Did You Know That Men Also Have Hormonal Cycles?

Governed by changing levels of the hormone estrogen, women experience a roughly 28-day cycle that allows for the production of eggs, and for the preparation of the uterus for pregnancy. But it produces a slew of nasty side-effects ranging from acne, physical discomfort, to changes in mood.

According to Dr. Abraham Morgentaler, a clinical professor of urology at Harvard Medical School, the author of Why Men Fake It: The Totally Unexpected Truth About Men and Sex, and the founder of Men's Health Boston, his own private medical practice, “Normal men have a 24-hour cycle where they have the highest testosterone levels in the morning and the lowest late at night.” In fact, he added, some people think this is one of the reasons for morning erections, or “morning wood.”

The hormonal variations “happen in healthy younger men, but even when the levels are lowest during the day, they are not that low,” Dr. Morgentaler told BuzzFeed science. Once men hit the age of 40, he added, this hormonal variation becomes even less pronounced.

“It’s debatable whether it changes any behavior in a way that we can tell or have guys feel,” Morgentaler explained. He also added that it is unclear what purpose or significance the male daily cycle serves.

“Testosterone does have an important relationship to mood. Men who are deficient in testosterone will frequently say their mood is blunted, that they are not engaged in life,” Dr Morgentaler explained. “They can become cranky.” They can also get more emotional, he said. He gave an example of a patient of his who had low testosterone who reported that he “lost it” whenever he watched a boy scout commercial.

A deficiency of testosterone is actually pretty common,” Morgentaler said, “If you look at men 45 years and older, more than a third of men might have levels below the normal range.” It can be treated with testosterone gels, injections, pellets, or patches, he explained.