I ran across a series of articles on testosterone in men and women, as related to cognition, obesity, metabolic syndrome and pain perception, from The Endocrine Society. The key findings are:

Testosterone in men may protect against Parkinson’s disease (and many other diseases of aging)

Perception of pain is reduced with increased testosterone levels in men

Testosterone reduces brain inflammation associated with obesity – higher levels are protective

Women show improved post-menopausal memory and learning with testosterone therapy

After uterine and ovary removal, women have improved sexual function with testosterone replacement therapy

In every instance mentioned, testosterone production and blood levels can be raised by weight training, which for me is a must-use strategy for aging well. Beyond that, many supplements (herbal and nutritional) are available for increasing testosterone production in both men and women, even after menopause or sex organ removal. These can be approached experimentally with low risk of side effects, and I use suggest that they should always be tried before dirct hormone replacement. You will find the articles included below in this email.

Good Living – Frank