Do you know that there is a connection between hormones and COVID-19? If you are wondering let us tell you that hormones regulate a lot of body functions. If there is an imbalance of hormones in the body, the person undergoes many physical and psychological changes. Particularly with men, testosterone hormone is their shield against coronavirus. Yes, scientists have found that men with low testosterone levels have a greater of contracting with this virus and succumbing to it. Onlymyhealth spoke to Dr. Rashmi Rai who is a Bio-Identical Hormone Replacement Therapy Expert to know more about this.
What is the link between testosterone and coronavirus?
Scientists across the world while looking at the global death figures noticed a peculiar trend that men were more likely to die of COVID-19 than women. Post that, researchers went on to study some hormones in the body to find why is this happening.
For the uninitiated, testosterone is the most important hormone for men as it regulates many functions including immune response. This means, with balanced T-levels, a man’s ability to fight off viruses and infections is better. Since this male hormone starts to decline with age, it increases the chance of COVID-19 in men who are undergoing andropause. Also, this is why the death rate is comparatively high in men than women.
What is the role of hormonal imbalance for prognoses in men with COVID-19?
As explained above, low testosterone is a potential risk factor for coronavirus in men. According to Dr. Rai, if a man contracts this deadly virus, he should be tested for androgens in the body which is for testosterone and dihydrotestosterone(DHT). If the levels are low, he can be given supplemental therapy to strengthen the immune system and help him fight better. Men should try to increase testosterone naturally.
Another important thing is that testosterone also controls your muscles and since lungs are also muscles, low testosterone levels can affect its functions leading to early collapse. As COVID-19 targets lungs the most, the chances of survival of the man are low. Thus, in order to save his life, they can go for bioidentical hormone replacement therapy.
Also Read: Does Soy Increase Estrogen Level In A Man's Body?
How are hormones linked to fatality?
Fatality is a multi-factorial disorder as there are many factors that lead to this, hormonal imbalance being one of them. Hormone imbalance is under-diagnosed in India where people do not know that hormones are regulatory bodies of many functions other than reproduction. These control sleep, metabolism, respiration, mood, everything. When there is hormonal imbalance, our body goes through a lot of changes which lead to several health problems.
Adrenal crisis: It happens due to hormonal imbalance which causes an electrolyte imbalance in the body. It causes blood pressure and blood sugar levels to drop while the potassium levels spike. This is one critical condition that may lead to death if not attended on time.
Also Read: IVF Is Helping Men With Infertility Embrace Fatherhood
Hormonal imbalance fatality in women: Women who are either going through menopause or underwent hysterectomy(removal of the uterus). In both these conditions, the levels of estrogen in their bodies are low which causes fluctuations in mood. Some even slip into depression and get suicidal thoughts.
What Is Hormone Replacement Therapy?
Hormones are natural chemicals which are produced in the body, as we age, their production starts to decline both in men and women. Hormone replacement therapy is best considered when the men are undergoing andropause and women in menopausal age. Hormone therapy acts as an external source that your body needs as it has stopped producing its own hormones from within.
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