To successfully treat and prevent recurrence of abnormal testosterone levels we need to understand and — if possible — remove the underlying causes and risk factors. We need to ask: "What else is going on inside the body that might allow abnormal testosterone levels to develop?"
Accurate diagnosis of the factors behind abnormal testosterone levels consists of three steps:
|Male Hypogonadism||3%||Ruled out|
|Premature Aging||1%||Ruled out|
What are your testosterone levels when you are not using supplemental testosterone?
Possible responses:→ Don't know
→ Extremely low
→ Reduced (low)
Testosterone is converted into estrogen naturally. When this conversion is overactive the result is too little testosterone and too much estrogen. High levels of estrogen also trick the brain into thinking that enough testosterone is being produced, thereby reducing the natural production of testosterone.
(This relationship of testosterone levels to zinc status does not apply to women.)
Studies support the use of zinc supplementation in the treatment of low sperm count especially in the presence of low testosterone levels. Both sperm count and testosterone levels rose in men with initially low testosterone levels. Zinc status should be evaluated in men with decreased serum testosterone levels. [Nutrition Report, September-October, 1996;14(7): p.52]