Older Men with Low Testosterone

As one reviewer has put it: “Low testosterone may be one signal that a man’s body is running down – or maybe out”. University of Washington researchers found that among 850 veterans over 40 (their average age was 62), 19% had low testosterone levels in 1994. Over half (53%) had normal levels, and the rest (28%) had levels fluctuating between normal and low.

Those in the ‘low testosterone’ group were older, heavier, and had more cases of diabetes. And they were significantly more likely to die during the subsequent 5 years than those with normal levels. This was after adjustment for age, BMI, and chronic illnesses like diabetes. There was no specific illness or cause of death responsible for the increased mortality. So it’s possible that the actual cause was something that resulted in earlier death and a low testosterone.

There’s a risk that such a report, while intriguing, may result in increased use of supplemental testosterone by men as they enter old age. Sales of testosterone supplements have certainly risen in recent years. And there’s no indication at all that testosterone replacement will decrease mortality. We’ll have to await further studies.