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A low-fat diet reduced testosterone levels in men
Olga Ivanova, Naked Science
The work was published in the Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (Whittaker, Wu, Low-fat diets and testosterone in men: Systematic review and meta-analysis of intervention studies).
Optimal testosterone levels are crucial for men's health, as well as for achieving athletic performance, mental and sexual potential. In addition, low levels of this hormone are associated with a higher risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes and Alzheimer's disease. Studies have shown that since the middle of the XX century, significant changes have taken place in the diet of many people, due to which, among other things, testosterone levels have decreased in men living in Western countries.
Scientists from the Universities of Worcester and Warwick (UK) conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis, which combined the results of six reliably controlled studies involving a total of 206 people. Men first received food with a high fat content (up to 40 percent in the diet), and then with a low (up to 20 percent).
The results of the study showed that changing the diet affects male hormones. In particular, scientists have found that the testosterone level decreases by 10-15 percent when maintaining a low-fat diet. Especially harmful to the male body is the vegetarian menu, which causes a drop in the level of the sex hormone to 26 percent. At the same time, according to other studies, a diet that includes a lot of fat reduces triglycerides and blood pressure.
In general, fats are a controversial topic in nutrition science, since their high content increases cholesterol. It seems that the type of fats that a person eats is important in this matter. On the one hand, vegetable fats are useful because they contribute to the accumulation of so–called good cholesterol in the body, and on the other hand, the same fats are more prone to oxidative reactions. This threatens to damage cells and, as a result, can interfere with various normal processes in the body – for example, the production of the same hormones. Therefore, scientists emphasize that further research is needed to clarify the information.
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