Your health and wellness is governed to a surprising extent by your reproductive hormones — namely testosterone — and you can take that for granted when levels are normal. If you develop a testosterone deficiency, however, the side effects may surprise you as they can impact both your physical and mental health.

As men’s health specialists, our team here at The Y Factor: Men’s Urological Wellness & Fertility, under the expert direction of Dr. Russel Williams, is plenty familiar with the wide range of side effects that can be brought on by low testosterone, or low T.

In the following, we explore five of the obvious and not-so-obvious signs that you may have low testosterone and how we can help.

1. Low sex drive and erectile dysfunction

Testosterone is produced by your testes, and it’s considered the male sex hormone, which means its influence over your sexual health is far from insignificant. When you have low T, one of the first signs may be sexual dysfunction, whether it’s loss of libido or problems with erectile dysfunction.

The reason why you may struggle to get or maintain an erection when you have low T is because testosterone plays a key role in signaling your brain to produce nitric oxide, which is what creates an erection.

2. Fatigue

Many of our patients with low T complain of low energy levels and fatigue, no matter how well rested they are. This fatigue can be quite generalized and hard to pinpoint, but many patients report that they, “simply don’t feel like their normal energetic selves.”

If you find yourself lacking motivation for activities you once enjoyed, it’s worth determining whether low T is to blame.

3. Moodiness

As we mentioned, testosterone casts a wide net over your health, including your mental health. If you find yourself more irritable, anxious, or depressed than usual, low T may play a role.

The human body works best when everything is in balance. If your testosterone levels are low and your cortisol levels (your stress hormones) are high, it can cause extreme mood swings and irritability. The relationship between the two isn’t direct, but you may feel more stress because of sexual dysfunction, for example, which was initially triggered by low T.

4. Loss of bone and muscle

Testosterone plays a key role in promoting lean muscle mass, as well as bone density. When you have low T, you may notice unwelcome changes in your musculoskeletal structure that favor fat over muscle and leave you with weakened bones.

5. Hair loss

Balding is far from uncommon among men, but the problem can be greatly exacerbated by low T as testosterone influences hair production.

Getting back to yourself

If you’re experiencing any of these symptoms, we encourage you to come and get tested for low testosterone. If we find a deficiency, we prefer to address the problem using natural testosterone enhancement. With this approach, we turn to medications and lifestyle changes that promote your natural testosterone production.

While synthetic hormone replacement therapies are available, they can suppress your natural production of testosterone and shrink your testicles, which is why we prefer an approach that works with your body.

To learn more about low testosterone and natural testosterone enhancement, please contact one of our locations in Houston, Tomball, or Webster, Texas, to set up an appointment.