Therapeutic Testosterone Myths and Misconceptions- Part 1 w/ Dr. Scott Howell and Dr. Keith Nichols

Therapeutic testosterone has been plagued by myths and misunderstanding. How is this a result of the way data is interpreted? Do men need to block estrogen when undergoing hormone optimization? On this episode, I’m joined by Dr. Keith Nichols and one of the leading androgen researchers in the world, Dr. Scott Howell. Together we go through a list of testosterone myths and discuss the data that completely disproves them.

Interpretations of research influences many things, and misinterpretation of data causes problems for a lot of people. -Dr. Scott Howell

Four Takeaways

• Anytime the ratio of androgen to estrogen is altered, it leads to definite cardio pathology.
• Even with increased testosterone, lower estrogen levels lead to increased visceral fat, increased subcutaneous fat, decreased cognition, possible depression, and osteoporosis.  
• Gynecomastia has a lot more to do with having a predisposition to it, not estrogen.
• If you’ve always had hair and never experienced shedding, testosterone won’t suddenly make your hair fall out.

At the start of the show, Dr. Scott shared how he got started and got into research. Next he talked about the importance of interpreting research correctly, and how misinterpretations are at the root of a lot of myths and misconceptions. We talked about testosterone myths including Is whether AIs are necessary, testosterone and prostate cancer, as well as testosterone and gynecomastia. We also talked about one way you can tell if a doctor is actually really clued up on testosterone optimization.  

We also discussed;

• If testosterone is linked to cardiovascular disease
• Testosterone and androgenic alopecia/follicular shedding
• The role of “bro science” in testosterone misconceptions

We have to get rid of all the locker room bodybuilding subculture pseudoscience that has led to people (even physicians) believing that testosterone is harmful and dangerous. The truth about many of the harms of testosterone is that they aren’t based on the whole population of people who are using it. Things like hair loss, anger problems and gynecomastia have more to with having a predisposed condition and not the use therapeutic testosterone. A lot of the so-called side effects people have come from fundamental, genetic and personality traits.