Assess your symptoms
Assessing your risk of hypogonadism is important, especially as you age, and monitoring your condition when you have been diagnosed will help you measure if your symptoms are improving or not.
By assessing risk or monitoring your condition yourself, you will be able to have more productive and useful conversations with your doctor.
Below we have four assessments which you can use at home. If you have any concerns, please speak to your doctor.
Waist to height calculator
The waist-to-height ratio is a useful indicator of overall health and both men and women with ratios outside of the normal range may be at risk of severe health conditions. [1]
Being overweight or obese is closely linked to a decline in testosterone levels and development of testosterone deficiency so the weight-to-height ratio can also be used as a predictor of testosterone deficiency. [2]
Determining your ratio is simple.
First begin by measuring your height and your waist.
How to measure your waist:
- Wrap a measuring tape around your torso just above your belly button.
- The tape should be lying flat against your skin but should not be too tight or digging in.
- Breathe out and record the measurement shown on the tape.
Then input your values into the calculator below to find your ratio and what this means about your health.
References
1. Nuttal FQ, Nutr Today. 2015 May; 50(3): 117–128.
2. Hackett G, Kirby M, Edwards D, et al. British Society for Sexual Medicine Guidelines on Adult Testosterone Deficiency, With Statements for UK Practice. The journal of sexual medicine. 2017;14(12):1504-1523.
3. Kumar et al. J Adv Pharm Technol Res. 2010 Jul-Sep; 1(3): 297–301.
Androgen Deficiency Aging Males, AMS = aging males’ symptoms, BMI = body mass index.