Men, it seems, just aren’t what they used to be. Though science cannot fully explain or account for it, men today—compared to the men who lived a century ago—have a decreased level of testosterone; heightened levels of estrogen; and—most worrisome on a practical level, perhaps—decreased sperm counts.
Maybe you have heard stories or anecdotal laments, suggesting that today’s men just aren’t quite as... well, manly as the men who came before. We’re here to tell you that this isn’t just anecdotal. There’s real science behind it. One prominent journal reports a “population-wide decline” in testosterone levels—a development that’s worrying, to say the least.
Downward Trends for America’s Men
You might be shocked at the extent of this trend. The above journal report, focusing on the Boston area population, found a 1.2 percent annual drop in testosterone levels from 1987 through 2004. That’s about a 17 percent dip overall, both in individuals and in the population as a whole.
The report adds this, too: “The decline is consistent with other long-term trends in male reproductive health, including decreases in sperm quality and increases in testicular cancer, hypospadias and cryptorchidism.”
Why the Decrease in Testosterone?
Again, science cannot fully account for this troubling trend in men’s health—but it can certainly identify some culprits. A big factor is the array of hormone disrupters—also known as xenoestrogens—that are so common in our modern world. These environmental toxins mimic estrogen and impact our body chemistry in subtle yet significant ways.
But where do these xenoestrogens come from? There are many environmental sources. The most famous is the common, plastic water bottle. More broadly, these synthetic, estrogen-like chemicals are commonly used in industrial products and in a variety of consumer goods.
Xenoestrogens are clinically significant because they can mimic the effects of endogenous estrogen and thus have been implicated in precocious puberty and other disorders of the reproductive system—as well as in some of the men’s health issues isolated above.
How Xenoestrogens are Affecting Our Bodies
It’s worth noting that xenoestrogens have really only been introduced to consumers over the last 70 years or so—and as such, it’s not much of a stretch to say they’ve contributed to the testosterone declines that have occurred during that same span of time.
Some specific ways in which xenoestrogens impact our body chemistry include:
- Increasing estrogen and thus decreasing testosterone. One of the primary causes of low testosterone is a high estrogen level. Estrogens can be endogenous (produced by your body) or exogenous (from the environment, also known as xenoestrogens). Estradiol and Estrone (two of the three kinds of estrogen produced by your body) feedback to the hypothalamus and pituitary and shut off testosterone production.
- Inflammation as a result of high estrogen levels. Not only do high estrogen levels decrease testosterone in men, they also increase inflammation. And this is VERY significant. Inflammation, just like stress, is a biochemical process. Inflammation is the natural result of the immune system. Inflammation, in the right setting, is actually the body protecting itself. However, when the immune system becomes imbalanced or chronically activated, the immune system causes damage through inflammation. For example, chronically activated immune cells in the brain (glial cells) play a pivotal role in the development of Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and Multiple Sclerosis. Inflammation is also a leading factor in diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity, and countless other medical conditions.
Estrogen is replacing testosterone in many American men. That’s the environment we live in, and the effects can be dire—but they don’t have to be: Hormone replacement therapy can counteract many of these environmental issues and lead to increased health. Take our Men's Hormone Test today to begin taking control of your health!
