Obesity is a problem for 70 million adults in the United States including 54 million men. But while we know that obesity raises our risk of diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer and more, for men it is also linked to hormone deficiency.
Bottom line: many men who are obese might also have low testosterone (T).
Looked at closely, it appears to be a case of the chicken and the egg. Testosterone deficiency causes men to gain fat and lose lean muscle mass. Insulin resistance caused by obesity lowers testosterone levels. As those two forces feed each other, the result is a man who is overweight and getting bigger, is unmotivated to lose the weight, and if he does try, has very little success.
If you know someone like this, testosterone pellet therapy could be the answer.
The numbers support this. A 2007 study of men ages 40 and up found that each one-point increase in BMI coincided with a 2% decrease in testosterone. A 2008 study of men ages 30 and up found that a four-inch increase in waist circumference increased a man’s odds of having low testosterone by 75%. Waist size was the strongest predictor of developing symptoms of testosterone deficiency. Australian research suggests that one in every seven obese men could benefit from testosterone replacement.1
By raising testosterone to proper levels with the help of pellets & SottoPelle’s bioidentical hormone replacement therapy, patients report signs that the vicious cycle of obesity and low T are lowered.
How can healthy levels of testosterone help men lose weight and keep it off?
- Healthy testosterone levels help men build lean muscle mass
- Healthy testosterone levels help men burn fat more effectively.
- Healthy testosterone levels help improve mood and make men feel more motivated, competitive and excited about life in general.
It’s not just anecdotal, either. According to Endocrine News, a study presented at ENDO 2019 showed that long-term testosterone therapy in men with obesity and hypogonadism contributed to prolonged weight loss without added risks. In fact, losing the weight and being healthier as a result actually lowered their risk of mortality and major adverse cardiovascular events.
Not only that, but even though patients in the study were always counseled on exercise and nutrition, it was only once they had begun testosterone therapy that they began to follow the recommendations and even ask for more!
It appears that testosterone replacement therapy knocked them out of the vicious cycle of low T and weight gain into a healthier feedback loop of weight loss, physical activity and motivation.
That’s great news! Here’s more:
Over the ten years of the study, the men who received testosterone lost over 20% of their baseline weight, their waist circumference dropped by almost five whole inches, and their BMI decreased by over seven kg/m2. The control group (who received no testosterone) gained in all three measurements.2
Now that you know the link between obesity and low testosterone, what can you do?
First you need to find out if low testosterone may be fueling your inability to lose weight and stay healthy.
Make an appointment with a SottoPelle practitioner to find out if you are a candidate for bioidentical hormone replacement and break the vicious cycle!
References:
- Harvard Health Publishing. “Obesity: Unhealthy and Unmanly.” Harvard Health, Harvard Health Publishing: Harvard Medical School, Mar. 2011, www.health.harvard.edu/mens-health/obesity-unhealthy-and-unmanly.
- Bagley, Derek. “The Long Haul: Treating Men with Obesity with Testosterone.” Endocrine News: Endocrine Society, June 24, 2019, https://endocrinenews.endocrine.org/the-long-haul-treating-men-with-obesity-with-testosterone/
