Posts Tagged ‘low testosterone levels’
Low testosterone associated with frailty in older
May 12th, 2010 | 
Author: Older men with low testosterone levels would be relatively more likely to become frail than those with normal hormone levels, according to a new study.
A study of more than 3,600 Australians aged 70 years found that those with low testosterone tend to become more fragile over the years.
The findings, published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, add to evidence linking testosterone loss with health problems in older people. But it is not known what can be done.
“It is too early to recommend hormone therapy,” he told Reuters Health Zoe Hyde of the University of Western Australia in Perth.
“We need larger studies to see if testosterone can prevent or treat frailty and evaluate the benefits and risks of therapy,” he said.
Testosterone helps men to maintain bone density, muscle mass and strength, and the production of red blood cells.
Their levels naturally decline with age and previous studies have linked low levels in older men with diabetes, depression, broken bones and even a reduction in life expectancy. Read the rest of this entry »