Male Menopause at He's Fit

Click here for the Lead Stories

Male Menopause

Posted June 22, 2007 at 02:00 PM by Jessica Galvano

Section: His Health, Mental Health, Physical Health, Lifestyle Health

middle aged man
The additions of age: unwelcome gray hair, stiff joints, and a fondness for prune juice. While these developments mark the obvious arrival of old age, internal chemical adjustments are less outwardly apparent.

For women, the 50-year milestone often means menopause. The rapid drop in estrogen levels, usually occurring within five years, causes noticeable changes. Along with the end of menstrual periods—the overt confirmation of menopause—fluctuations in body temperature (the not so discreetly dubbed “hot flash”) clearly indicate hormonal deficiency.

Although hot flashes remain a woman’s mid-life plight, the recent acknowledgment of “male menopause” illuminates a man’s share in the afflictions of advanced age. In men, however, the mid-life hormone decline is more gradual. A decrease in testosterone production begins in the 30s for some men and continues to drop approximately one percent each year thereafter. Unlike the tell-tale signs of a decline in estrogen, slowed hormone production in men presents relatively ambiguous symptoms. The fatigue, irritability, and lack of sexual interest associated with lower testosterone levels often resemble the normal effects of aging.

Because the symptoms progress gradually over many years and coincide with other health issues including diabetes, alcoholism, and heart disease, many men ignore the signs. To determine if your intensifying drowsiness and fluctuating moods are the manifestation of mounting years or the onset of testosterone deficiency, see your doctor for hormone testing.

Even among non-testosterone deficient men, levels of testosterone naturally vary; this discrepancy prevents doctors from defining a “normal” level of the male hormone. Without a healthy standard, evaluations of testosterone rely upon projected ranges of non-deficiency, borderline, and deficiency. Experts recommend that men over 50 receive testing if they have recognized any of the related symptoms.

If tests confirm significantly low levels of testosterone, many doctors prescribe hormone replacement therapy. Though testosterone supplements have proven effective in restoring energy and sexual interest, the treatment also poses some risk. An increase in testosterone level could potentially cause a heightened susceptibility to prostate cancer, a disease that thrives on the male sex hormone. The extent to which testosterone replacement treatment promotes the development of prostate cancer has not yet been experimentally determined, but the likelihood of some correspondence is high.

Because hormonal decline in men is relatively unpredictable and persists well into old age, frequent evaluations ensure that the symptoms do not go undiagnosed. Doctors stress the importance of testing especially after 65, even if previous results revealed healthy hormone levels.

Resources and for more information: [Newsweek], [WebMD], [MSNBC]