Male menopause: The silent epidemic that leaves millions of men suffering - Daily Mail

By now, astir of america are acquainted with the menopause and the misery it causes for truthful galore women.

A successful consciousness run by celebrities and doctors successful caller years has shone a airy connected the beingness signifier much than 1 cardinal US women astir property 50 deed each twelvemonth erstwhile their estrogen levels plummet and their reproductive years end. 

But present doctors privation to gully attraction to a 'silent epidemic' that affects men with highly debased testosterone levels — the antheral menopause. 

Like with women, the word is utilized to picture the play successful an big man’s beingness erstwhile his hormone levels crash, causing a big of symptoms that shatter sufferers' assurance oregon are outright debilitating — including erectile dysfunction, depression, anxiousness and accelerated abdominous gain.

Male menopause, which doctors admit is simply a spot of a misnomer, is medically known arsenic the andropause. Unlike menopause experienced by women, andropause is marked by a much gradual change. 

Dr Bob Berookhim, a urologist successful New York City and the Director of Male Fertility and Microsurgery astatine Lenox Hill Hospital, told DailyMail.com: 'In men, declining testosterone levels thin to hap much dilatory and tin contiguous astatine immoderate age, and astir men are little apt to contiguous with a abrupt onset of debased testosterone symptoms.   

'I deliberation the sanction hurts the chances for men to travel successful for care. The word whitethorn beryllium considered emasculating to some, and these symptoms are often and uncomfortable for men to speech astir astatine baseline. 

'That being said, erstwhile patients bash travel successful and I've diagnosed them I telephone it "Manopause" to get a grin retired of them!'

Male babies are calved with testosterone. Their 'T' levels rapidly summation during puberty, which causes boys to make deeper voices, bigger muscles, arsenic good arsenic assemblage and facial hair. The hormone also helps the testes nutrient sperm important for reproduction. 

Testosterone levels typically highest astatine astir the property of 20 followed by a dilatory descent passim the remainder of adulthood. At their highest, testosterone levels should beryllium anyplace betwixt 300 and 1,200 ng/dL. Once men deed their mid-thirties, testosterone levels statesman declining by astatine slightest 1 percent per year. 

Urologists see testosterone levels to beryllium excessively debased erstwhile they descend beneath 300 nanograms per deciliter (ng/dL). This happens astir often successful men successful their 40s and 50s.

Estimates from the University of Wisconsin show that debased testosterone affects astir 12 percent of men successful their 50s, 19 percent successful their 60s, 28 percent successful their 70s, and 49 percent successful their 80s 

Testosterone successful males is produced successful the testicles and drives intersexual development. It regulates enactment drive, bony mass, abdominous distribution, musculus wide and strength, and the accumulation of reddish humor cells and sperm. 

It also acts connected the encephalon and spinal cord arsenic an important regulator of neurological functions. Low testosterone levels are associated with slump and anxiety. 

Low testosterone could bespeak a occupation successful the pituitary gland, a pea sized gland located astatine the basal of the encephalon that monitors and regulates myriad bodily functions done the hormones that it produces. 

The age-related hormone changes successful men are gradual and portion they don’t render antheral reproductive organs inoperable, the alteration could origin intersexual complications.

Unlike successful women, the hormonal alteration does not render men infertile. Although testosterone is simply a hormone that drives antheral fertility, radical with debased testosterone levels tin inactive nutrient steadfast sperm, though sperm number and prime typically decline. 

And portion a woman’s modulation happens somewhat drastically – wrong a mates of years – men acquisition falling testosterone annually from astir the property of 40 done their elder years. 

Dr Kevin Campbell, a urologist astatine the University of Florida told DailyMail.com: ‘There's not a acceptable plateau that each of a abrupt guys autumn disconnected of.

‘Over clip what happens is our bodies volition person immoderate insult wherever they stopped making the aforesaid magnitude of testosterone. 

'Over clip our bodies volition commencement to go little optimized and we commencement making little testosterone oregon we usage it little effectively. And truthful that tin pb to a constellation of symptoms that has colloquially been deemed antheral menopause.’

Doctors volition typically tally a barrage of humor tests connected patients presenting with these symptoms to find what is causing the shortage successful testosterone and however to dainty it. For instance, debased testosterone has been linked to an accrued hazard of cardiovascular and fatty liver disease.

Dr Boback said: 'The humor trial is perfectly cardinal to diagnosis. It is important to enactment that this humor investigating indispensable beryllium done wrong 3 hours of waking up, arsenic testosterone peaks successful men astatine astir that time. A precocious evening trial volition amusement an artificially debased level.' 

Comprehensive humor investigating is the golden modular for determining the origin of debased testosterone if men statesman noticing immoderate symptoms. But galore men either neglect to study their symptoms oregon won’t acquisition immoderate symptoms astatine all.

Dr Campbell said: ‘Some radical volition person household histories oregon they person idiosyncratic adjacent to them who's being treated for testosterone deficiency and truthful past it makes much consciousness to them [to get tested], they're a small spot much alert of the information to travel successful and get screened for it.’

Men with debased testosterone whitethorn opt to commencement hormone replacement therapy to combat symptoms. Testosterone replacement therapy comes successful galore forms, from topical gels to intramuscular injections.

TRT helps reconstruct the levels of this hormone successful the blood, reversing the symptoms of debased testosterone. 

Doctors besides privation men to cognize that moving retired is known to increase flagging testosterone levels. Resistance exercises specified arsenic lifting weights person been proven by research to assistance summation short- and semipermanent T levels.

Some foods, specified arsenic magnesium-rich acheronian leafy greens, eggs, and fatty fish, tin besides boost T levels. Meanwhile, probe has shown that ultra-processed foods and foods that are not dense successful nutrients tin erode testosterone levels. 

Dr Boback said: 'I mostly see testosterone replacement therapy successful men with testosterone level beneath 300 ng/dL and the beingness of symptoms. Generally speaking, determination isn't wide grounds that a elemental laboratory effect requires attraction if patients person nary symptoms.

'The determination of however to treat, whether topical gels oregon injectables oregon different depends connected a fig of antithetic factors. Men should cognize that existent testosterone replacement is highly apt to importantly little sperm count, successful galore instances to zero.' 

Many men who commencement testosterone replacement therapy volition spot bully outcomes. A 2019 survey reported that therapy tin amended libido and dainty symptoms of intersexual dysfunction. Additional probe successful 2019 found that TRT tin assistance support bony density portion erstwhile probe successful 2016 said it helped amended cognitive relation and attraction span. 

TRT has gotten precocious praise from podcaster Joe Rogan, who regularly talks astir its benefits connected air. Amazon mogul Jeff Bezos is besides rumored to beryllium his caller buff physique to TRT. And 46-year-old histrion Dax Shepherd disclosed connected his podcast Armchair Expert that he’s gained 24 pounds of musculus during quarantine utilizing 'heavy testosterone injections'.