How to Increase Free Testosterone

Testosterone is critical for your health. Here is everything you need to know about how to safely increase your free testosterone level.

Testosterone is a critical hormone for both men and women. Unfortunately, we lose this critical hormone as we age. This age-related testosterone loss can be a real issue for men.

By the time a man is over 30, the level of testosterone in his blood can decrease by as much as 2% every year. As your testosterone drops, you can start to:

• Feel tired and sluggish
• Put on weight, particularly belly fat
• Develop sexual health issues
• Have difficulty with focus
• Have trouble building muscle, even when working out
• Have trouble sleeping
• Feel depressed, angry, or anxious

The good news is there are several lifestyle changes you can make that could naturally boost your free testosterone levels.

What Is Free Testosterone?

Testosterone is the most important male hormone. Most of the testosterone in your blood is attached to one of two proteins: albumin and sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG). However, there is some testosterone in the bloodstream that is not attached to either albumin or SHBG. This is what doctors refer to as “free testosterone.”

The combination of both your protein-bound testosterone and free testosterone is your “total testosterone,” sometimes also referred to as “bioavailable testosterone.”

Is it Possible to Increase Free Testosterone?

Yes, there are absolutely several proven methods to increase your level of free testosterone.

• Exercise

Exercise is one of the most effective ways to boost your testosterone. Strength training, such as weightlifting or High-Intensity Interval Training, are the best exercises to boost testosterone. Such exercises also boosts your level of growth hormone. Exercise can also help you to lose weight. Obesity lowers your testosterone level.

• Sleep

Critical hormones such as testosterone and growth hormone are mostly produced during periods of deep sleep. Not getting enough sleep negatively impacts hormone production. Making sleep a priority is vital to maintain testosterone levels. Men should aim to sleep at least 7 to 8 hours each night.

• Reduce stress

Stress is a testosterone killer. High stress raises your levels of the hormone cortisol. Elevations in cortisol can quickly reduce testosterone.

• Vitamin D

Vitamin D is a precursor to testosterone production. It is crucial that men spend enough time in the sun (the main source of vitamin D) or take vitamin D supplements.

• Avoid alcohol

Abuse of alcohol lowers your testosterone.

• Nutritional supplements

Certain herbs and nutritional supplements have been shown to increase testosterone production. This includes ginseng, ginger, ashwagandha root, DHEA, and Yohimbe.

• Enjoy a healthy sex life

Men will be happy to know that having sex regularly can increase testosterone production.

Can I Increase Free Testosterone Naturally?

In addition to using the above lifestyle changes to naturally raise your free testosterone levels, what you eat impacts your testosterone levels. Here are some foods to eat and some foods to steer clear of if you want to raise your free testosterone or maintain a healthy level of total testosterone.

Foods You Should Eat to Boost Your Free Testosterone

If you want to naturally increase your testosterone levels, foods you should add to your diet right now include:

• Tuna and other oily fish such as sardines and salmon
• Low-fat milk with vitamin D
• Egg yolks
• Fortified whole-grain cereals
• Oysters
• Shellfish
• Beef
• Beans

Foods to Avoid to Increase Your Free Testosterone

If you want to boost testosterone in addition to adding foods, there are certain “testosterone killing” foods you must avoid. These include:

• Soy products
• Most dairy products (except those that have been enriched with vitamin D)
• Mint
• Bread, pastries, and desserts
• Licorice root
• Vegetable Oil
• Flaxseed.
• Processed Foods

Generally speaking, a “heart-healthy” diet, one that is high in protein, and low in carbs and fats, is the best to also maintain good testosterone levels.

Can Testosterone Replacement Therapy Increase Free Testosterone?

There are ways to naturally boost your testosterone levels. However, if you have been diagnosed with low testosterone, the only way to treat it is with testosterone replacement therapy.

Exercising more, eating the foods as suggested, and making other lifestyle changes can all help to boost free testosterone levels. But, at a certain age, your body can only produce so much testosterone. If you are over 40 and experiencing the symptoms of low testosterone, chances are you can never raise your levels high enough with lifestyle changes alone.

Testosterone replacement therapy is a safe and effective way for men with below-normal testosterone levels to improve their quality of life. The only way to legally obtain testosterone therapy is with a proper diagnosis of low testosterone and a prescription from a doctor.

Testosterone replacement is available in several forms; however, our doctors have found that testosterone injections are the safest and most effective way to take testosterone.

What Do the Medical Studies Say About Boosting Testosterone?

Taking a deeper dive into the methods mentioned above to naturally raise testosterone, here is what some of the medical research says.

A study published in the prestigious Trusted sourceEffect of 1 Week of Sleep Restriction on Testosterone Levels in Young Healthy MenJAMA NetworkGo to sourceJournal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) found that lack of sleep definitely will lower a man’s testosterone level. The researchers found that after only one week of restricted sleep, daytime testosterone levels dropped by up to 15 percent. By contrast, normal aging sees testosterone decreases of just 1 to 2 percent per year.

According to one report in the Trusted sourceDiet-induced obesity and low testosterone increase neuroinflammation and impair neural functionPubMedGo to sourceJournal of Neuroinflammation , low testosterone levels and being overweight may contribute to a variety of inflammatory conditions and impaired neurological function. This is just one of several studies that link poor diet to lower free testosterone levels.

According to a Harvard Health paper on testosterone and obesity, entitled Obesity: Trusted sourceObesity: Unhealthy and unmanlyHarvard Health PublishingGo to sourceUnhealthy and Unmanly, a 2007 study of men aged 40 and above found that each one-point increase in body mass index (BMI) was associated with a 2% decrease in testosterone. Obesity is defined as BMI is 30 or higher.

A 2014 study published in the Trusted sourceLowered testosterone in male obesity: mechanisms, morbidity and managementNCBIGo to sourceAsian Journal Andrology found that even “moderate obesity” could lead to drops in testosterone, with the researchers concluding, “moderate obesity predominantly decreases total testosterone due to insulin resistance-associated reductions in SHBG.”

As far as the benefits of exercise for boosting testosterone levels, a study in the Trusted sourcePhysically active men show better semen parameters and hormone values than sedentary menPubMedGo to sourceEuropean Journal of Applied Physiology found that the more active an individual is, the more testosterone they will have.

Another study Trusted sourceThe presence of symptoms of testosterone deficiency in the exercise-hypogonadal male condition and the role of nutritionPubMedGo to sourcepublished in 2017 in that same Journal suggested that increasing physical activity was more beneficial than weight loss for improving testosterone levels.

Now that you know a bit more about free testosterone and how to increase your levels, why not contact us today and find out more about the many life-changing benefits of testosterone therapy?