Male obesity linked to low testosterone levels

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-05/uab-mol050310.php

This shows correlation, not causation. Still, I can't help wondering if the increase in male obesity is related to an increase in environmental pollutants that affect hormone levels.

but encouraging that mainstream science is starting to catch up in this field

i also agree that environmental estrogens play a part, as does lack of activity.

The changes in activity levels and diet surely explain much, if not most, of the increase in obesity, and also the increase in incidence of overweight (non-obese) people. I agree that it's foolish to look for a simple environmental cause that explains all of it. Nonetheless, this could be an additional factor.

Put your fireproof underwear on anyway.

I get toasted every time I talk about calories in and out.....

i'm a weight tested strength athlete. trust me. i LIVE calories in / out

right now, it's about 4-6k a day calories in. moving up a weight class

I tour on a bicycle a couple times a year - it's all the calories I can consume for the duration and I still lose weight....

and did 5k's, marathons, open ocean swims

now, anything more than 3 reps at a time in the gym is "bodybuilding" and i won't do it :)

amazing the way the morphology changes over 10 yrs

as a runner, i was 165.

i am now 230

has a lot of promise. i have known guys who have started therapy and get great results from it. it is one of the societal/medical taboos unfortunately, but it is becoming more accepted over time. this is one of those few areas where men are at a disadvantage vs. women, in terms of medical acceptance.

and the fact that testosterone is an anabolic steroid. We women have to jump through all the same hoops to get testosterone added to our HRT regimen, believe me. And each jar of prescription gel or bottle of pills has a DEA # on it that physicians are reluctant to have on their prescribing records as it is an invitation for scrutiny by big brother.

and you are correct.

people have to go to specialists, because the average MD will have an aneurysm if somebody even MENTIONs that as a therapy.

it's not nearly as bad as oxycontin (which is CII, testosterone is CIII), but it's the same principle

MD;'s fear prescribing these drugs because they don't want DEA scrutiny. and the few people that abuse these drugs illegally make it much harder for legitimate patients to get therapy

also, the "reference" range for "normal" is iirc 200-800 which is a huge range. this is consistent with western medicine (see RDA etc.) that is focused on not having a disease as "correct' vs. optimal health.

iow, a male could have 250 and a dr. (non-hrt especially) would consider that w.in "reference range" and therefore therapy was out of the question despite the fact that that is horribly low and almost 1/4 the high end of the range and the patient is suffering all sorts of negative symptoms

but again, it's getting better

Most of that was due to better diet. During the last year, I've been unemployed, and I've been getting more sleep and a lot more exercise, so I've been gaining muscle while still losing some of that 20 lbs.

I've also been spending my days out in the suburbs, instead of downtown or in an office park. I'm sure that most of the fat loss/muscle gain has been due to the better lifestyle, but it's possible that not being downtown has also contributed.

I'm more inclined to think that obese men are screwing up their testosterone production because of all those fat cells.

all estrogen in men comes from "aromatization" of testosterone. and this is done via the aromatase enzyme which is present in fat cells.

in brief, it's all about ratio

men who take large amounts of exogenous testosterone (for example, pro bodybuilders) will take what are referred as "aromatase inhibitors" so that all that excess testosterone doesn't result in higher levels of estrogen than are appropriate

men NEED estrogen, but too much has tons of negative effects.

it is also estrogen, primarily, that is responsible for triggering decreased natural testosterone production via the HPTA

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