Testosterone's Effect in Women

We've known for known for a while that testosterone (T) increases bone mineral density (BMD) & lean body mass (LBM) while decreasing total body fat in men.  But what about in women?

In a study published in this month's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, the authors evaluated 232 healthy community-dwelling women between the ages of 67-94 who had enrolled in the Cardiovascular Health Study and noted that total T was associated with lumbar spine & hip BMD and that free T was associated with hip BMD, LBM, and total fat mass.

But let's not forget that association is not the same as causation.  This study allows us to develop the hypothesis that increasing T levels in women might serve to increase BMD & LBM while decreasing body fat.  The bigger issues will be deciding in whom to supplement and for what duration.

Clearly, we understand (some of) the risks associated w/supplementation in men but they might not apply to women (at least we won't have to worry about prostate cancer in the ladies!).  Let's hope Proctor & Gamble gets more information based upon their world-wide sales of Intrinsa before they come back to the FDA to try again for approval (for indications unrelated to above).