This study provides preliminary results on abnormal hormone levels and depressive symptoms in women after SCI. Total testosterone (Total T) and TSH levels as well as the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) survey and monthly sexual activity were obtained from only 20 participants. TSH tests are also used to monitor your thyroid hormone levels after treatment for hyperthyroidism. It can tell if you have hyperthyroidism (too much thyroid hormone) or hypothyroidism (too little thyroid hormone) in your blood. Thyroid hormones affect nearly every organ and control many of your body's most important functions. 1st Optimal uses bioidentical hormones exclusively in our treatment protocols. Many providers and patients prefer bioidentical options because they more closely replicate natural hormone activity. Hormone levels begin shifting in the 30s for both men and women. And while men make about 15 times more testosterone than women,4 testosterone helps women maintain their energy levels, libido, and muscle and bone strength as they age.5 Here’s what to know about the link between testosterone and thyroid hormones. Sometimes, the problem is both, because these hormones can interact with each other and cause overlapping symptoms. Unfortunately, high levels of thyroid hormone can cause symptoms that can affect everyday life for many people. It does this by controlling blood levels of sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), a protein that binds to testosterone. Testosterone levels in both men and women decline with age, which can lead to a range of symptoms, such as decreased sex drive, fatigue, and decreased muscle mass. Future studies should include an able-bodied control group and larger group sizes to better understand the specific SCI-related hormone changes and associations with depression in women. Your thyroid makes hormones that control how your body uses energy. Panels test hormones, thyroid, metabolic markers, cholesterol, blood sugar, nutrient levels, and more. Hormonal imbalances involving cortisol, insulin, thyroid hormones, estrogen, and testosterone can all promote weight gain and fat storage. These tests reveal the full landscape of your hormonal health, not just isolated numbers, but how your hormones interact, metabolize, and affect your daily function. Clinical outcomes include improved energy, body composition, mood, cognitive function, and sexual performance. However, it is important to note that testosterone levels alone are not a reliable indicator of thyroid function because many other conditions and lifestyle factors can affect this hormone. In accordance with this, we observed an association between genetic predisposition to hypothyroidism and decreased SHBG concentrations in both sexes and genetic predisposition to hyperthyroidism and increased SHBG concentrations in men. Therefore, we stratified TSH SNPs based on the presence or lack of their association with autoimmune thyroid disease (AITD) to investigate whether observed associations were caused directly by thyroid function or indirectly by autoimmunity, independent of thyroid hormone concentrations (Supplemental Table 1). When you don’t make enough thyroid hormones and don’t have enough SHBG, your total testosterone levels can drop. Hyperthyroidism, or high thyroid hormone levels, can raise total testosterone by increasing SHBG, leaving less free testosterone to work in your body.9 Individual results may vary based on your unique health profile and medical history. Chronic stress elevates cortisol, which directly suppresses production of testosterone, estrogen, and progesterone through the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. Monitoring estradiol is a standard part of any comprehensive male hormone evaluation. Men produce estrogen through the conversion of testosterone via the aromatase enzyme. Full optimization, including body composition changes and cognitive improvements, typically develops over 3-6 months. However, significant hormonal deficiencies often require medical intervention such as BHRT or TRT to restore levels to an optimal range. Men typically experience gradual testosterone decline starting around age 30, losing roughly 1-2% per year. This section collects any data citations, data availability statements, or supplementary materials included in this article. The authors would like to thank the ThyroidOmics consortium, 23andMe, UK Biobank, Neale lab, and ReproGen for sharing the data and making this project possible. The two-sample MR approach is based on data freely available from the public domain. Furthermore, the proportion of variance explained by the genetic variants for TSH and fT4 concentrations was high, suggesting high validity. Indeed, the only associations we cannot completely exclude were in the opposite direction, that is, TSH AITD SNPs with decreased age at menopause, and fT4 (no-DIO1 and DIO2) SNPs with increased age at menopause. Furthermore, the proportion of genetic variance explained by the genetic variants is higher for TSH than fT4 concentrations (9.4% versus 4.8%). A possible explanation for the discrepant findings for TSH and fT4 with the two-sample MR approach could be that TSH is a much more sensitive biomarker than fT4 in detecting small changes in the set point of the hypothalamic–pituitary–thyroid axis, as suggested by previous studies (30–32).
