Depression in men linked to lower testosterone levels

BBC News: Health News: Testosterone linked to depression

Older men with lower levels of the male sex hormone testosterone in their blood may be more prone to depression, a study suggests.

A study of about 4,000 men aged over 70 found those with lowest testosterone were three times more likely to be depressed than those with the most. Researchers suspect the hormone may affect levels of key brain chemicals. The study, by the University of Western Australia, features in Archives of General Psychiatry.

A previous study of 800 men over the age of 50 found that those with low levels of testosterone had a 33% increased risk of death over an 18-year period than those with higher levels. They appeared significantly more likely to have a cluster of risk factors associated with cardiovascular disease and diabetes.

"Testosterone therapy offers a relatively simple intervention, potentially, for some groups of older depressives with hypogonadism (low production of sex hormones)." Professor Stafford Lightman, a hormone expert at the University of Bristol, said testosterone potentially had many small effects which could raise the risk of depression. For instance, low levels had been linked to poor cognitive performance.

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