Why have testosterone levels globally declined in the 21st century?
As we begin to understand more about how nutrition and lifestyle can impact our health both positively and negatively, we are all trying to make changes to prevent diseases and improve our well-being. As a result of these developments, life expectancy is also changing, decreasing slowly but steadily. However, one thing hasn’t changed – the gender gap. Both men and women live long lives, but decade after decade, women continue to outlive men on average!
The Global Crisis in Men’s Health
A 2019 report states that there isn’t a single country in the world where men outlive women. The average life expectancy is about 5 years longer for women than for men in the U.S., and around 7 years longer globally.
Testosterone Levels and Reproductive Health from 2000 to 2014
The different attitudes towards healthcare between men and women help explain the life expectancy gap between the sexes. The long-held belief that men need to be strong and self-reliant (without showing emotions) is literally killing them, years earlier than their female counterparts. This correlation is not directly related to testosterone issues, but it provides alarming insights into the health disparity between men and women.
Outdated Attitudes and Modern Issues
It highlights outdated attitudes that prevent men from seeking help for personal health issues like fertility and testosterone deficiency. Both are at their worst health levels in history.
Modern Problems with a Centuries-Old Theme
Since testosterone has been considered a worthless chemical symbol of masculinity for centuries, it’s no surprise that talking about its deficiency is seen as taboo. These beliefs are deeply ingrained and, unfortunately, incredibly unhelpful for modern men. There is a negative impact on hormonal health, with testosterone levels declining worldwide with each generation.
The Rapid Decline in Testosterone Levels
According to one of many studies, testosterone levels in men have dropped by at least 20% over the past 20 years, with more and more younger men suffering from the effects of low testosterone.
This isn’t a new trend. Seventy-year-old men in 1987-89 had an average testosterone level almost 100 points higher than even 55-year-old men in 2002-04. This means that the average 22-year-old man today has an average testosterone level roughly equivalent to that of a 67-year-old man in 2000. Therefore, your testosterone levels are likely half those of your father’s and undoubtedly significantly lower than your grandfather’s!
Testosterone’s Crucial Role in Men’s Health
Given this, if testosterone levels naturally decrease with age, these statistics should remain constant over time. But we know they aren’t. Far from it. The negative trend appears to be worsening and happening to men at a much younger age than ever before.
External Factors and Decreasing Testosterone Levels
External toxins are also wreaking havoc on male hormones. Chemicals (including parabens and phthalates) in our environment disrupt our hormonal balance, causing varying degrees of reproductive chaos daily. These are known as hormone or endocrine disruptors – also known as EDCs.
Alarming Trends and Future Predictions
These undoubtedly play a role in testosterone levels declining by 10% per decade. This decline goes hand in hand with sperm health, which has followed a similar negative trajectory with very concerning predictions for the next generation.
Just this week (March 2021), leading epidemiologist Shanna Swan published a book outlining the severe global decline in male fertility, stating:
“The current state of reproductive issues cannot continue much longer without threatening human survival,” she writes in Count Down.
This comes after a study she co-authored in 2017 found that sperm counts in the West dropped by 59% between 1973 and 2011. Swan concluded that testosterone and sperm health represent major public health issues and should be treated as such.
Men Need to Prioritize Their Hormonal Health Just Like Women Do
It is well known that hormonal health supports the long-term goal of longevity, disease prevention, and overall health. Yet, men often neglect to maintain their hormonal health. Why? Women naturally accept that hormones influence almost every aspect of their lives. From mood to libido, to weight and energy levels, from hair and skin to bones, women know and understand that hormones affect how they look and feel daily.
Crucially—and revealing the essence of the issues leading to the lack of awareness about men’s hormonal health—is that women are encouraged to speak openly about their hormonal health challenges and seek help when needed. For men, it’s quite the opposite, and it remains a cultural taboo. We at Primeroids.com believe that women will play a key role in helping the men in their lives, whether it’s your brother, boyfriend, husband, or father, to learn more about their hormonal health and understand why it is so important to discuss this topic.
Recently, Kim Kardashian admitted that she noticed signs of TD (Tardive Dyskinesia, an involuntary neurological movement disorder caused by the use of dopamine-blocking medications prescribed for certain psychiatric or gastrointestinal conditions) in her sister Kourtney’s partner, Scott Disick. After taking Kim’s advice, the 37-year-old was diagnosed last year with testosterone deficiency, which he is managing naturally.
“I just haven’t had the energy to do anything lately. I wake up and I’m just shot. I have no motivation to get up and run with my girlfriend and my kids. I just have no energy. I don’t know if I’m getting older or just out of shape, but I just want to see if something is wrong with me.”
Does this sound familiar? Most men and women can relate to this.
While women have been encouraged to address their health issues for many years, men have not. It’s time for this outdated attitude to change.
Taking Natural Control Over Your Hormones
Our products are designed to support every man through the stages of testosterone decline, which, as a hormone, is the number one in the male body!