Testosterone Drops Greatest With Weight Gain

The notion that testosterone drops dramatically with age appears to be an exaggeration, according to researchers at the University of Adelaide. The researchers, who analyzed testosterone levels in 1,382 men, ranging in age from 35 to 80 years, with an average age of 54, found that while testosterone does decline with age, that decline is very gradual, less than one percent a year. The researchers found that men with the greatest drops in testosterone were those who became obese, had stopped smoking, or were depressed. They also found that unmarried men had greater testosterone drops than married men, possibly because married men tend to be healthier and happier than unmarried men, and because regular sexual activity tends to increase testosterone. Read more in a release from the Endocrine Society.