How To Increase Testosterone Levels Naturally

A few easy to follow tips to help you increase your testosterone levels naturally, only adding a few healthy foods to your daily diet and increasing your exercise levels.

What is Testosterone?

Testosterone is a male hormone which plays a vital role in a man’s health and sexuality. When men are young it pushes them through puberty and helps them become stronger, taller and more masculine. During their teens and twenties, it is testosterone that raises the libido and sexual performance in men. Unfortunately, when men reach their thirties, the production of testosterone slows down, in some cases causing changes in sex drive, hair growth, muscle development and weight.

A decrease in Testosterone is not good for your health

Men should take the issue seriously as it has been shown lately that a decrease in testosterone levels not only decreases libido, increases the loss of muscles and bone density but most importantly, it increases the risk of cardiovascular disease.

• Lose all excess weight. The equation is simple, when your waistline increases, your testosterone level decreases. In a study on more than 2,100 men aged 45 and over, obese men were 2.4 times more likely to have low testosterone compared to those at a healthy weight.

• Work out your biceps. Finnish researchers found out that men who lift weights regularly, increase their testosterone levels by 49%. I recommend working your biceps for 45 minutes and no longer than one hour per session as overworking yourself is bad for your nervous and endocrine systems and ultimately diminishes your natural testosterone. Yes, this is a case when too much of something good for you ends up not being good at all !
  
  
  

• Eat healthy fats. To lose weight does not mean to eliminate all fats from your diet. Research suggests that when total fat, saturated fat and monounsaturated fat intakes increase, so does testosterone. To protect your heart and keep your testosterone levels, eat foods rich in monounsaturated fats, like the fat found in oily fish, avocados, macadamia nut oil and olive oil.
• Eat animal protein. Studies show that vegetarian diets lead to lower blood testosterone levels even when protein intake is the same.
• Snack on nuts, they are rich in monounsaturated fats. Nuts also have an abundance of certain hard-to-get nutrients, such as Vitamin E. Brazil nuts, especially, can help if you have a testosterone deficiency as they are high in selenium which is protective against prostate cancer, and good for testicular development. Almonds, also contain fatty acids which aid the male body in producing testosterone.
• Reduce alcohol consumption. Studies of heavy drinkers have shown that alcohol directly suppresses testosterone levels. The more you drink, the worse it gets. It is the acetylaldehyde, the primary breakdown product of ethanol (alcohol), which acts directly reducing testosterone production. Even small dosage levels affect testosterone production. So try to reduce your alcohol consumption.

• Don’t skip meals. The body needs a steady supply of nutrients to produce testosterone.

Incorporate foods with monounsaturated fats into your daily diet. Good fat intake is an important factor to consider when optimizing natural testosterone production.

Some foods containing high amounts of monounsaturated fats are Macadamia nuts, Olive oil, Avocados, Pecan nuts, peanut oil, sunflower oil and sesame oil.

• Stop the stress. Studies have linked both physical and psychological stress to a drop in the level of testosterone. Not dealing with stress effectively raises cortisol levels and lowers the amount of testosterone in the system, thus one of the main causes for a sudden drop in testosterone levels is simply stress.

• Have a good night sleep. The biggest daily contributor to decreased levels of testosterone is the lack of sleep. Sleeping less than 7-8 hours, a night can upset your body's circadian rhythm. That's why it is no wonder your testosterone levels are higher in the morning after a good night's sleep, literally, all symptoms of high testosterone are dramatically increased after sleeping well and long.

Royal Jelly is a natural testosterone booster, it is packed with vitamins, minerals, and enzymes. One could easily call it a natural multivitamin.

A study (which lasted 3 months) by the College of Medicine in Iraq found that 25 mg’s -a minuscule amount- of Royal jelly mixed with honey was enough to increase testosterone levels by 20% on infertile men.

Another study found that when healthy subjects were given 3,000 mg’s of Royal jelly for the period of 6 months, they increased their testosterone levels by 14%. They also found out that Royal jelly increased red blood cell count which according to the researchers is due by elevated testosterone levels.

Dr David Williams, a medical researcher, biochemist and chiropractor with a reputation as one of the world's leading authorities on natural healing, recommends 50 to 100 mg of royal jelly a day to boost testosterone levels naturally.

• If you wear jockey shorts, switch to boxer-type underwear.

Give all of these changes a period of at least three months

Adrian Dobbs, M.D. of JohnsHopkinsUniversity states clearly..."Having a normal testosterone level is critical for maintaining lean muscle mass, sexual potency and cognitive function".

Ken Goldberg M.D. of the Male Health Centre in Dallas states that between 8-12 million men have low or borderline low testosterone levels and 95% of them don't know it.

1. Stress,
2. Physical inactivity
3. Excessive training
4. Illness
5. Smoking
6. Alcohol consumption
7. The use of prescription and "recreational" drugs.