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Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced this week that the Pentagon will begin testing the testosterone levels of all military personnel over the age of 30 as part of their annual physical exams. And — if their levels are low — service members can choose to receive testosterone replacement therapy.
“It’s not about artificial enhancement,” Hegseth said. “It’s about restoring and improving your natural abilities, protecting your longevity, and making sure you have the biological foundation needed to sustain the fight.”
It’s another example of the masculine performance that has defined Hegseth’s time at the helm of the United States military. He has searched change the name of the Department of Defense as the War Department, to be preached “heroic” values, set back the DEI’s plans at the time block ads for women, and take an unusual interest in beard grooming standards for service members.
Testosterone stress is just one of several ways the military is making America Healthy Again. Hegseth announced in the spring that service members would no longer be required to get an annual flu shot. (Army later returned authority of new recruits, after a major flu outbreak in training camp.) And also this week, he was launched a new investigation on the decision of the Department of Defense in 2021 to order a vaccine for Covid-19 – shadows of the efforts made by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. at the US Department of Health and Human Services.
The “T” trend isn’t just a fix for Kennedy, who has said he takes testosterone supplements, and Hegseth. Most Americans of all ages they take testosterone. On one count, orders grew from 7.3 million in 2019 to more than 11 million in 2024.
So, is getting more people taking testosterone supplements a good idea? Should everyone be screened, as Hegseth suggests for service members over 30?
The The Endocrine Society said in a statement after Hegseth’s announcement that there was “sufficient evidence” to support testosterone level screening in asymptomatic Americans. Previous research suggests that, if anything, testosterone is already over-prescribed in the United States; only 12 percent of men who received a doctor’s prescription had received an appropriate screening test.
Testosterone levels drop as men age, and there has been an overall decrease in testosterone among men today compared to men of the past. But what is not clear it’s like measuring testosterone spread and adding is the solution.
For one, distinguishing between a natural decline in testosterone and a decline that requires medical intervention is a topic of ongoing debate among physicians. Low T can also be a sign of other chronic diseases that would be better treated. If your T is dropping because of obesity, for example, it would be better to lose weight (or take a GLP-1 drug instead of testosterone supplements). Evidence is mixed about how much taking T improves things like mood, energy, sexual performance — or military effectiveness — and taking too much testosterone can come with its own health risks.
The debate about T supplements is still ongoing. Doctors were concerned that excess testosterone could cause cardiovascular problems, but more recent research has dispelled those fears, leading supporters in the Trump administration. call for further instructions. But the evidence right now does not seem to support the widespread T testing and supplementation that the new military plan would recommend.
How to keep cool on a bad day: As a parent of three, I’m always looking for better ways to manage my stress — and I found inspiration in four strategies. suggested by Allie Volpe of Vox in her piece this week. If we can take the time to acknowledge how we feel and truly reflect on what has caused us to feel that way, we can avoid a complete meltdown. That’s information you can really use.
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- Today’s trivia: What does the Russian name mean “holy”? (You can find this with other brain puzzles in Vox’s daily idiom. Look for the answer in Monday’s edition.)
- Yesterday’s Trivia: Yesterday, we asked you what animal could be as thin as a few millimeters or 13 feet across. That would be a crab, the variety of which can range from tiny and cute to very scary.
