Recent studies link Vitamin D with low testosterone levels among men.
Yes, you heard that right! Vitamin D, a group of fat-soluble vitamins can keep your testosterone levels fit.
According to major reports, vitamin D has been known for its effects on:
- Bone
- Absorption of minerals
- Muscles
- And even your immune system
But the recent advances in the field of studies show that vitamin D deficiency has a strong link with Testosterone decline owing to similar symptoms.
Talking more about whether the vitamin can actually lift or pull your testosterone down is several pieces of evidence and facts.
Have a read, to finally find a solution to your healthy body seeing a testosterone decline without any age factor involved.
Vitamin D And Testosterone Levels – What Science Says?
Vitamin D is a group of vitamins like Vitamin D3 that support your bone health and also regulates healthy neurological health and muscular functioning.
The science behind Vitamin D And Low Testosterone Levels comes from similar symptoms of deficiency!
Symptoms of Vitamin D deficiency and testosterone deficiency are similar as in:
Erectile dysfunction – low testosterone levels cause erectile dysfunction by decreasing blood flow, while vitamin D low levels can induce ED because of low mood.
Low sex drive – vitamin D deficiency can affect your psychological state impacting your sex drive, while testosterone levels are already linked with low sex drive.
Other symptoms similar between vitamin D and testosterone are:
- Weakness
- Fatigue
- Less muscle strength
Several studies prove and establish a link between testosterone and Vitamin D declining levels.
Vitamin D Testosterone Study – Supplementation and Effects!
Study I
A study conducted on middle-aged men with low testosterone and low Vitamin D levels was conducted.
During the study, Vitamin D supplementation was given to the participants and the vitamin D and testosterone levels were observed.
Post measuring the levels it was found that both Vitamin D and testosterone levels improved.
Study II
The study was conducted to study the effects of Vitamin D on reproduction.
Observations conducted in the study show how Vitamin D affects the production of testosterone.
Two groups of Danish men were formed in which one group comprising of 41 men had their testicles removed because of cancer.
Other groups comprised 300 healthy men.
For observations, blood samples were collected for measuring:
- Concentration of testosterone
- LH
- Vitamin D
- Parathyroid hormone
According to the results:
The healthy group with vitamin D deficiency and high parathyroid concentration showed lower levels of testosterone to LH ratio.
This proved that the activity of LH on testosterone secretions decreases vitamin D deficiency.
The group with testicles removed was injected with human chorionic gonadotropin to study the remaining testicles’ efficiency in producing testosterone.
This group showed people with low Vitamin D levels had less response to the injection than men with normal Vitamin D.
Part II of the above study
In the group with 41 people with one of their testicles removed, researchers extracted healthy tissue from the remaining testicles that didn’t contain cancer cells for culture.
Activated vitamin d was applied to the tissue and monitored for testosterone secretion.
According to observations, the tissue that was activated with Vitamin D showed more testosterone production than the other tissue.
This shows that vitamin D can directly affect testosterone production.
Study III
Researchers from Harvard School of Public Health conducted a study on 1,362 male participants to test the connection between plasma levels of Vitamin D and testosterone.
The study confirmed that both Vitamin D and testosterone levels complement each other and deficiency in any of them can lead to deficiency in the other.
So, Does Vitamin D Increase Testosterone?
Yes, it supports your testosterone levels as stated by the above studies and many more studies that we haven’t listed here!
One such study that answers how supplementation with Vitamin D pulls up your testosterone levels is:
A random 2011 study was conducted to observe the effects of high-dose Vitamin D supplementation on total testosterone levels.
The supplementation was able to shoot up the total testosterone levels from 10.7nmol/L to 13.4 nmol/L while there was no change in the group on placebo.
This showed that people with Vitamin D deficiency can balance their testosterone by just improving their Vitamin D intake.
Now the question is How Boost Testosterone and Vitamin D together!
Well, we have that sorted with some of the best ways to naturally pull up your Vitamin D and testosterone together.
Boost Vitamin D and Testosterone Naturally!
As the above studies prove that improving Vitamin D can naturally lift your testosterone producing ability too, here are some of the most effective ways for a good intake of Vitamin D:
#1. Exposure to the sun
Direct exposure of your skin to the sun helps in the synthesis of your Vitamin D that can reap benefits like a boost in testosterone.
Your body contains a protein called 7-DHC which reacts with Ultraviolet rays to produce Vitamin D3 which is an active form of Vitamin D.
Though you can get good exposure to the sun by just taking a brisk walk on a sunny day, most of the time people living in cold climates are not able to get enough UV rays.
Also, people with dark complexions find it difficult to absorb enough sunlight as compared to fairer complexion people.
This can cause Vitamin D deficiency if you are not into other sources of the vitamin.
Also, excess exposure to the sun could be a reason for skin cancer, so people into cold climates, or with dark complexions can go for some other sources listed down.
#2. Food
There aren’t many food options for deriving a good amount of Vitamin D but yes there still are some foods that you can decorate on your platter for more vitamin D.
Vitamin D rich foods:
Fishes
According to health experts, the following types of fish contain a good amount of vitamin D:
- Salmon – 3 ounces contains 447 IU
- Tuna – 3 ounces has 154 IU
- Sardines – 2 fillets have 46 IU
Cod liver oil can give you 453 IU of vitamin D in just one teaspoon!
Since raw fish has a higher amount of Vitamin D, you can go for sushi or even sashimi.
Mushrooms
The only good vegetarian sources of Vitamin D are mushrooms. Just like our human body, mushrooms too produce their Vitamin D in the form of Vitamin D which is an active form.
However, the amount of vitamin D depends on the type you choose:
- Wild mushrooms contain 2,348 IU per 3.5 ounce
But always buy these wild mushrooms from trusted sources.
Egg yolk
Eggs from pasture-raised chickens lay eggs that contain as much as 20% of the RDI.
Also, chickens fed with Vitamin D-rich food lay eggs with higher content of Vitamin D.
Fortified foods
there are very few natural sources of Vitamin D hence sometimes staples are fortified with the vitamin. Some of the common sources of fortified Vitamin D are:
- Cow’s milk
- Plant-based alternatives to cow’s milk
- Orange juice
- Yogurt
- Tofu
However, sometimes deriving enough quantity of vitamin D from foods, and there come in supplements containing Vitamin D.
#3. Supplements
There are many types of supplements available in the market:
- Nutritional Vitamin D supplements
- Vitamin D Supplements To Increase Testosterone
While the first one keeps your Vitamin D levels balanced, the latter combines many ingredients with Vitamin D to push up your testosterone levels.
These supplements usually contain natural ingredients like:
- Fenugreek
- Ashwagandha
- Magnesium
- Zinc
And many others.
The most beneficial combination for testosterone boost along with Vit. D is – Zinc and Vitamin D for Testosterone.
When together zinc and Vitamin D boost up your testosterone levels by protecting existing testosterone and stimulating new production too.
How Does Zinc And Vitamin D Increase Testosterone?
According to many studies, zinc helps stimulate your body to produce more testosterone and also prevents the inactivation of free testosterone.
On the other hand, we already saw studies on how vitamin D and testosterone are linked.
But there isn’t a clear explanation on how vitamin D relates to testosterone secretion.
Other than using testosterone, you can even use a Vitamin D supplement for its other benefits.
Other benefits of Vitamin D
#1. Make your immunity stronger
According to pieces of evidence, vitamin D can help protect you from many diseases like:
Multiple sclerosis – a review of multiple studies conducted in 2018 showed that Vitamin D deficiency was linked with a high-risk factor for sclerosis.
Reduces cardiovascular risk – vitamin d deficiency can increase your chances of developing cardiovascular abnormalities like hypertension and even heart failure.
#2. Alleviates symptoms of depression
According to various studies, good levels of Vitamin D can reduce your symptoms of depression and also make you fight mood swings.
One such review was conducted on 7,534 people showing that people with the tendency of having negative thoughts had a better response on supplementation with Vitamin D.
#3. Weight management
Usually, people who are overweight have low vitamin D levels.
A study conducted on people with obesity proved that vitamin D supplements along with weight loss diet as compared to the members of the placebo group.
However, there isn’t an exact explanation of how Vitamin D helps in weight loss.
#4. For stronger bones
Vitamin D helps in better absorption of calcium by absorbing calcium from the intestine and resorption from the kidney.
Since in adults Vitamin D deficiency can cause softening of the bones or osteomalacia, supplementation with Vitamin D makes your bone stronger.
#5. Healthy Pregnancy
According to a review of studies, deficiency of Vitamin D during pregnancy can cause preeclampsia and preterm birth.
It can also lead to gestational diabetes.
Hence, taking a good diet rich in Vitamin D is important during pregnancy.
However, we don’t recommend taking any Vitamin D supplementation without consulting a doctor.
#6. Strengthens the muscles
According to reports lack of enough Vitamin D in your body can weaken your muscles which even increases the risk of reduced range of motion.
Especially in the case of middle-aged men maintaining good Vitamin D levels in their body is important to prevent falling and developing muscle tears.
#7. Healthy oral cavity
Since Vitamin D helps in the absorption of calcium from the body it can support your oral cavity by strengthening your teeth.
It lowers the risk of caries and gum diseases too.
According to a review from 2011 vitamin D helps in regulating oral health because of its properties like anti-inflammation and stimulation of anti-microbials.
#8. Managing Hypertension
Vitamin D might help in the faster treatment of hypertension.
Studies also link a higher risk of developing hypertension among people with vitamin deficiencies like Vitamin D deficiency.
Reports suggest that direct supplementation with Vitamin D for an acute period can pace up your treatment for hypertension.
Conclusion
Vitamin D deficiency was earlier just related to diseases like osteomalacia but new research finds it linked with testosterone decline too.
Testosterone or the male hormones normally starts declining with advancing age.
But this decline can go on a faster pace if your body is suffering from vitamin D deficiency.
This deficiency could be either due to less vitamin D in your diet, or less exposure to the sun.
While the easy solution to this problem can be good exposure to the sun to allow our body to synthesize its own Vitamin D, it usually doesn’t work for everyone.
Hence the best option for lifting your testosterone through Vitamin D is adding up supplements to your diet.
You can add just an additional nutritional supplement for Vitamin D or go for some specific supplements that can boost your testosterone.
