The moment we heard the word testosterone generally, the image of a man flashes in our mind. Though we will talk about those daily habits that decrease testosterone levels in men’s body, testosterone is produced both men and women. So now you might ask why we only talk about male while talking about testosterone. The answer is that testosterone is the primary male sex hormone.
What is testosterone hormone?
It is produced by the testicles of a man’s body because the pituitary gland in our brain tells our testicles to do so. Now the production of testosterone hormone increases in puberty or adolescence period and decreases as we age. As we have already said that testosterone is a primary sex hormone for men; it helps in sperm production in men genitalia.
What is its influence on a man’s body?
It also increases muscle and bone mass of men as men enter puberty, the growth of body hair increases due to the secretion of testosterone hormone. But the essential thing that testosterone is responsible for is that it stimulates sex drive in men. So to put it, the low testosterone level in the body means low sex drive, and high testosterone level in the body means high sex drive. Apart from the physical influence of testosterone in a man’s body, it is also responsible for man’s mood along with his psychological and mental health. Testosterone also influences the brain and makes it bigger than women. Brain function and memory are also affected by testosterone. So to sum it up, testosterone hormone is essential for the overall sexual, physical, and mental wellbeing of men. So if a balanced level of testosterone is maintained in a man’s body that means it caters to a healthier life for him.
Causes of low testosterone level in a man’s body
Stress:
Well, this point is put at the top as a cause of low testosterone levels in a man’s body because the 21st-century lifestyle has made every single human being in this world more stressed, be it physically or mentally. Not to mention that both physical and emotional stress are the primary causes of the reduction of testosterone. So how it happens? The answer is that if you are unnecessarily stressed, then your brain releases cortisol. Cortisol has an inverse relationship with testosterone. If the level of cortisol increases in your body, the level of testosterone decreases.
Lack of sleep:
Though we all know that an eight-hour rest is essential for our health, yet we unnecessarily stay up late at night for work purposes or to watch NETFLIX or movies or to surf the internet or to play android games in our mobile. Whatever may be the cause, staying up late at night is one of the most critical factors that results in the imbalance of all the hormonal levels in a man’s body. Now, if you continue to stay awake late every night, your hormonal imbalance may cause the drastic dropping of testosterone levels.
Unhealthy diet:
Because of our daily busy modern life, we hardly pay any attention to what we are consuming in a day. We often satiate our appetite by only eating unhealthy roadside deep-fried fast foods or foods that contain a lot of carbs. It directly affects your testosterone level. To be specific foods that contain soy-based products, dairy products can negatively affect a man’s testosterone level.
Alcohol:
Alcohol is highly associated with the decrease in testosterone levels in a man’s body. Studies have shown that if you daily consume alcohol, then it can lower your testosterone level by 6.8 percent in three weeks.
Processed foods and fried foods:
Again, our over-reliance to Dominos, Pizza Hut, KFC, or Subway has made us consume processed food. While we all know that over-consuming of these processed foods that contain trans fats are directly related to heart problems and diabetes, it is also known for reducing testosterone levels in a man’s body.
Sugar:
Sugar is an element that is used in almost everything. Be it medicine or food. Studies have shown that we consume 19 spoons of sugar every day. Sugar is another prime culprit for the lowering of testosterone levels in your body.
Increasing belly fat:
If you have a tire of fat around your waist, then my friend, it is causing the lowering of your testosterone level. Why? It is so simply because belly fat is responsible for the conversion of testosterone into estrogen hormones. As testosterone level gets lower and lower in your body, and estrogen level gets higher and higher in your body fat starts to build up in your breasts, resulting in man boobs and also in your hips.
Use of drugs:
To say it, any type of intoxication is harmful to your health as well as for your testosterone buddy. Studies have shown that if you use drugs or marijuana for a long time, then it results in the imbalance of your brain signals and cause in the lowering of testosterone levels in your body.
Mobile in the pocket:
Yes! Yes! We know that almost every man put smartphones in their pocket. But dear men, we hate to break it that it is hampering your testosterone level in your body. Studies have shown that smartphones in pocket daily can reduce testosterone levels. Mobile phone radiations are not suitable for your testosterone.
Taking long hot baths:
It is a well-known fact that we all love long hot showers. But without your knowledge, these fantastic hot baths are slowly draining your testosterone level. The heat of boiling water hurts your testosterone.
Use of laptops:
As the days are passing by, and we are becoming more and more the slave of modern technologies, specifically of electronic devices. Applications of laptops have increased at a significant level for the past decade. Along with it, the past decade has also seen a considerable amount of lowering of testosterone levels in a man’s body. As a laptop is designed to put on laps, the heat of the computer is hampering the production of testosterone in your testicles.
So, the bottom line is to avoid those, as mentioned above, daily bad habits that are affecting your testosterone level.