Feature
Optimizing
Testosterone Levels ESSENTIAL Naples
Affects More Than Just a Man’s Sex Drive
SPRING 2021
28
By Dr. Eduardo Maristany, MD
“Too much estrogen is bad, but too little estrogen is also bad. The key is the right balance.” —Dr. Eduardo Maristany, MD
T
estosterone levels often are associated with a man’s sex drive, and only his sex drive. However, the hormone has a far greater impact on a man’s overall health. For a man, testosterone is essential to his mental, physical, and emotional well-being. Men also need proper testosterone levels for improved resilience to stress. Without the proper testosterone level, men fighting chronic disease are often unable to gather the will to keep fighting. Testosterone gives a man the needed drive, motivation, and fortitude to battle and continue fighting chronic disease and life stressors. Clinically, I have seen this time and time again. Men with chronic disease often feel much better with improved testosterone levels.
How Do Low Testosterone Levels Present?
Many men suffer from low testosterone, particularly as they age, but few recognize that it impacts more than just libido and erectile function. Other side effects, according to the American Urological Association, include fatigue, memory loss, depression and mood swings, changes in body composition, difficulty sleeping, and reduction in bone density. It can even lead to higher rates of mortality and diabetes, according to a 2006 study published
by the Journal of the American Medical Association. Researchers have confirmed that testosterone levels are dropping across the board by up to 1% annually, clear evidence that there’s a problem. More and more, we are seeing men in their 30s and even their 20s exceptionally symptomatic of very low testosterone, with fatigue and lack of libido being the primary symptoms. But why are we seeing this so much more frequently? Physicians and researchers suspect environmental toxins are to blame. Those include environmental estrogens in our food supply, xeno-estrogens in our environment like plastics and even paper receipts, and other environmental toxins like heavy metals, dioxins, and other persistent organic pollutants. Certain medications also have the potential to lower testosterone levels.
High Estrogen Levels in Males?
Some men with low testosterone also have higher estrogen levels, which typically occurs for two reasons. Some men genetically have more aromatase enzyme, which converts testosterone to estrogen. However, men most often have high estrogen because they are overweight. Fat cells are loaded with the aromatase enzyme and create estrogen. Additional estrogen further
