For women, it’s usually not about "boosting" testosterone, but rather supporting overall hormone balance. When you’re stressed, your body produces more cortisol—a hormone that actually works against testosterone. Too much testosterone—especially when taken without medical guidance—can cause serious health problems, like liver damage, high blood pressure, and heart disease. Aging 10 years increases your odds of having low testosterone by 36%, but a 4-inch increase in waist size may increase your chances by up to 75%. If you're obese, you're four times more likely to benefit from testosterone replacement than non-obese men. Certain testosterone boosters have specific side effects. Your body makes dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) in your adrenal glands and uses it to make both testosterone and estrogen. People who exercise had higher testosterone increases. Taking magnesium as a supplement has been shown to increase free and total testosterone values. Both of these may stimulate the body to release more testosterone. The implication of testosterone therapy in management of obesity in men with testosterone deficiency is of paramount clinical significance, as it produces sustained weight loss without recidivism. Long-term testosterone therapy in men with testosterone deficiency produces significant and sustained weight loss, marked reduction in waist circumference and BMI and improvement in body composition. The researchers only included men in the study, because they didn’t expect weight loss drugs to raise testosterone levels in women. Popular weight loss medications like Ozempic can help reverse low testosterone levels in men with obesity or Type 2 diabetes, according to new research. Testosterone therapy may make sense for women who have low testosterone levels and symptoms that might be due to testosterone deficiency. For starters, a healthy sex life is important in regulating your sex hormone and testosterone levels. In a 2021 study, zinc supplementation increased testosterone levels and improved sexual function in postmenopausal women with low blood levels of zinc. During puberty in people assigned male at birth, testosterone is one of the main drivers of physical changes like muscle development, voice changes, and hair growth. Testosterone is a steroid hormone that the body mainly produces in the testicles and ovaries. None of our tests are intended to be a substitute for seeking professional medical advice, help, diagnosis, or treatment. Measure your levels for the 3 main thyroid hormones plus thyroid antibodies Measure 11 key biomarkers known to play important roles in women’s overall health Finally, keep in mind that if you are experiencing low testosterone symptoms, talking with your healthcare provider is a great step to take so you can learn what action steps they recommend for you. Here, we summarize recent findings related to long-term testosterone therapy that produces improvement in body composition and more specifically weight loss, reduction in waist circumference and BMI. This is of paramount importance because testosterone therapy in obese men with testosterone deficiency represents a novel and a timely therapeutic strategy for managing obesity in men with testosterone deficiency. The best types of exercise to increase your testosterone levels are weightlifting and high-intensity interval training (HIIT). A review of dozens of clinical trials showed that DHEA supplements do increase blood testosterone levels in men and women. In one yearlong study, 65 men who took 3,300 IU of vitamin D daily increased their testosterone levels by 20% over those who didn't. Long-term zinc supplementation may lead to increased testosterone levels. Also called androgen replacement therapy, this is a medical treatment your doctor may prescribe if blood tests show unusually low levels of testosterone.