My Primary Physician Says My T Levels are Normal
It’s not the doctors’ fault, it’s simply the model of our current healthcare system.
It should be the case that a patient can walk into a doctor’s practice with symptoms such as low libido, muscle loss, weight gain, and depression, and his doctor would say, “Let’s try putting you on testosterone.” In reality, low testosterone symptoms are often easy to read, and blood tests should be secondary. With treatment, that patient would usually see a reduction in their symptoms, and then with a higher dose, these symptoms would reduce even more. However, standard practice rules out testosterone replacement for most men who actually would benefit from it for many reasons. Even if your doctor does do a blood test and it comes back as normal, should you just leave it there?
How to read the signs of low testosterone
Doctors should know the signs of low testosterone and all too often shrug patients off with antidepressants, telling them to lose weight, eat well and exercise. Don’t accept being told your levels are normal. If you recognize any of the below symptoms, you could be suffering from sub-optimal testosterone levels.
Symptoms of low testosterone include:
- A feeling of tiredness all the time (fatigue)
- Drop-in energy levels
- Obesity (being overweight)
- Visceral fat (fat stored within the abdominal cavity)
- Type 2 diabetes
- Memory fog, lack of focus and concentration
- Loss of sex drive and erection problems
- Sleep disturbance
- Inability to gain muscle and loss of lean muscle mass
- Loss of body hair
- Less beard growth
- Symptoms of depression
Why doctors believe your testosterone levels are normal
Insurance companies have become reluctant to pay out for testosterone replacement therapy (TRT). So, they invented a ‘normal range.’ In particular, a very low threshold for what they considered to be ‘Low T.’ With guidance from health panels, associations, and their own research, they agreed to 300 ng/dL, a pretty low level, which conveniently excluded millions of men from the help they need.
A 300ng/dL total testosterone level ignores that low testosterone symptoms are broad and vary significantly between men, contradicting any ‘medical’ justification for having such a low level.
The American Urological Association (AUA) states:
“Given the relative non-specificity of symptoms associated with low testosterone, a need exists to define a total testosterone threshold to guide clinicians in the diagnosis and management of the testosterone deficient male. The Panel believes that total testosterone <300 ng/dL is the proper threshold value to define low testosterone.”
Mulhall JP, Trost LW, Brannigan RE et al: Evaluation and management of testosterone deficiency: AUA guideline. J Urol 2018; 200: 423.
Published 2018
It is crucial to notice the above states, “relative non-specificity of symptoms associated with low testosterone.” So, they acknowledge that symptoms vary from person to person yet feel the need to add a minimum value to ‘qualify’ for testosterone replacement therapy. This is not great news for the millions of men who hear the words ‘your numbers look normal’ from their doctor every single day.
There is no such thing as a normal testosterone level
Every person is different, and hormones are way more complicated than just setting ‘Normal Levels.’ Numbers don’t easily define low or ‘suboptimal’ testosterone levels. Men with 600 ng/dL may experience symptoms when someone with a very low 120ng/dL does not. Men can experience symptoms over a wide range showing the importance of reading the signs and not just the numbers for an accurate diagnosis.
What is the normal testosterone level for your age?
A ‘normal’ testosterone level for a 20-year-old is a far cry from that of a 55-year-old. Because testosterone levels vary so much between individuals, it is impossible to have a “one size fits all” approach. An 80-year-old can have a ‘normal’ 350ng/dL reading which for a 40-year-old would certainly not be ‘normal,’ especially if accompanied by negative symptoms. The low level set by mainstream medicine doesn’t allow for the fact that optimal hormones are best, and 300ng/dL falls way short of this.
We live longer than our body is designed for
From around the 1500s right up to the 1800s, life expectancy throughout Europe averaged between 30 and 40 years of age. With improved healthcare, better sanitation, immunizations, improved nutrition, and clean running water, people now commonly live into their 80’s and 90’s. Unfortunately, our hormones are still hanging around in the dark ages, expecting us to be long gone by the time we reach 50.
Your hormones fall away from about 35 onwards, with available testosterone falling roughly 3% each year, all because your body thinks you won’t be needing them. Now we live longer; many men need to replace these ‘missing hormones’ to avoid the pitfalls of age-related decline and disease. We should be optimizing hormones to similar levels of your youth.
This predicament leads us to a problem with standard medical practice, as stated by The American Urological Association:
“Clinicians should adjust testosterone therapy dosing to achieve a total testosterone level in the middle tertile of the normal reference range.”
“The Panel recognizes that age adjustments may be required to define this middle range; however, from a practical standpoint, 450-600 ng/dL represents a viable range for all age groups. Achieving testosterone levels in this window should ameliorate any symptoms that are genuinely associated with testosterone deficiency.”
This ‘viable’ range of 450 – 600 ng/dL is not what is best for all ages. An 80-year-old man can feasibly have a testosterone level of 450. Do you want a level of an 80-year-old?
Most people take their doctor’s word as the gospel truth, and conditioning makes us this way. You need to bear in mind that your doctor is not an authority on hormones, no more than he is an expert on heart surgery. It is like going to a farmers’ market for advice on your faulty laptop.
Normal is not optimal
Most primary care doctors don’t understand that ‘normal’ is not ‘optimal.’ The acceptable ‘viable’ range set by standard healthcare isn’t utilizing hormone replacement to its full potential. A 19-year-old man will commonly reach an optimum level of around 1000 ng/dL. He is fit, healthy, and enjoys all the protective benefits optimized hormones offer. When you have optimal hormones, your body operates at its best, whatever your age; this is the kind of level Male Excel aims to achieve using bioidentical hormone replacement therapy.
By placing a ‘low T’ marker on testosterone levels, you completely ignore the need to look at how a person feels, their symptoms, and how they react to the therapy. Setting a ‘normal’ level takes no account for a person’s ‘androgen’ sensitivity, thyroid health and ultimately places men at risk of age-related disease along the line.
Optimizing hormones from your 40s onwards and leading a healthy lifestyle is the best way to avoid age-related diseases, physical decline, and the frailty of old age. The benefits of BHRT are something that men all over the USA could be enjoying, but simply because their doctor says, ‘your labs are normal,’ they cannot attain.
If you’re ready to try Male Excel’s Hormone Replacement Therapy program, click the button below to start our free online hormone assessment.
The Male Excel difference
Male Excel was created by primary care physicians that grew tired of being held back by a system designed to treat the illness and not the cause. Our founders discovered there was a better way by combining hormones with traditional medicines. Along with an improved lifestyle to prevent and treat the causes of common age-related diseases.
Reduced hormones and poor lifestyle are usually the cause of many avoidable age-related diseases, particularly type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease, related to being overweight. Many of these diseases can be alleviated or reversed by correcting hormone levels and adjusting lifestyle factors such as diet and exercise.
HRT isn't all the same, so we use bioidentical hormone replacement therapy - the natural choice.
If your primary care doctor offers testosterone replacement therapy, it will be because your levels are so low you need help. They will aim to get you to within ‘normal ranges’ which in most cases is insufficient. They will also give you off-the-shelf testosterone that isn’t bioidentical. The problem with such hormones is that they are structurally different from those your body naturally produces. This synthetic version is far more likely to cause unwanted side effects and less likely to benefit you in the same way as bioidentical.
Bioidentical hormones are identical to the natural hormones your body produces naturally, and therefore your hormone receptors do not see any difference. This type of hormone benefits your body in the same way your natural hormones do – this is why many people call bioidentical hormones ‘natural’.
With BHRT, you will be fitter, stronger and healthier, with the renewed energy of youth.
Benefits of optimal testosterone levels include:
- Improved libido and sexual satisfaction
- Reduced bad cholesterol (LDL)
- Increased metabolism
- Improved cardiovascular
- Increased lean muscle mass and strength
- Decreased body fat (dangerous visceral fat)
- Increased confidence, positivity, memory, and brain function
- Reduced feelings of depression
- Increased energy levels
- Improved sleep
- More equipped to deal with stress
- Reduced risk of type 2 diabetes and relief from insulin resistance
Understanding HRT
Frequently asked questions
HRT stands for hormone replacement therapy. Hormone levels are tested and medications are administered to help hormones such as testosterone and thyroid reach their optimum levels.
TRT stands for testosterone replacement therapy. Testosterone is given to combat decreasing levels in men. This is to fight the usual signs and symptoms of aging such as fatigue, weight gain, loss of libido, and muscle loss.
We offer a daily injectable Testosterone Cypionate or a twice-daily Lipoderm cream. Both are bioidentical. We also prescribe Triclozene (Clomiphene Citrate) for men, which can help improve several aspects of male health, including low testosterone levels, hormone ratios and sperm production.
The benefits of HRT are extensive but include the following: healthy heart and blood, less fat, more muscle, stronger bones, improved libido, better sleep, improved memory, spatial ability and mental reasoning, improved mood, and better sex.
On average it takes approximately 7 business days from ordering your test kit to receiving your results. This is obviously dependent on how quickly you complete and return the test via free return postage. Once we have received your results, a dedicated medical provider will review this along with your online assessment to create your personalized treatment plan.
This is a very difficult question because there is no definitive answer. Everybody is biologically different and responds to the treatment differently. For detailed information, click here.
The test indicates whether you will benefit from this treatment and what your current hormone levels are. We can then know the proper medication to get your testosterone and thyroid to their optimum levels.
Our blood spot test measures 5 key hormone levels. It offers distinct advantages over traditional testing methods because it eliminates the need for a blood draw – saving patients time and money. Our blood spot test is a simple to use test that is done in the comfort of your own home. It involves a finger prick and 12 drops of blood dropped onto a card. We include free return postage with your test for your convenience.
Yes. HRT is safe when monitored by a licensed medical provider. This is why we require yearly testing and symptoms questionnaires every 2 months.
The treatment is effective for as long as you take it. Once you stop taking HRT your levels will return to the levels they were previously.
What people say
Don't just take our word for it
Studies and References:
[1] Beltrán-Sáncheza H, Crimmins E, Finch C. Early cohort mortality predicts the rate of aging in the cohort: a historical analysis. J Dev Orig Health Dis. 2012;3(5):380–386. doi:10.1017/S2040174412000281
