How Alcohol Could Be Impacting Your Testosterone

If you’re worried about low testosterone levels, cutting down on alcohol consumption is a must. 

What You’ll Learn: 

• What testosterone is and why it’s an essential hormone.
• Recent findings about testosterone levels decreasing.
• The connection between alcohol consumption and testosterone production.
• How to test your testosterone levels.
• How to curb alcohol consumption to increase testosterone production

Testosterone is one of the key hormones produced by both men and women. While it’s most closely associated with the male reproductive system, testosterone plays a role in functions beyond sperm production. It’s needed for general reproductive health, mood regulation, overall energy and more for both sexes.

Low testosterone levels can lead to a number of issues including decreased muscle mass, increased body fat, poor sleep, lower bone density and fatigue. It even increases the risk of early mortality. 

If you have low T or suspect you might, you’ll want to figure out what’s causing the hormone imbalance. One of the first things to consider is how your alcohol consumption could be impacting your testosterone production. 

The Connection Between Alcohol Consumption and Testosterone Production

Some studies have found that occasional low to moderate drinking won’t impact testosterone production. There could even be a short-lived boost in testosterone. However, excessive and chronic alcohol consumption have been shown to significantly lower testosterone levels.

Heavy alcohol use can lower testosterone by 30%.

There is a clear connection between alcohol use and low testosterone. As it turns out, there are many ways that alcohol can disrupt testosterone production:

Disruption in Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal (HPA) Axis Activity

Alcohol significantly disrupts the HPA Axis, the system that regulates testosterone. The HPA Axis helps to control the production of Luteinizing Hormone (LH) and Follicle-Stimulating Hormone (FSH). Both are suppressed by alcohol, which disrupts the production of testosterone. 

Cellular Damage

Alcohol is a toxin. As such, it can damage a lot of different cells in the body. Two types of cells that it damages are Leydig cells and Sertoli cells. Leydig cells in the testes make testosterone and Sertoli cells are needed for sperm maturation. 

Inflammation

Inflammation is rarely good, and for testosterone that’s certainly the case. Consuming alcohol causes inflammation throughout the body because it creates free radicals. The resulting inflammation damages cells, including cells in the testes that stimulate testosterone. 

Oxidative Stress

Oxidative stress is at the root of cellular damage. It’s a product of inflammation, which increases with alcohol use. Oxidative stress is bad news for testosterone because it damages Leydig cells. 

Increased Estrogen

Estrogen is the counter to testosterone. Excessive alcohol use is known to increase fatty cells that produce estrogen, which is counterproductive to testosterone production. Alcohol also stimulates the enzyme aromatase. Aromatase increases the conversion of androgens (including testosterone) into estrogens, increasing estrogen levels and decreasing testosterone.

NAD+ Depletion

NAD+ is a coenzyme that’s needed for the creation of testosterone, and alcohol depletes NAD+. 

Zinc and Vitamin D Deficiency

Heavy or chronic drinking can lead to nutritional deficiencies, and in terms of testosterone production, zinc and vitamin D deficiency is a problem.  

These effects are troublesome at any age, but they are particularly problematic in older men since testosterone levels naturally decrease with age. Regular alcohol use will accelerate the problem and its associated health concerns.

How to Know If Your Testosterone is Low and If It’s Improving After You Reduce Your Drinking

Anyone who drinks alcohol, especially if it’s excessive or chronic drinking, should test their testosterone levels to know if their hormone health is being impacted. At one time this meant scheduled a doctor’s visit, running tests and then waiting a while for the results. Today, measuring your testosterone is much easier. 

A simple at-home testosterone testing kit can give you the answers that you need. They are affordable, convenient and easy to use. You can take the test now to know your total and free testosterone levels then test again after reducing alcohol use for 1-3 months to see how your hormones are recovering. However, if you’re a heavy drinker it can take 3-6 months for testosterone production to normalize. 

Effectively Curbing Alcohol Consumption to Recover Your Testosterone Levels

Anyone who’s concerned their drinking has had a negative impact on testosterone production will be glad to know that the effects can be reversed by cutting back on alcohol. Any reduction is beneficial, but completely abstaining from alcohol is the best option. 

Although improvements can begin in a matter of days as the body detoxifies, fully restoring your hormone health will take time. In 2-4 weeks you should notice that you have more energy and libido. During this period the body is repairing cells that have been damaged and getting the HPA axis back on track. 

Hormone production will continue to increase and stabilize over the next 3-6 months. The heavier you drink and the longer the duration, the more time it will take to get your testosterone levels back up where they need to be.

Reducing or quitting alcohol use can be difficult for people who drink regularly. Naltrexone is clinically proven to reduce alcohol cravings so that it’s much easier to drink less or quit drinking entirely. It works at a neurological level by preventing the release of dopamine whenever alcohol is consumed. In other words, you don’t get buzzed, which causes alcohol cravings to subside. 

If you want help curbing your alcohol cravings so you can drink less to help boost testosterone levels, take the Alcohol Use Assessment. It can be completed in a few minutes, is completely confidential and is the first step in finding out if you qualify for a naltrexone prescription.