One thing I have learned about health and medical research, is to pay special attention to what is happening in other countries, instead of what is only allowed into the mainstream media in America.
For example, most of the OTC supplements which have helped my husband Mike maintain a normal lifestyle in spite of his constant battle with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) (caused by mitochondrial malfunction) have been discovered by a particular doctor in England. Dr. Myhill offers her book on the subject for free over the internet at: http://www.drmyhill.co.uk/article.cfm?id=362
Now, a few new studies have emerged that have found that low levels of testosterone caused by natural aging, can lead to early death. This story is from the UK Telegraph: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/main.jhtml?view=DETAILS&grid=&xml=/earth/2008/06/17/scitest117.xml
In their research, Professor Farid Saad of Bayer Schering Pharma with Dr. Ahmad Haider, have shown that restoring normal levels in testosterone-deficient men leads to major and progressive improvements. Furthermore, men older than 63 benefited as much as younger men. Treatment lasted a year and used a slow-release, injectable form of the hormone.
The first study showed that testosterone treatment significantly reduced waist circumference, (“bad”) cholesterol, fats (triglycerides), and body mass index (a measure of body fat). Treatment also increased “good” cholesterol. Improvements were progressive over 12 months, indicating that benefits may continue past a year, Professor Saad said.
They found that the oldest men had similar improvements in metabolic risk factors to the youngest men. “We conclude that if elderly men have a deficiency of testosterone, it is worthwhile to treat them.
As for side effects, he said that the risks are minor if levels are in the natural range seen in healthy men. Although it is not thought to trigger cancers, it can aggravate existing ones. “It is very important to exclude any suspicion of prostate cancer before you start this treatment,” he said.
The hormone also affects red blood cell formation, which helps treat anemia and fatigue in men with low testosterone levels, though can increase blood thickness that puts men who may already have early heart disease at higher risk of heart attack and stroke.
To find more articles on this topic, go to google and search by “male menopause” or andropause.
It’s a very popular topic in other countries, just not here!
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I am surprised that other countries seem to be doing more research on Male Menopause than the US does.
I would have thought it would be the exact opposite.
There is research going on here, but it just isn’t turning up in the press much.
I’m not sure why. I’ve set up a permanent GOOGLE search that reports all
mention of “andropause” in articles on the WEB to my e-mail box.