Sunday 27 January 2013

Low Testosterone - Low T – The Basics

Testosterone is a steroid hormone made naturally in the testes of man and the ovaries of women. This powerful chemical serves two major functions in a person's body. It forms and maintains the sex organs in a man and is responsible for muscle growth and bone development. Production of testosterone is regulated by the brain in the hypothalamus and pituitary gland. Low T occurs when a man's testosterone level dips below normal levels, especially for their age range. It is important to understand that testosterone naturally begin to drop off as a man ages.

Both men and women will experience a natural reduction in the amount of testosterone produced by the body, but there are other factors that can be responsible for low T. Problems with the pituitary or hypothalamus can cause testosterone levels to fluctuate or it may be possible that the organs in an individual's body that are responsible for production of testosterone are not responding to stimulation by the brain or not functioning normally. Aside from these reasons, testosterone levels can be affected by cancer therapy such as radiation therapy or chemotherapy or even damage to the testes.

Some of the most common symptoms of low T in men include infertility, erectile dysfunction, and even loss of hair. If testosterone levels are unusually low during puberty or prepubescent development, an individual may not develop enough muscle mass or their genitals may not grow properly. Men who experience low T later in life will find that they put on excess weight and have less sexual stamina and sexual desire than they did when their testosterone was at normal levels. Fortunately, there are treatments for low testosterone that can help an individual return their testosterone to more youthful levels.

The most common way to treat low T in men is to supplement low testosterone levels with a hormone replacement. This type of testosterone replacement therapy may be done as an injection given on a regular basis or a gel or patch that is placed on the skin. As with most medical treatments, there are certain risks as well as benefits associated with each type of testosterone replacement therapy and which method is best for an individual will depend on their particular needs. It is also important for a person understand that there is a difference between low T and a low T-cell count. An individual who has been diagnosed with low T has several options available to him.

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