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Testosterone Uncovered: The Truth and Benefits Behind This Vital Hormone · Intellectual Medicine

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  Poor misunderstood testosterone. Why does conventional medicine
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  hate you so much? Where's the source of all the
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  fear and loathing? Maybe it emanates from our
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  puritanical background. You know the idea of that.
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  Testosterone is the devil. It gives men aggression and
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  makes them horny. This is all the things that we
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  hate about toxic masculinity. And it gives women beards.
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  We all remember those East German swimmers back in the old
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  Soviet Union days. Well, maybe we don't.
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  But the point being that there's a lot of inbred cultural bias
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  against testosterone, and it's been propagated through a lot of
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  false thinking that has taken decades to break down.
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  So let's look at it. Where is the risk?
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  Testosterone is essential to life.
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  Without it, we die. The species doesn't exist.
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  There are testosterone receptors in every cell in the body.
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  They're in the brain, muscle, the heart.
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  Yes, they're critical for sex drive.
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  They're critical for sexual function.
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  But it's way more than a sexual hormone.
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  Without adequate testosterone, your brain doesn't work as well
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  as it should. The speed of conduction from 1
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  neuron to the next slows down. You can end up with word finding
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  difficulty, brain fog, irritability, short
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  temperedness. You lose resilience toward
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  friction. This is very common.
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  Now you So we'll talk about the risk or the fear with regard to
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  women. Testosterone is the most
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  abundant female hormone. Yeah, that's right, ladies, you
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  need your tea. Without it, you're going to get
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  grumpy. Perimenopausal women.
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  This is common. And you're like, I don't know,
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  30s forties got kids are bugging you on one side, a career, a
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  husband, maybe parents are getting sick and infirm.
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  Life is stressful. You start to feel not so good.
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  You start to feel a loss of sex drive.
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  You gain a little weight in the midsection.
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  You're not so happy. You get short tempered and
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  irritable. I've heard the story
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  generational from women that tell me about their mothers who
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  morphed into something different.
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  In many cases it's testosterone deficiency, and a little
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  testosterone can change everything critical for women.
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  What about cancer? What about breast breast cancer?
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  It seems to me that people who are anti hormone love to tie
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  these things together. Well, guess what?
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  It doesn't work for testosterone at all.
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  Doesn't work for estrogen much either.
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  But the focus today is on testosterone for men and women
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  and why there's such fear and loathing.
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  Historically. That's the concern.
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  It's going to give me cancer. Doesn't do it, folks.
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  In fact, testosterone is anti proliferative.
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  There are studies supporting that it can suppress breast
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  cancer. Women on testosterone therapy
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  had lower incidences of breast cancer.
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  Women with breast cancer are now being treated with testosterone.
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  In fact, there's a drug in its final stages of research,
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  Enobosam. Enobosam is the name of the
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  drug. It sounds like a tribe in
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  Africa. Enobosam is the name of the
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  drug. It's going through the FDA
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  approval process right now and it is a testosterone analog.
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  It stimulates testosterone receptors.
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  And what they're finding is that women with stage 4 breast cancer
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  do better with this drug. Even those who have estrogen and
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  progesterone receptor positive cancers.
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  They live longer, they live better.
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  Fascinating. Begs the question why you
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  produce a good drug when we have testosterone that in fact hits
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  testosterone receptors and is a much more natural way to do it.
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  Why not just go women testosterone?
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  The answer to the question is you cannot patent testosterone.
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  It's generic. For a drug company to turn
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  testosterone receptor stimulation into a profitable
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  product requires a patent, requires a drug that is unique
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  and separate from testosterone, even though it does the same
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  thing. Now, in order to sell this to
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  women and to the medical community at large, they're
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  going to have to make you fear testosterone even further.
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  They're going to say this drug can do what testosterone does
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  without all the negative stuff, you know, acne and hair growth
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  and all the folks that doesn't occur unless you're getting
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  you're getting treated by a provider who's not sensitive,
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  thoughtful and knowledgeable. Properly dose testosterone in
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  women is a gift to mankind. You will be stronger, smarter,
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  faster, better. And no, you're not going to grow
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  a beard. And no, the breast cancer rates
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  is no evidence that it's going to increase none.
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  So I'm seeing a lot of positives here.
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  I'm not seeing a lot of negatives.
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  I don't, by the way, I've been doing this in my practice for 15
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  years. Very grateful women, very
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  grateful families, very enriched.
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  It does not hyper sexualize, it restores normal baseline.
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  It does not 'cause aggression. You know, the the aggressive,
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  grumpy, miserable old man or grumpy old lady, their
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  testosterone deficient more likely testosterone has a
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  calming effect in the vast majority of people.
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  So fear of for of cancer not there for breast cancer?
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  How about prostate cancer? Isn't testosterone going to
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  explode my risk? Well, that was the thinking for
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  many, many years. It's remarkable how in medicine
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  dogma becomes petrified. We've been talking about this a
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  lot with regard to the PSA and prostate cancer treatment.
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  It's very hard to get doctors in medicine to move from an
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  established belief system, even if the belief system is built on
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  weak ground and thus it is with testosterone and prostate
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  cancer. Have to credit doctor Abraham
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  Morgan Taylor and his fine book Testosterone for Life as being a
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  real thought leader in this space.
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  It turns out that the Doctor Who originally associated
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  testosterone with amplified cancer risk, or with stimulating
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  cancer that's already there, based his findings on a single
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  case, one case. It became dogma.
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  It became part of the accepted fund of knowledge that was
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  unequivocal. And now it's being challenged.
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  And it should. It turns out that men with low
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  testosterone have higher cancer rates.
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  It also turns out that there is not a direct dissociation
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  between the blood level of testosterone and the level
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  inside the prostate gland. In other words, the prostate
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  gland reaches a saturation point of testosterone beyond which has
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  no effect. So a man can receive therapeutic
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  testosterone therapy, enhancing his vitality, libido, strength,
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  energy, decreasing muscle aching, stabilizing arthritic
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  joints, improving cognitive function, all fabulous without
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  worrying about is it going to give me prostate cancer.
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  Evidence does not support that. That's not just me saying it,
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  that's consensus opinion amongst andrology specialist like me,
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  people that do this all the time and look at the research as
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  well. Look, if you're on testosterone
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  therapy and you're a woman, you can still get breast cancer but
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  the testosterone didn't contribute.
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  Same thing for men. If you're on testosterone
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  therapy, you can get prostate cancer, but the T unlikely to
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  have any factor in that event. What about the PSA levels?
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  Testosterone therapy does not by and large increase PSA levels.
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  They have evidence of this over many years, hundreds and
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  hundreds of patients. If your PSA goes up, it's not
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  usually associated with the testosterone therapy.
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  Well, what if you, what if you have a high PSA, an abnormal
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  MRI, and you're fearful that if you put testosterone in your
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  system, you're going to pour gas on a fire?
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  Turns out not to be the case. We're looking at the research
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  regarding men who have abnormal Psas, abnormal Mris, and we're
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  just not seeing it happen. This idea of prostatic
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  saturation is real. The concept that testosterone
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  therapy is going to explode prostate cancer is a widely held
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  fear that deserves to be put aside.
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  You should not stop your testosterone therapy because PSA
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  went up. You should not abandon its
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  benefits because of the lab test.
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  It's worthy of reflection, and we all have to make our own
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  decisions, guys and gals, right? What do we want to see happen
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  for our health? I'm an advocate of taking
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  advantage of a known benefit, especially when weighed up
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  against a theoretical concern that research does not support.
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  So men, if you're feeling symptoms of low testosterone,
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  you needn't fear your prostate being at risk because you're now
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  on testosterone. Now we are gathering growing
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  experience with men who have prostate cancer and have chosen
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  to go on testosterone therapy. Now, that is not standard of
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  care. Standard of care is to castrate
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  them. But there's a growing cluster of
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  men that just don't want to live that way.
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  And they say to me and to God, doctors like me, you know, Doc,
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  I understand the prevailing dogma.
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  I understand the theory that giving testosterone will
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  accelerate to prostate cancer growth.
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  I understand all that. I'm also cognizant of the fact
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  that that theory may not be valid and that there's growing
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  evidence that it doesn't hold. Therefore, in the contest
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  between a theoretical adverse effect and a tangible benefit, I
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  choose the benefit. Men should have their
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  prerogative honored. So I have some gentlemen in my
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  practice who were on testosterone therapy, developed
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  prostate cancer. The testosterone therapy was
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  stopped, and their quality of life collapsed.
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  Their executives, their leaders, their brain didn't work right.
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  They couldn't keep up at work. Their relationship with their
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  wife started to decline as they became physically disconnected.
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  Libido faded, erections faded. Strength, confidence, the big
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  variable. And upon reflection, they opted
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  to go back on testosterone therapy and thus far, thriving.
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  Will they someday die of prostate cancer?
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  They may, but that may have occurred anyhow.
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  So you have to think about the risks based on the best research
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  and not an emotional reaction based upon previously held
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  beliefs that have been since repudiated to a large extent.
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  So testosterone is safe for prostates?
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  It is safe for breast. What about the heart?
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  You know, I've heard that it's going to cause hardening of the
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  arteries. Once again, the information does
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  not support that consequence. A study looking at men on
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  testosterone therapy found no increased incidence of heart
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  attack, stroke, none. They found that the men had
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  better strength, better libido, lean body mass improved.
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  This was a published study in New England Journal of Medicine.
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  They looked at these parameters. What I found interesting.
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  OK, so those findings are very affirmative.
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  The conclusion of the article reflected the mainstream
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  medicines bias against testosterone despite absence of
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  harm and despite evidence of benefit.
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  The conclusion was, yeah, but we still don't recommend
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  testosterone therapy. But why wouldn't you?
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  Why would you say that it can help these things?
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  They didn't consider improving muscle, improving the libido
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  function, improving vitality. They didn't consider that
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  valuable enough to justify testosterone therapy.
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  How absurd. Falling and breaking a hip is a
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  consequence that leads to early death, and it can be prevented
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  by virtue of strength, power, muscle integrity and bone
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  integrity, all of which are improved by testosterone.
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  I like to say my patients don't break when they fall, they
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  bounce. They bounce.
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  So testosterone and heart disease is no strong
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  correlation. The evidence does not support
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  hardening of the arteries. You think about it practically,
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  right? Who has the most testosterone in
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  the world? Young men?
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  Do they get heart disease or cancer of the prostate?
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  No and no. All right, I get it.
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  That's kind of intuitive. The research, however, supports
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  the same conclusions. Who's afraid of testosterone?
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  You should not be. Is your family doc afraid of it?
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  Is urologist afraid of it? It's an uncomfortable space for
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  them. Why?
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  Because it's not been accepted as a legitimate medical need
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  just because you're weak and feeble, just because ladies,
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  you've lost your libido, just because you're can't lose that
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  mid abdominal fat. It's not really a medical thing
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  now, is it? Because you're not getting a
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  heart attack, you're not dying. The concept of that which is
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  medical and justifiable versus that which enhances vitality and
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  Wellness are two separate spheres.
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  And your insurance reimbursed conventional Dr. has to stay
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  within that lane if they're going to ever give you
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  testosterone. Not only how are they inhibited
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  from the freedom to do so because of the prevailing dogma,
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  but the dose levels. That's worth mentioning.
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  How much testosterone should a man or women receive?
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  How do you know when the dose is correct?
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  You can't go blood. Blood levels.
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  The blood levels are misleading. And here's part of the reason.
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  Because they are adjusted for age.
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  Well, that's just stupid. I don't want the testosterone
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  level of a, you know, 60 something year old man.
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  I want the 35 level. That's what we're aiming at.
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  What's wrong with that? Better vitality, better
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  strength, better energy, all good.
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  When testosterone therapy is rendered to men or women, I
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  don't remember. There are two broad types of
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  testosterone that we measure in the blood, total and free.
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  The total testosterone includes that which is kept in storage
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  form, not biologically active, cannot connect to those
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  testosterone receptors. Only the free testosterone can
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  do that. It turns out as we get older, we
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  have a larger capacity to store testosterone, thereby skewing
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  the lab test. So if the top level for the lab
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  is, let's call it 700 and you test at 8 or 900, doctors going
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  to get nervous. Oh, your level's too high.
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  What about the free testosterone?
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  And more importantly, how are you feeling?
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  The way to adjust testosterone is based on the symptom
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  objective being achieved. I feel great, doc.
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  My energy's good, libido's good, Brain is clear.
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  This is a good space. That's the right dose.
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  If you haven't achieved, if a person, a patient hasn't
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  achieved the objectives, the dose should be adjusted upward.
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  As long as there are no negative consequences.
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  Estrogen levels can go up. They need to be monitored.
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  The hemoglobin, hematocrit, the amount of red blood cells can go
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  up. If it goes up too high, the
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  blood can get too thick, present an increased risk of clotting
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  that needs to be monitored but easily managed.
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  How about like acne? If that happens, it's a sign
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  that maybe you're at the upper threshold.
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  But in the absence of any negative side effect, patients
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  should be honored in their quest to get to the best level.
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  Sometimes you don't know it until you're there.
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  Same thing holds true for women. Same thing.
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  If you're feeling great and all the symptoms are addressed,
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  that's your level. Can the blood test tell you what
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  to do? Doctors who use blood tests to
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  adjust labs, and they use that exclusively by manifesting a
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  limitation in their appreciation of the functional aspect of the
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  hormone. Look, I get labs, We all should
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  monitor it. Yes, it's reasonable, it gives
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  guidance. But a lab should never
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  neutralize or trump your experience symptomatically.
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  So to fear testosterone? Absolutely not.
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  What else is good about it? Well, studies have shown that
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  women have has who have had hysterectomies or men who've
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  been castrated have a higher incidence of dementia.
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  It appears that testosterone is neuroprotective.
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  So once again I ask, why is the world so afraid of testosterone
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  and why are doctors so scared of it?
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  Look, I understand ignorance breeds fear, and unless a doctor
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  or a nurse practitioner provider spends a lot of time researching
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  the nuances of testosterone therapy, all they have time for
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  is enough time to absorb the dogma, and that can often be a
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  knee jerk reflex. And just like that paper
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  highlighted, even in the presence of abundant positive
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  findings, the bias against it is still not always defeated.
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  Every decision you make in life, whether it's to walk or drive to
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  the store, whether it's to use testosterone or not, has a risk
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  benefit equation to be contemplated.
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  It's not reasonable to require of anything, including
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  testosterone, for it to be 100% risk free.
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  That defies practical possibilities, and it eliminates
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  a lot of really positive things from happening in your life.
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  Think about that. What can you do that's fun?
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  What can you do that's good for you?
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  That carries like 0 risk. Not many things.
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  Not many things at all. So let's put testosterone in
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  that category. Do you have to use it?
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  Well, if you want to live your best life, I'd say yes, but it's
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  your prerogative. And defining best life is
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  subjective, right? For some people, they don't mind
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  shrinking. They don't mind, you know, the
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  oh I'm old, I can't do it thing. I get that too.
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  You know, sometimes it's comfortable to just say, well, I
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  can't because after all, I'm ex age and I'm old, you know, kind
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  of get a free pass. Society will expect less out of
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  you if you give them that mantra.
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  I advise you not to do it folks. Stay alive, stay vital.
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  It's a better way to live life. Death will come.
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  And when it does, your rest will be bestowed upon you.
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  Until then, let's not be dogmatically fearful.
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  Let's look at ways we can maintain our vitality, And let's
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  give testosterone a new view. Man, woman, prostate cancer or
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  not, breast cancer or not, the evidence is growing regarding
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  its broad value and these fear factors.
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  Who's afraid of testosterone? I dare say the ill informed, the
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  ignorant, the dogmatic. That's kind of not nice too, is
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  it? Shouldn't call him ignorant.
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  Well, ignorant is not really a criticism, it just means a lack
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  of knowledge. And sometimes knowledge changes
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  behavior. Although it has been said that
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  the way a doctor convinces his colleagues that he's right and
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  they're wrong is to wait for them to die.
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  It's hard. It's hard for an expert to
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  change an opinion that has defined their identity.
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  Well, folks, I hope you gained something today.
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  A little bit of insight. The evidence is there.
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  The evidence is growing. Look into it yourself.
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  That's a beautiful thing, right? You can AI everything I said and
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  read what's happening. Well, until next time, gang.
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  It's been a pleasure. I'll talk to you then.