University scientists have debunked the myth that the menopause is a strictly female phenomenon.

A study by university scientists have found that, though rare, menopause is not a strictly female phenomenon. The male menopause or hypogonadism is linked to men showing similar symptoms to their female counterparts going menopause.

Despite being rare, some men show similar symptoms to their female counterparts going through the "change" such as a lack of energy, sadness, anxiety and broken concentration.

The male menopause - also known as hypogonadism - is triggered by a slump in testosterone levels in older age.

The testosterone levels of 3,369 men aged 40 to 79 were measured for the study which assessed the sexual, physical and psychological health of all those involved in order to compare their findings with the classic hallmarks of the female menopause.

They found that a minority of men (2%) suffered symptoms that met criteria laid down by experts to assess the onset of the female menopause.

These included inactivity, lack of energy, sadness, changes in sleeping patterns, poor concentration, feeling worthless, and anxiety.

However, study leader Professor Fred Wu, from the University of Manchester's School of Biomedicine, said the symptoms were only weakly linked to male hormone levels.

"Our findings suggest that testosterone treatment may only be useful in a relatively small number of cases where androgen (male hormone) deficiency is suspected, since many candidate symptoms of classic hypogonadism were not associated with decreased testosterone levels in older men," he said.

The findings, published in the New England Journal Of Medicine, will guide doctors facing requests from men seeking a testosterone boost.

Age UK charity also offers commercial products such as travel insurance, with no upper age limit and covers medical conditions where possible”*. Read the original article here:  “Male Menopause 'Rare But Real'”

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