How Obesity Affects Testosterone Levels

The United States, and the rest of the world, has a weight problem. Its side effects cast a very wide net and include your metabolic health. To put some numbers to this problem, a new study predicts that 260 million Americans will be overweight or have obesity by 2050.

While obesity can be directly linked to many health issues, such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease, it’s also linked to unfavorable shifts in your hormones, including low testosterone.

In this month’s blog post, board-certified endocrinologist Dr. Sean P. Nikravan dives into the link between low testosterone and obesity and ways to address this issue.

The many roads to low testosterone

Your testosterone levels are at their peak when you exit puberty, and they begin a slow decline from there — at about 1% per year. This age-related decline is both gradual and small, so low testosterone may not even catch up with you until you’re much older, if at all.

Hypogonadism, which is the medical term for low testosterone, can also stem from issues in what we call your hypothalamic-pituitary-testicular (HPT) axis pathology. For example, a pituitary gland disorder can lead to low T, or trauma to your testes or a disease like testicular cancer can also lead to a drop in testosterone hormones.

In recent years, we’ve been seeing an uptick in low testosterone levels among younger men that are unrelated to the HPT axis — and obesity may account for a large portion of this growing problem.

By the numbers, an alarming 20% of males between ages 15 and 39 were found to have a testosterone deficiency, and researchers point to obesity as one of the culprits.

The effects of obesity on testosterone

Older studies from 2007 and 2008 made some critical discoveries when it comes to the connection between obesity and low T. One study found that for each one-point increase in BMI, men had a 2% decrease in testosterone levels. Another study reported that a 4-inch increase in waist circumference led to a 75% increase in risk for low T.

The connection is a complex one, and we don’t want to bog you down in science, but obesity often goes hand in hand with insulin resistance, which leads to a reduction in sex hormone binding globulin. As well, obesity can influence your overall metabolic health, which, in turn, can impact your testosterone levels.

Fighting back against obesity-related low testosterone

When you have low testosterone, the side effects are many. Check out this YouTube video for a more detailed explanation.

If, after an extensive evaluation, we find that your low T is related to obesity, we can help you find the best solutions. We may prescribe hormone replacement therapies to boost your levels of testosterone, but we also believe that a better approach is to address your obesity, which can improve your overall health.

We offer comprehensive weight management services, including GLP-1 medications, and we work with you every step of the way to help you shed those unhealthy pounds.

For expert help in managing your weight and your testosterone levels, contact Sean P. Nikravan, MD, in Newport Beach, California, today to schedule a consultation.