No, you don’t need to be treated for “low testosterone”
By Wendy Haaf
In case you missed it, according to a major study by American researchers, there’s no evidence that treating so-called low testosterone, or “low-T” (the label marketers use to present diminished energy and/or libido in men as a medical condition), with testosterone replacement therapy will improve physical or sexual function, mood, thinking ability, or cardiovascular health.
Sales of testosterone supplements in the United States generated more than $2 billion in sales in 2012, as ad campaigns blamed low-T for a variety of symptoms including bad moods and bad sex. The American study, a systematic review of more than 150 randomized controlled trials conducted since 1950, concluded that there’s no valid reason to prescribe testosterone supplementation for low-T. Not only do testosterone treatments not fix erectile dysfunction or have any effect on the libido, but other tests have suggested that testosterone supplements create a heart-health risk.
Photo: iStock/Ruigsantos.