Testosterone is a steroid hormone. Men often call “male sex hormones” because they have significantly higher levels of testosterone than women.
Research has shown that diabetes and hyperglycemia levels can affect testosterone levels in both men and women.
Most commonly, diabetes is associated with lower than normal testosterone levels in men, but more related to normal testosterone levels in women.
Why is testosterone important?
According to the National Institutes of Health, testosterone helps regulate how fat accumulates in the body, muscle mass, bone density, metabolism, and maintenance of sexual desire (sexual impulses).
Testosterone in men is also important for the development of masculine traits, male genitals, facial hair and vocal deepening.
In women, testosterone is associated with maintaining postmenopausal libido. Women with higher than normal testosterone levels may experience irregular periods and increased body hair and muscle mass.
How hyperglycemic levels lower testosterone production
High blood sugar levels can affect virtually every aspect of how well your body is working, including testosterone production.
If blood glucose levels are consistently higher than normal, the pituitary gland, which produces “luteinizing hormone” or “LH,” struggles to produce normal amounts. This hormone stimulates the production of testosterone in testmaru.
Without sufficient LH, it will not produce enough testosterone.
Testosterone and insulin resistance
One of the clearest links between testosterone and diabetes (particularly type 2 diabetes) is the relationship between low testosterone and insulin resistance.
If your body is not responding to normal insulin, when the pancreas produces it is called “insulin resistance.”
To maintain normal blood sugar levels, the pancreas works hard to produce more insulin. Over time, it’s difficult to keep up with demand. This will also gradually increase your blood sugar level.
Gradually, your glucose levels are rising until you suddenly learn from your daily tests that HBA1c is high enough to qualify as “prediabetes,” which can later turn to type 2 diabetes.
You may also find that you gain fat more easily and lose muscle mass more easily.
Muscles help manage blood sugar and insulin resistance by burning more calories even when resting. The lower your testosterone, the lower your muscles, the more calories you store as body fat, and the more insulin resistance and blood sugar levels.
It’s a complex system and everything is affected! When your hormones are struggling, your blood sugar levels are fighting. When your blood sugar levels fight, your hormones are fighting.
How blood sugar levels affect your sexual desire
High blood sugar levels not only damage the vessels and nerve endings in the penis, but also limit healthy blood flow. Without decent blood flow, it is almost impossible to maintain an erection and can lead to erectile dysfunction.
If your blood sugar level is high, almost everything else in your body will struggle to function at full capacity.
How low testosterone is affects sexual urges?
Your sexual desire is affected by many things, including stress, quality of sleep, depression, and other lifestyle factors. It also decreases with age.
It is not entirely clear to science how testosterone affects sexual urges, but low testosterone is one of the possible causes of low libido. If testosterone is low enough, virtually all men will experience some reduction in sexual urges.
What can you do now to improve your testosterone levels?
Improves blood sugar levels. The healthier your blood sugar level, the healthier your body will be, including testosterone production!
It’s moving. All kinds of exercise will not only improve blood sugar levels and insulin sensitivity, but will also promote testosterone production. You don’t need to go to the gym to get a good workout. If you are not currently exercising, walking for 30 minutes a day is a very valuable goal. It just moves.
Improve your diet. If you drink lots of soda and lots of highly processed packaged foods, all of your body’s important hormone levels will be a pain. You do not need to follow a very restrictive diet to improve your eating habits. Get more vegetables and cook more realistic whole foods. Keep it simple while creating space for occasional snacks so you can enjoy healthier meals for longer.
Reduce alcohol intake. Bulmicidal is defined as drinking five drinks of alcohol within two hours in men or four drinks or more in women, and is often significantly increased at least once a month in the risk of insulin resistance and hyperglycemia levels. Drinking less alcohol can increase insulin sensitivity, which helps increase testosterone production.
Let’s sleep more. Adequate sleep can have a significant impact on both testosterone production and sensitivity to insulin. A 2011 survey found that consistent five hours of sleep instead of eight hours, for example, reduced testosterone production by 10-15%.
Stop smoking. Smoking a cigarette directly affects your sexual desires and how long it actually takes you to get excited. Every time you smoke, your arteries become narrower and limit healthy blood flow! Also, each time nicotine is present in your body, you become more insulin resistant, increasing blood sugar levels and further lowering testosterone production!
You don’t need to improve everything at once. Choose one area and focus and start!
