Andropause is male menopause. The same hormones that cause women to suffer sudden changes at menopause, also cause a cascade of symptoms to appear in the ageing male.
Testosterone in men, often considered to be the male hormone, is in delicate balance with estrogen, the ‘female’ hormone.
As men (and women) reach 40, they suffer a progressive loss of testosterone, and a relative excess of estrogen; the resulting imbalance causes the gradual onset of symptoms, similar to those of a menopausal woman.
Cast your eyes around a shopping mall. There are men with extended belts, obesity, protuberant abdomens, bigger breasts than some women, and a general demeanor of lowered energy, hunched shoulders, intolerance, and even depression. Reduced bone growth, lowered libido, ‘lost’ strength, unhappiness and prostate disease remain hidden under the fascade.
This is reduced testosterone and elevated estrogen at work!
Testosterone, predominantly made in the testes, is responsible for muscle growth, energy, new bone growth, virility, sperm production and sex drive.
(Women make testosterone in their ovaries and adrenals glands, and their levels are about one third that of men.)
Levels peak between 15 and 25 years, and thereafter, a gradual decline of one to two percent occurs per year.
The classic symptoms of testosterone decline include:-
- Reduced energy and strength
- Softer erections
- Decreased enthusiasm
- Decreased sex drive
- Fatigue, depression and
- Loss of muscle
Testosterone is normally metabolised in fat tissue, where it is converted into estrogen, which in turn promotes further weight gain, fat accumulation and even more accelerated conversion of testosterone to estrogen.
As estrogen levels rise, the following symptoms occur:-
- Central weight gain
- Irritability and rising intolerance
- Headaches
- Breast development
- Abdominal bloating and prostate problems.
If you or your loved one has a growing constellation of ANDROPAUSE symptoms….don’t despair; they are completely reversible.
The delicate hormone balance is restored by using an exact dose of bio-identical testosterone, the exact molecule that men have made since puberty, to neutalise the growth effects of estrogen, to return more youthful testosterone function, to rediscover the old you.
In the moment of decision, we change our destiny.
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