Testosterone Supplements Don't Help With Sex But Not Bad For Heart: Study
The use of testosterone supplements and their many benefits are matters of intense debate, which one new study may have settled.
A massive double-blind study found that testosterone does not help men aged over 60 years to improve sexual function but it does not increase risk of heart attack by narrowing arteries. The link between testosterone, heart attack and stroke risk have been not been clear until now, with some studies claiming testosterone increased risk when others claimed it did not, LA Times reports.
Close to 300 men were recruited to participate at three US centers during the three-year study. Participants were either given testosterone or placebo gel. Researchers measured changes in coronary artery calcium levels and narrowing of carotid arteries that supply blood to the brain. All the participants had low or slightly lower than normal testosterone levels.
"Testosterone administration for 3 years vs placebo did not result in a significant difference in the rates of change in either common carotid artery intima-media thickness or coronary artery calcium nor did it improve overall sexual function or health-related quality of life," researchers wrote in the Journal of American Medical Association.
The study flies in the face of libido and enhancement of sexual function of claims that manufacturers of testosterone supplements make. Around $ 1.6 billion in the annual spending on such spending by three percent American men aged over 40 years.
