The impact of metabolic syndrome on testosterone deficiency

From regulating your mood to managing your weight, testosterone plays all sorts of important roles in your body. That’s why it’s vital to keep your levels in check - particularly if you’re at the age when testosterone levels start to decline.

Testosterone has also been linked to a cluster of conditions known as metabolic syndrome. It can put you at a greater risk of cardiovascular disease and plenty of other unwanted health issues if you don’t take action.

Let’s look at those links in more detail.

What is metabolic syndrome?

Rather than being one single condition, metabolic syndrome is actually a group of several different health issues. They include:

• High blood pressure

• High blood sugar levels

• High levels of triglycerides (a type of fat) in your blood

• Low HDL (good) cholesterol

• Insulin resistance

Generally you need to be experiencing at least three of these conditions to be diagnosed with metabolic syndrome. But it’s not always an easy thing to identify. For one, most of these conditions don’t have any visible symptoms - you may have high levels of triglycerides, which can be a health risk, but you would need a blood test to diagnose it. You may even have no symptoms at all.

So how do you know if you have metabolic syndrome? Excess fat around the abdomen is one common symptom, as is increased thirst, fatigue, and regularly needing the toilet. But the only way to get a definitive diagnosis of metabolic syndrome is through a blood test. It can identify the key biomarkers related to these conditions and let you know for sure whether or not you have it.

The risks of metabolic syndrome

You can treat each condition related to metabolic syndrome independently. But when taken together, metabolic syndrome could lead to a number of health issues, putting you at greater risk of:

• Cardiovascular disease

• Diabetes

• Heart attack

• Kidney disease

It’s why it’s so important to regularly check your key biomarkers to make sure everything is in check. Yes, measuring biomarkers such as cholesterol and triglyceride levels can help to identify metabolic syndrome, but perhaps more importantly they can help you spot the warning signs early. Because in an ideal world a blood test wouldn’t reveal metabolic syndrome - it would help you spot the signs to prevent it.

How does metabolic syndrome affect testosterone levels?

There’s evidence to suggest that metabolic syndrome is closely linked to testosterone levels. There are a number of reasons for this.

Firstly, the combination of increased insulin resistance and excess abdominal fat means your body produces more aromatase than normal, which is an enzyme that converts testosterone into oestrogen. This reduces your testosterone levels and could potentially lead to a deficiency over time.

The symptoms of metabolic syndrome could also lead to inflammation in your testes, which is where testosterone is produced. Testosterone can help to reduce inflammation not just in your testes, but around your body.

Another knock-on effect of metabolic syndrome is that it may increase the level of sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) in your body, a protein that binds itself to testosterone. If more SHNG is bound to testosterone, it means you have more unavailable testosterone and less free testosterone in your body.

Low testosterone can also impact metabolic syndrome

But the relationship between metabolic syndrome and low testosterone works both ways: having lower levels of testosterone can also put you at a greater risk of metabolic syndrome.

Why? Well, testosterone is important for maintaining your sensitivity to insulin, healthy blood pressure, and healthy cholesterol levels. Having less testosterone in your system could upset the balance and potentially lead to metabolic syndrome. 

Fortunately, there are things you can do to proactively reduce the risk of low testosterone and metabolic syndrome.

5 steps you can take to maintain healthy testosterone levels

1. Follow a balanced diet rich in protein, healthy fats, fibre, and zinc.

2. Add high intensity and strength training to your exercise routine.

3. Maintain a healthy weight.

4. Schedule a regular blood test to keep track of key biomarkers.

5. Consider testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) if your levels remain low.

The numan take

Testosterone is closely linked to metabolic syndrome, so keeping your levels balanced is a must. You can do this by following a balanced diet, doing regular exercise, and maintaining a healthy weight. If you’re still struggling to keep your testosterone levels topped up, it’s worth considering testosterone replacement therapy as an effective, long-term solution for testosterone deficiency.