Low Testosterone in Men Predicts More Severe COVID-19 Infection Tom Nikkola | VIGOR Training

Throughout the p(l)andemic, men have consistently fared worse than women. They've ended up in the hospital more often, and have died more frequently.



Until recently, many “experts” believed the difference between the sexes came from women’s higher estrogen levels and men’s higher testosterone levels.



Recent research debunks that idea. In fact, it seems that low testosterone in men, not high testosterone, significantly increases the risk of severe COVID-19 cases.



The Low Testosterone Problem



Low testosterone levels in men was a growing problem long before the COVID-19 Circus. Fifteen years ago, research showed that 39% of U.S. men, age 45 and older, were testosterone-deficient.



Since then, stress has only increased, more men deal with sleep debt, fewer men eat meat or strength train, more men live on statins, and few take good nutritional supplements.



Poor nutrition, insufficient sleep, obesity, a lack of strength training or physical work, low vitamin D levels, a reduction in meat consumption, and other factors have contributed to plummeting androgen levels.



Though it’s relatively easy to optimize testosterone levels, most men seem to ignore the obvious symptoms, such as moobs, a lack of sex drive or morning erections, or the ambition and drive that helps men to “man up.” Sadly, few doctors proactively measure their male patient’s testosterone as part of a standard check-up.



Low Testosterone, High COVID-19 Risk



Though the mechanism isn’t fully understood, evidence indicates that testosterone protects men with COVID-19.



As stated in one paper,




Studies carried out both in animals and humans have shown that hypogonadism is associated with increased pro-inflammatory cytokines and that testosterone treatment reduces IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α.
Geoffrey Hacket and Michael Kirby



Low testosterone predicts worsening symptoms, even when men start with mild COVID-19 symptoms.



As we've seen, severe cases have hit more middle-aged men as time has gone on. We're not talking about plague-like numbers, but it's clear that some younger men can succumb to COVID.




We also found that those men with COVID-19 who were not severely ill initially, but had low testosterone levels, were likely to need intensive care or intubation over the next two or three days. Lower testosterone levels seemed to predict which patients were likely to become very ill over the next few days.
Sandeep Dhindsa, MD, endocrinologist at Saint Louis University



Men who get hospitalized or die of COVID-19 are more likely to have hypogonadism.



Salonia A, et al. found that 90% of men hospitalized for COVID-19 had hypogonadism. They also found that testosterone levels were “significantly lower in men with greatest need of ICU and highest risk of death.”



Another study showed that low testosterone men needed ventilation more often, and were more likely to die.



One more study showed that hypogonadal men of reproductive age were more likely to be infected with SARS-CoV-2 than men with higher testosterone levels.



Kadihasanoglu, et al. found almost 74% of men with COVID-19 were low in testosterone. They also identified a correlation between low testosterone and longer stays in the hospital.



COVID-19 could suppress testosterone production as well?



While low testosterone levels could lead to a worse outcome from COVID-19, is it possible that COVID-19 could also lower testosterone?




Çayan et al. showed that COVID‐19 could decrease circulating T levels, and lower T levels at baseline were associated with a significantly increased risk in terms of ICU and mortality.
Alonia A, et al.



I experienced a significant drop in testosterone after having COVID as well. Vanessa and I both got COVID-19 the week after Easter, 2021. I had noticeable symptoms for five days, and spent two of those days on the couch, catching up on movies and TV shows.



Up to that point, my testosterone levels had hovered between