Can't find it... Testosterone release with weight loss?

If men aren't supposed to have moobs, then why do so many of us have them to one degree or another?    Even men who aren't morbidly obese can complain about this. Part of this may be a relative excess of estrogen secondary to obesity, but part of this is just the inescapable excess of adipose tissue.  All that fat has to go somewhere, and it often is laid down behind the male breast.  Strictly speaking, this isn't "classical" gynecomastia because the tissue is fat, not breast tissue., though that might sound like a distinction without a difference as far as male vanity is concerned.  It's probably a combination for many obese men. Some busty women complain post-op that they've lost most of their weight in their breasts, and that their "after" pictures look like outtakes from National Geographic magazine, especially if they've been heavy for a long time and their skin has lost its elasticity.  I've seen enough "after" photos of guys to realize that this occurs in men, too, though we are glad to have lost whatever we have; it's just that what we're left with can sometimes (not always) still be distressing. My semi-monthly WLS support group had a presentation this week by BIDMC's head of PS, who happens to specialize in post-op massive weight loss patients.  I would have expected it to be primarily of interest to women (who, let's face it, make up the majority of WLS patients and attendees of support groups), but it was very comprehensive and balanced, with a number of case studies and before/after-PS photos of men as well, including post-WLS breast reconstruction for men.  I'm am too too far away physically, financially and vanity-wise to even begin to entertain something like this (I'll be happy to be under 180#, sags and all), but it was interesting to find out just what could be done if you had the money, time and interest. /Steve

 well dang, Foobear ..  it started off like you were backing up what I said earlier in plain English, but you conclude that the fat loss causes a DECREASE in estrogen?   I just don't see that ..  (?)   I also don't see post-op Fs getting hairy chests or big cl**s ..  I'm just plain confused, now I guess ..  &:-/)  (you can also see why I became a lawyer and not a medical doctor!   &:-D)  )

I was speaking about men.  Higher-than-usual levels of circulating estrogens (produced by the superabundance of adipose tissue aromatizing their production of testosterone) can suppress the release of LH and FSH in the brain, two hormones which stimulate the testes to produce testosterone and  direct the testes to produce sperm.  Less adipose tissue causes less estrogen to be produced from circulating androgens.   By returning the levels of estrogen towards normal (note that men always will have some estrogen in their systems), that decreases the estrogen-related suppression of LH and FSH in the brain.  By removing some of the estrogen, the testes should start producing more testosterone than they did before.  Read: higher sex drive. I could go on and on about the hormonal mechanisms of PCOS, but this is the Men's Forum.  In the syndrome formerly known as PCOS, women ultimately develop an excess of both androgens (mainly from their adrenal glands, but also from their ovaries) AND estrogens (ovaries and aromatized adrenal androgens).  They end up experiencing an excess of both, a runaway cascade of hormones that wreaks havoc with their cycles and fertility.  That's why so many women with PCOS experience hirsuitism (facial hair, "moustaches").  In other words, they exhibit a degree of androgen-related masculinization which is not prevented by the concurrent elevation of estrogen levels.  Weight loss lowers the production of excess estrogen from their (mainly adrenally-produced) androgens, which interrupts their estrogen-related suppression of ovulation and ovarian secretion of estrogen.  That's when their cycles kick back in gear. Note that "excess" of either androgens or estrogens is completely relative, depending on your sex.  Women with PCOS produce high enough levels of adrenal androgens to experience hirsuitism, but few of them develop deep voices or enlarged clitorises.  And this masculinization would be PRE-OP, not POST-OP. /Steve

so does that mean, and what we really want to know is, does that mean the weight loss makes women hor** too?    &;-)

A relative increase in the levels of circulating androgens is believed to increase a woman's sex drive, though to be quite honest, making reductive predictions based on hormone levels alone is unreliable.  Based on what I wrote, you'd expect many obese women with PCOS and facial hair to have stronger sex drives BEFORE than after weight loss, and I am not familiar with any studies which have demonstrated either position.  Maybe a better sense of self-esteem and greater stamina and flexibility contributes more to the prediction than hormone levels alone. A man's sex drive, on the other hand, can be neatly summarized as a function of his testosterone levels. (Just kidding!) /Steve

I can't wait to have surgery so I can get this damned weight off..seems like it fixes EVERYTHING. I think it does fix everything. I know a guy who had the surgery and swears that his Ford pickup truck runs better and gets better mileage now. Might be the 200+ pounds he's lost so far.

My cross country skis seem to work better.

LOL... ok.. dang it.. gonna make me have to clean my keyboard now... *note to self.. do not take a drink before reading posts...*...  I'll bet my bike will get better mileage too when I get back on 2 wheels..LOL. Dale

LMAO!! Well if you ask any doctor all your illnesses are because you're fat!  So I guess when you lose all that fat you'll be in prefect health..    Maybe it'll fix the gas mileage problems I'm having in my dodge ram?  Perhaps I'll get 13.6 instead of the 13.5 I'm getting now!

Welcome to Horny-ville, Dale! Even though you know have a strong urge to pork any and all available orifi, just remember that knot-holes in lumber WILL give you splinters!