in T typically associated with age.
Conclusions. These results indicate that recent years have seen a substantial, and as yet unrecognized, age-independent population-level decrease in T in American men, potentially due to birth cohort differences or to health or environmental effects not captured in observed data.
Real nerds read the meeting abstracts:
5th World Congress on the Aging Male, Salzburg, Austria, February 9-12, 2006
http://www.kenes.com/aging/aging5/index.asp