Introduction
IntroductionIt all started with a question why are they violent? Why are they radical? Why have they been treated brutally? Is it always going this way? Surely I knew there must be a good explanation behind all things that the black race has encountered. It has been shown by various studies that The black race has a higher level of the Testosterone (and estrogen for females) and increased reactivity to testosterone. This may be a good explanation to the combativeness portrayed by most people of that race; And a higher rate of crimes, diseases, and cancer among people in that race. I believe if yo know peoples ways and undrtand what they are made off, you understand there actions and learn how to deal with them equitably. I have gatherd literature from the internet which includes evidence based cohort studies some focused on studying variations of hormaonal levels by race some had the topic there by the way, but had statistically significant results. I have also included various blogs of experinces ofrandom people. I have tried to copy paste what I believe to be relevant make it easier for the reader ,I have also highlighted some of the more important parts. The first literature is not highlighted because I wanted it all to be read as it was the first comprehensive source of evidence to the answers to my questions.Black Women And Sexual?GeneticsFriday, February 24, 2006, in?Black Culture (black people),?Genetics/Medical,?History,?Science,?Sexuality,?Social commentaryBlack Women And sexual geneticsBy Chance Kelsey, Chance:?Black women produce more estrogen (female hormone)?and testosterone (male hormone)?hormones than women from another racial group on this planet. The more hormones a body produces the more physically stronger, sexually attractive, deeper voice, stronger personality that influnces other people around you, the more other people who produce less hormones fear you, Taller in height, stronger bones, stronger teeth, opposite sex finds you more attractive.??(black womenproduce "moderately, but significantly" more testosterone than whitewomen? — Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism 1996; 81:1108).This makes black women very sexy and attractive to men from all racial groups – but due to factors like racism and fear of what members in ones own racial group is going to say. Many men from other racial groups generally keep their distance from black women in public. Unless they are having a sexual relationship with them undercover.The strong personality of black women come from them having more hormones than women of other ethnic groups. Black men produce more testosterone hormones than men from other racial groups. And this is the reason why they are so feared. Black men also have stronger personalities than men from other racial group.(Black men produce significantly more testosterone than white menJournal of the National Cancer Institute 1986; 76: 45) and (black womenproduce "moderately, but significantly" more testosterone than whitewomen Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism 1996; 81:1108).The more hormones your body produce the more people want to have sex with you. They can intuitively sense the power of the hormones in you because the percentage of the hormone in black men and women is high. This explains why women from all racial groups date black men even when these black men have nothing to offer. Even if the black man is negative abusive, aggressive, violent, rude, insensitive, unfaithful, etc. The hormone percentage that black men and black women produce is so high percentage wise. That it attract sexual partners no matter what racial group they belong to. Women date men based upon an emotional gut feeling when they see or meet a man.And the more hormones a man produces this increases his chance of getting a gut reaction from a woman. The same for women the more hormones women produce percentage wise when men see them they start having deeper sexual feelings for them. And want to be with them their must be a sexual attraction in order for people to date first.But like I say men from other racial groups hide their deeper feelings for black women because of society teaching them to date their own women. Sexual black men and black women are very compatible with each other because of the high level of hormones they produce. It is hard for men from other racial groups to rival black men sexually – often women from other racial group who date black men say – that black men are good sexual lovers. Just look at how these women keep giving black men their phone numbers.The more hormones the more masculine the man and black women have a well developed hormone (estrogen) percentage. The high level of hormone production combined with femininity makes black women very sexy. Black women being females already have the feminine side developed; the high level of hormone production makes them more masculine and this is a blessing from GOD.So black women with femininity combined masculinity are very well balanced. Now black women need to be careful and make sure that they don’t become too masculine in behavior and personality.Because this is a turn off for men yes,? it is, generally true that men don’t find women who are too masculine in personality very attractive.They will have sex with them but the majority of these will never marry a woman who is too masculine in personality. Men are supposed to have their feminine side developed – just like men already have their masculine side developed.But the majority of men only have their masculine side developed – and this is why men are not as compassionate as women. Compassion, love, sympathy, etc comes from the feminine side – and Protection, strength, provider, etc comes from the masculine side. All women have some testosterone (male hormone) in them and all men have some estrogen (female hormone) in them.?Unmasculine menA man must make sure that he does not become too feminine in behavior and personality why? Because this is a turn off to the average heterosexual woman. She will not date or marry a heterosexual man who is too feminine in nature. Some women do marry men, who are too feminine in nature, but the majority will not they will have him as a friend but not a husband.Black women are blessed because they produce a high level of hormones. And the more hormone percentage the stronger the personality and a stronger personality will influence a weaker personality. This explains why where ever you find black people in large numbers in any country their personalities are so strong. That their black culture will influence the behavior of the people from the other ethnic groups in unique way.?Black women And EmotionsIt is a medically and genetically proven fact that hormones influence emotions; and the more hormones a person produce the more emotional they are. This explains why black women become very attached to the men they date or marry. When black women express themselves there is passion in their words, body language, voice, etc. This comes from the high level of estrogen that their bodies produce. It is good to have a high level of estrogen if you are a female. Estrogen attracts men to women like a bee is attracted to honey.?Black Women And TestosteroneTestosterone is the male hormone and women also have testosterone in them and men have estrogen in them. Every woman has both estrogen and Testosterone in them; but women have more estrogen in them than Testosterone. Now men have both Testosterone and estrogen in them; but men have more Testosterone than estrogen. Black women have more Testosterone than women from other ethnic groups and Testosterone is the male hormone.Because black women have more Testosterone this is why they are more muscular, physically stronger, taller, deeper voices, athletic, etc. It is a blessing for women to produce more Testosterone but black women need to be careful with their Testosterone. Because if a black woman gets up set and angry the testosterone will make her more aggressive and violent.So black women need to use their intellects to make rational decisions in certain situations that are potentially negative. There is a time to defend yourself physically; and there is a time to use the intellect to confront a negative situation.Black Women And SufferingBlack women are able to go through a lot of mental, emotional, verbal, and physical suffering because they produce more male Testosterone in their bodies. This explains why black women are able to step and play the role of the man when there is no man around to take care of the children. All women are able to play the role of men when the woman is single and have children. This comes from women having some Testosterone (male hormone) in their bodies.The role a man is protection, strength, provider, etc and these qualities from come from Testosterone and Testosterone masculine and estrogen is feminine.?Some women become envious and jealous of women who have both their feminine and masculine side developed. It is good to have both sides developed.Black Women Who Prefer Black MenChance:?One of the major reasons many black women prefer black men is because of their masculinity. Black men produce a high percentage of Testosterone – and remember the more Testosterone a man produces the more masculine he is. Women are more attracted to men who produce higher levels of Testosterone this is a fact. Now this doesn’t mean that women are going to go marry or date a man because he produces a higher level Testosterone.Each woman no matter what racial group she from has her preference about what type of man she will date. The majority of Black women find black men very attractive. The Testosterone level in black men makes them very sexual appealing to black women and even many women from other ethnic groups. It is a fact, that women prefer masculine men and the more masculine the more they prefer those men. No matter what racial group these very masculine men are from. Many Black women find men from other ethnic groups attractive but they still prefer Black men.Because they are attracted to the masculinity of black men and there are personal reasons. Why black women prefer black men but masculinity is definitely one of them. Black women often observe men from other ethnic groups and don’t view them being as masculine as black men. Many black women view black men to be more masculine than men from other ethnic groups. And genetic science agrees and confirms what Black women have known for years.That black men are more masculine than men from other ethnic groups. Black men and Black women are sexual compatible they both produce high levels of hormones. This makes them more attracted to each other. I say women should date whom ever they feel like and so should men.? ?? ?? ?This has been a study in sexual genetics I hope it was enlightening??By Chance (Chancellor)Written during the 21st century by ChanceReferences on page 2Black Women And Men Produce More TestosteroneReferences below?There are a number of investigations that support my contention that testosterone adversely affects the immune system. One contains this generality: "…sexually mature male vertebrates are often more susceptible to infection and carry higher parasite burdens in the field." (Int. J. Parasitol. 1996; 26: 1009). Another investigation determined the following: "Conclusions: Castration before soft-tissue trauma and hemorrhagic shock maintains normal immune function in male mice, but sham-castrated male mice show significant immunodepression. …Thus, the use of testosterone-blocking agents following trauma-hemorrhage should prevent the depression of immune functions and decrease the susceptibility to sepsis under those conditions." (Arch. Surg. 1996; 131: 1186) In a study of mice exposed to Mycobacterium marinum, testosterone was found to increase susceptibility in males and females.This study carefully controlled for the presence of testosterone. "Although this ordering corresponded to the susceptibilities of both male and female mice to the organisms, much greater strain dependency was seen in males than females. Castration caused an increase in the host resistance of males, but this effect was substantially reversed by continuous testosterone treatment. Testosterone also increased the susceptibility of female mice to this infection.These findings imply that the male sex hormone is involved in the lowered anti-M. marinum resistance of males." (Infect. Immun. 1991; 59: 4089). The same pattern is discernible in humans. "The rate of invasive group B streptococcal infection was twice as high in black adults; the incidence increased with age and was particularly high in older blacks, although there was a relatively small black population over 70 years." (New Eng. J. Med. 1993; 328: 1807) Healthy,?black males produce significantly more testosterone than healthy, white males (J. National Cancer Institute 1986; 76: 45). Testosterone is higher in black women than white women (J. Clin. Endocrin. Metabolism 1996; 81: 1108).?This explains Farley’s findings and, I suggest, the "unexplained finding that under the same social conditions, blacks are apparently infected more readily by Mycobacterium tuberculosis than whites" (New Eng. J. Med. 1990; 322: 422). Testosterone interferes with the availability of DHEA and DHEA declines during old age.Explanation of Infections and Cancer: Their Increases and Connections——————-??Copyright ? 1999 by James Michael Howard.?———————–?The new books, "Infections and Human Cancer," Plainview, N.Y., Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press, 1999, ISBN 0-87969-549-8 and "Microbes and Malignancy: Infection as a Cause of Human Cancers," New York, Oxford University Press, 1999, ISBN 0-19-510401-3, suggest infections cause some cancers. I suggest a common mechanism causes this connection, that is, low dehydroepiandrosterone, DHEA. Cancer and infections are both increasing. My explanation, of these increases, involves testosterone, which I think is increasing, and may reduce the availability of DHEA. This combination is demonstrable in breast cancer, infections, and their current increases.These are coincident with the "secular trend," which I think may represent an increase in individuals of higher testosterone. My principal hypothesis is that DHEA is involved in optimal transcription and replication of DNA. I suggest activation of genes of cell division require larger amounts of DHEA than genes of differentiation. As growth occurs, DHEA availability decreases because of increased competition.?As tissues form, cell surface areas decrease and the increased numbers of transcriptions of genes of differentiation begin to use DHEA and further reduce the probability of cell division. (Transcription of smaller groups of genes can occur during times of reduced DHEA.) This is how differentiation competes with, and inhibits, cell division. DHEA begins to decline around age twenty.As aging begins, I suggest loss of DHEA sometimes begins the opposite process. That is, genes of differentiation are closed down in reverse order, as a result of declining DHEA. For oncogenes (genes of the undifferentiated, rapidly replicating state) to be activated, they must be exposed to increased availability of DHEA. I suggest the beginnings of "differentiation reversal" includes loss of transcription of genes controlling cell adhesion. (Loss of cell adhesion is characteristic of oncogene activation.) I suggest loss of cell adhesion triggers oncogene, or mutated gene, activity, because the cell surface area is increased and increased DHEA is absorbed. That is, genes of cell division, which require large amounts of DHEA, would than have an increased supply. This is why more cancer occurs in old age, but grows less rapidly.??That is, old age increases the probability of regression of the differentiated state (loss of DHEA of old age). This increases the likelihood of loss of cell adhesion. Once the increased surface area of these cells has increased DHEA absorption, cell division is triggered. However, cancer grows less rapidly because old age is a time of reduced DHEA. Since DHEA is used for all growth and maintenance, even in old age, cachexia of cancer may result from increased absorption of DHEA for cancer growth, at the expense of the rest of the body.?This may be why some cancers exaggerate the aging process. Absorption of DHEA and, therefore, further reduction in the availability of DHEA by cancer, may trigger further oncogene activation in other tissues. This could explain metastasis. My explanation of breast cancer is based on low DHEA and high testosterone. It has been known for a long time that DHEA is low, and testosterone is high, in breast cancer. (I was unaware of this when I developed my ideas regarding cancer and was delighted to discover this.) However, no hypothesis, other than mine, proposes a mechanism to account for these phenomena as causes of breast cancer and cancer, generally. "Two long and broad streams of medical literature, from the 1950’s to date, have established the existence of two unrelated abnormalities of androgen production in women with breast cancer. One is the genetically determined presence of subnormal production of adrenal androgens (i.e. DHEA and DHEAS) in women with premenopausal breast cancer and their sisters, who are at increased risk for breast cancer. The other is excessive production of testosterone, of ovarian origin, in subsets of women with either premenopausal or post menopausal breast cancer and women with atypical breast-duct hyperplasia, who are at increased risk for breast cancer; along with the hypertestosteronism, there is frequently chronic anovulation in the premenopausal patients.?The combination of ovarian hypertestosteronism and chronic anovulation is characteristic of the polycystic ovary syndrome and is also frequently seen in women with abdominal (‘android’) obesity." (Anticancer Res. 1994; 14 (5B): 2113). It is known that breast tumors, but not normal breast tissue, concentrate DHEA (J. Ster. Biochem. 1987; 26: 151). Measurable levels of DHEA are reduced in women with breast cancer, and this reduction in DHEA occurs as early as nine years prior to diagnosis (Geriatrics 1992; 37: 157). I suggest that the low levels of DHEA prior to diagnosis may participate in subsequent cancer formation. There should be two basic kinds of breast cancer formation. One should involve oncogene activation due to reductions in DHEA, as just described, and the other should involve gene mutations.?This quotation, part of an abstract, supports this. "Results: DHEA is reported to inhibit the growth of human mammary cancer cells in vitro and also the growth of chemically-induced mammary cancer in rats. However, growth inhibition occurs only in the presence of high oestrogen concentrations, and growth stimulation occurs in both models in the presence of a low-oestrogen milieu. Epidemiological studies report a positive correlation between higher serum concentrations of DHEA and increased breast cancer risk in the case of postmenopausal but not premenopausal women." (Eur. J. Clin. Nutr. 1999; 53: 771) In these cases, the estrogen would direct the differentiated state and additional DHEA would maintain this state.?The DHEA would be used for maintenance of differentiation instead of growth. If estrogen is not added, then the increased surface area of cells in vitro increases absorption of DHEA and stimulates growth of cancer cells. In premenopausal women, who produce sufficient estrogen, extra DHEA would be used to maintain the differentiated state. The opposite would occur in postmenopausal women. If estrogen stimulates mutated genes, then extra DHEA would increase growth of cancer cells.?Therefore, in younger women, who are producing larger amounts of DHEA, estrogen-directed, mutated genes would grow rapidly. In postmenopausal women who have estrogen-directed, mutated genes, cancer may form, but would grow less rapidly, unless she takes estrogen. In that case, taking extra DHEA would also increase growth. Once started, DHEA will positively affect breast cancer growth. The authors of the study, paragraph above, point out that "Late promotion of breast cancer in postmenopausal women may be stimulated by prolonged intake of DHEA, and the risk may be increased by the endocrine abnormality associated with pre-existing abdominal obesity." "Pre-existing abdominal obesity" brings the influence of testosterone to my explanation of why breast cancer is increasing. I suggest testosterone interferes with the availability of DHEA; reduces DHEA. In women, testosterone increases abdominal fat (Eur. J. Endocrinol. 1995; 133: 200 and J. Endocrinol. 1996; 150 Suppl: S155). Increased testosterone in premenopausal women should reduce the availability of DHEA and increase the probability of breast cancer.?Therefore, estrogen and testosterone should, both, increase the risk of breast cancer. This is supported: "Compared to women in the lowest quartile [of breast cancer risk], those in the highest quartile for non-sex hormone-binding globulin bound estradiol had a relative risk of 5.2 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.5-18.50 and those in the highest quartile for testosterone had a relative risk of 6.2 (95% CI = 2.0-19.0)." (Environ. Health Perspect. 1997; 105 Suppl 3: 583) The background reserve form of DHEA in blood plasma is DHEAS (DHEA sulfate). If a woman is not converting DHEAS to DHEA, then she might be "low DHEA."??This is also supported: "The relationship of DHEAS to breast cancer was less consistent, but women whose serum DHEAS concentration was in the highest quartile also exhibited a significantly elevated risk ratio of 2.8 (95% CI, 1.1-7.4)." (Cancer Epidemiol. Biomarkers Prev. 1997; 6: 177). Furthermore, "Data are consistent with the hypothesis that the plasma source contributes remarkably to DHEA found within breast cancer tissue." (Breast Cancer Res. Treat. 1995; 33: 171). Breast cancer is increasing and studies suggest this is not merely a reflection of better surveillance. I think the secular trend, the increase in size and earlier puberty occurring in our children, is due to increasing numbers of individuals who produce more testosterone.?That is, they reproduce faster than individuals who produce less testosterone. One high risk factor for developing breast cancer is early puberty. If I am correct, that testosterone negatively affects the availability of DHEA, and the secular trend represents increasing testosterone, then we should see an increase in breast, and other, cancers. This also may explain the increase in infections and the connection of infections and cancers. It is my hypothesis that DHEA is directly involved in optimal activity of every tissue.?Therefore, DHEA should strengthen the immune response. It has recently been found that DHEA, and its conversion products, protect against bacterial infections. "The data suggest that both DHEA and AED may have a role in the neuro-endocrine regulation of antibacterial immune resistance." (J. Med. Microbiol. 1999; 48: 425) In studies on mice, DHEA protects against numerous viruses. "Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) has a significant protective effect in mice infected with West Nile virus (WNV), Sindbis virus neurovirulent (SVNI) and Semliki Forest virus (SFV)." (Arch. Virol. 1991; 120: 263) There are a number of investigations that support my contention that testosterone adversely affects the immune system.?One contains this generality: "…sexually mature male vertebrates are often more susceptible to infection and carry higher parasite burdens in the field." (Int. J. Parasitol. 1996; 26: 1009). Another investigation determined the following: "Conclusions: Castration before soft-tissue trauma and hemorrhagic shock maintains normal immune function in male mice, but sham-castrated male mice show significant immunodepression. …Thus, the use of testosterone-blocking agents following trauma-hemorrhage should prevent the depression of immune functions and decrease the susceptibility to sepsis under those conditions." (Arch. Surg. 1996; 131: 1186) In a study of mice exposed to Mycobacterium marinum, testosterone was found to increase susceptibility in males and females. This study carefully controlled for the presence of testosterone. "Although this ordering corresponded to the susceptibilities of both male and female mice to the organisms, much greater strain dependency was seen in males than females.?Castration caused an increase in the host resistance of males, but this effect was substantially reversed by continuous testosterone treatment. Testosterone also increased the susceptibility of female mice to this infection. These findings imply that the male sex hormone is involved in the lowered anti-M. marinum resistance of males." (Infect. Immun. 1991; 59: 4089). The same pattern is discernible in humans. "The rate of invasive group B streptococcal infection was twice as high in black adults; the incidence increased with age and was particularly high in older blacks, although there was a relatively small black population over 70 years." (New Eng. J. Med. 1993; 328: 1807) Healthy, black males produce significantly more testosterone than healthy, white males (J. National Cancer Institute 1986; 76: 45). Testosterone is higher in black women than white women (J. Clin. Endocrin. Metabolism 1996; 81: 1108). This explains Farley’s findings and, I suggest, the "unexplained finding that under the same social conditions, blacks are apparently infected more readily by Mycobacterium tuberculosis than whites" (New Eng. J. Med. 1990; 322: 422).?Testosterone interferes with the availability of DHEA and DHEA declines during old age. Infections should increase because of the same mechanism that may be increasing cancer, that is, increasing testosterone. It is possible that cancer and infections further reduce DHEA in some individuals. This would increase the probability of one increasing the other. I suggest that the connection of infections and cancer is low of FormEstrogen levels higher among black women during menstrual cycleMarsh EE.?J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2011;doi:10.1210/jc.2011-1314.Endocrine Today, October 2011New data suggest that black women have higher levels of estradiol and lower androstenedione-to-estradiol ratios throughout the menstrual cycle compared with white women, a trend that may contribute to differences in the incidence and prevalence of health issues between these two populations.Studies indicating higher incidences of estrogen-associated conditions, such asbreast cancer?and earlier puberty, among black women prompted researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital to compare levels of estradiol, progesterone, gonadotropins, androstenedione, inhibins and sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) in reproductive-aged black and white women during a full menstrual cycle. The researchers included 27 black women and 27 white women of similar age, BMI and normal menstrual cycles (average duration, 29.4 days).Daily blood samples taken from study participants indicated higher levels of?estradiol?in black women vs. white women (P=.02). Cycle phase exerted considerable influence on these levels, according to the researchers. Differences between the black and white women peaked during the late follicular phase (225.2 pg/mL vs. 191.5 pg/mL, respectively;?P=.02); the midluteal phase (211.9 pg/mL vs. 150.8 pg/mL;P<.001); and late luteal phase (144.4 pg/mL vs. 103.5 pg/mL;?P=.01).Androstenedione, luteinizing hormone, follicle-stimulating hormone, inhibin A, inhibin B and SHBG did not differ significantly between study groups. However, the androstenedione-to-estradiol ratio was notably lower in black women (P<.001). These results may denote enhanced aromatase activity in this population, which may be responsible for racial disparities in bone mineral density, breast cancer and uterine leiomyomas, the researchers said.“Further studies will be needed to address this hypothesis more directly and to address possible effects of race on estrogen feedback dynamics,” the researchers wrote. “However, the findings from the current studies provide important insights into potential mechanisms underlying the health disparities in [African-American women] and [Caucasian women] documented in epidemiological studies by suggesting that [African-American women] may have a greater lifetime exposure to estrogens.”Determinants of Serum Total and Free Testosterone Levels in Women over the Age of 65 Years?Anne R. Cappola?Sarah J. Ratcliffe?Shalender Bhasin?Marc R. Blackman?Jane CauleyJohn Robbins?Joseph M. Zmuda?Tamara Harris?Linda P. FriedThe Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, Volume 92, Issue 2, 1 February 2007, Pages 509–516,? February 2007?Article historyAbstractContext:?Little is known about testosterone (T) levels and their determinants in women of late postmenopausal age.Objective:?We describe levels of total and free T and selected factors that influence these levels in a random sample of older women.Design:?Levels of serum total T and free T by microdialysis were measured using ultrasensitive assays in 347 community-dwelling women aged 65–98 yr enrolled in the Cardiovascular Health Study. Cross-sectional analyses were performed to define factors associated with total and free T levels.Results:?In adjusted models: 1) total T levels declined with age until 80, whereas free T levels did not vary by age; 2) women with bilateral oophorectomy had 23% lower total T and 16% lower free T levels than those with at least one intact ovary; 3) oral estrogen users had total and free T levels that were 47% lower than never users; 4) obese women had 47% higher total T and 20% higher free T levels, and overweight women had 24% higher total T and 14% higher free T levels, than normal weight women; and 5) free T levels were 51% higher in black women. Corticosteroid users had 75% lower total T and 43% lower free T levels than nonusers.Conclusions:?Bilateral oophorectomy, estrogen use, corticosteroid use, and low body mass index are independent risk factors for lower T levels in women aged 65 yr and over. Although highly prevalent in women of this age, the physiological significance of low T levels in late postmenopausal women requires further investigation.IssSubjects and MethodsStudy populationThe Cardiovascular Health Study (CHS) is a population-based, longitudinal study of risk factors for developing cardiovascular diseases in 5888 adults aged 65 yr and older (11). Enrollment of an original cohort of 5201 adults occurred between May 1989 and June 1990, and an additional cohort of 687 predominantly African-Americans enrolled in 1992–1993. Eligible individuals were identified from an age- and gender-stratified random sample of the Medicare eligibility rosters in four U.S. communities: Washington County, Maryland; Pittsburgh (Allegheny County), Pennsylvania; Sacramento County, California; and Forsyth County, North Carolina. To be eligible, individuals had to be noninstitutionalized, expecting to remain in the area for the following 3 yr, not under active cancer treatment, not wheelchair bound in the home, not requiring a proxy respondent at entry, and capable of providing consent. Household members of the sampled individual were recruited, if eligible. The institutional review boards of all four sites and the coordinating center at the University of Washington in Seattle approved the study, and all participants gave informed consent.Random selection of the participants for our analyses was performed by the CHS coordinating center, using a computer program to generate a random list of identification numbers from all women with blood samples collected at the 1992–1993 visit. The first 350 identification numbers from that list were sent to the CHS Central Blood Analysis Laboratory for sample pulling; 348 had adequate sample for analysis and were included in our subcohort. The 1992–1993 visit included a detailed medical history, physical examination, and assessment of health status. Blood was drawn in the morning after a 12-h fast and serum was frozen in ?70 C freezers for future investigations (12). Women in our subcohort were slightly older than in the CHS cohort but exhibited the same distribution of race, body mass index (BMI), estrogen use, and reproductive history.Assessment of biochemical measuresTotal T concentrations were measured by RIA using iodinated T as a tracer (13), which was validated against liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS), as described previously (14). These measurements demonstrated a correlation of 0.997 between the RIA and LC-MS/MS measurements (14). The sensitivity, defined as hormone concentration corresponding to 90% B/B0?[percent bound in presence (B) and absence (B0) of analyte] point, was 0.22 ng/dl (0.008 nmol/liter). The intra- and interassay coefficients of variation were 8.2 and 13.2%, respectively.Free T concentrations were measured by a sensitive equilibrium dialysis assay (13), optimized to precisely and accurately measure low concentrations. The sensitivity of this assay is 0.6 pg/ml (2.0 pmol/liter); the intra- and interassay coefficients of variation were 4.2 and 12.3%, respectively.The normative range for total and free T levels in different phases of the menstrual cycle, established in healthy, menstruating women, has been published using these assays (13).Assessment of covariatesSociodemographic characteristics included age, race, education, smoking status, alcohol use, age at menopause, prior hysterectomy, age at hysterectomy, prior oophorectomy, age at oophorectomy, and number of ovaries removed. BMI (kilograms per square meter), computed from objective measures, was categorized as less than 18.5, 18.5–24.9, 25–29.9, or 30 or greater. Medication use was determined from examination of medication bottles at the study visit.Statistical analysisTotal and free T levels were summarized across subject characteristics using standard descriptive statistics. T levels were graphed against age; a lowess curve was applied to assess for a linear relationship. Log-transformed total?vs. free T levels were plotted and Pearson’s correlation coefficient was used to test for statistical significance. Paired?t?tests and one-way ANOVAs were performed to determine factors associated with the log-transformed total and free T levels. Factors found statistically significant at a?P?< 0.1 level, based on two-sided tests, were included in multivariable linear regression models. Estimates from these models were back transformed for interpretation on the original T scales, resulting in multiplicative rather than additive effects. For example, a variable with a backtransformed estimate of 2 for category X implies that a woman in category X has on average double the T levels of a woman in the reference category for that variable. Due to collinearity between race and educational status in our study population, only race was included in the final multivariate models.Of 348 women in the original sample, one extreme outlier was excluded from the total T and four from the free T analyses. Two additional women were excluded from the free T analyses due to insufficient serum. Nine women taking oral corticosteroids were excluded from the regression models, due to their small number and extreme difference in values from the remainder of the sample.ResultsDemographic and reproductive characteristicsThe 347 women ranged in age from 65 to 98 yr, with a mean age of 74 yr. Seventeen percent were black and 85% had at least a high school education (Table 1). The mean BMI in our study cohort was 26.8 kg/m2. The majority (88%) had been pregnant at least once (Table 2). Overall, 43% of the women had undergone a hysterectomy and 16% reported bilateral oophorectomy. Sixty-three percent reported natural menopause, whereas 33% had undergone premenopausal hysterectomy; this information was unavailable in 4%. Nineteen percent were current oral estrogen users, and 27% had taken estrogen in the past. Nine women (3%) were taking oral corticosteroids.TABLE 1.Skip to Main ContentSkip to Main ContentTop of FormBottom of FormTABLE 4.Independent determinants of free T levelsVariable?Effect of Determinanta?95% CI?P?value?Higher/lower than reference group, %?Age (yr)???0.64???65–69?1.00???Reference??70–74?0.93?0.76, 1.14?0.50?7% lower??75–79?1.03?0.82, 1.29?0.83?3% higher??80+?1.02?0.80, 1.32?0.86?2% higher?Race???<0.0001???White?1.00???Reference??Black?1.51?1.25, 1.83?<0.0001?51% higher?BMI (kg/m2)???0.11???<18.5?0.86?0.59, 1.24?0.41?14% lower??18.5–24.9?1.00???Reference??25–29.9?1.14?0.97, 1.34?0.11?14% higher??≥30.0?1.20?1.00, 1.44?0.05?20% higher?Ovaries removed???0.06???0, 1, or unknown?1.00???Reference??2 removed?0.84?0.69, 1.01?0.06?16% lower?Estrogen use???0.02???Never?1.00???Reference??Past?0.78?0.71, 0.98?0.03?22% lower??Current?0.53?0.65, 0.95?0.01?47% lower?R2?= 0.138638. CI, Confidence interval.aAnalysis based on log-transformed data for free T. Values are multiplicative effects on free T, generated from antilogs of adjusted effects, reported as a fold effect, compared with reference group. Estimates are reported from a multivariate model that included age, race, BMI, ovarian status, and estrogen of FormBottom of FormTABLE 4.Independent determinants of free T levelsVariable?Effect of Determinanta?95% CI?P?value?Higher/lower than reference group, %?Age (yr)???0.64???65–69?1.00???Reference??70–74?0.93?0.76, 1.14?0.50?7% lower??75–79?1.03?0.82, 1.29?0.83?3% higher??80+?1.02?0.80, 1.32?0.86?2% higher?Race???<0.0001???White?1.00???Reference??Black?1.51?1.25, 1.83?<0.0001?51% higher?BMI (kg/m2)???0.11???<18.5?0.86?0.59, 1.24?0.41?14% lower??18.5–24.9?1.00???Reference??25–29.9?1.14?0.97, 1.34?0.11?14% higher??≥30.0?1.20?1.00, 1.44?0.05?20% higher?Ovaries removed???0.06???0, 1, or unknown?1.00???Reference??2 removed?0.84?0.69, 1.01?0.06?16% lower?Estrogen use???0.02???Never?1.00???Reference??Past?0.78?0.71, 0.98?0.03?22% lower??Current?0.53?0.65, 0.95?0.01?47% lower?R2?= 0.138638. CI, Confidence interval.aAnalysis based on log-transformed data for free T. Values are multiplicative effects on free T, generated from antilogs of adjusted effects, reported as a fold effect, compared with reference group. Estimates are reported from a multivariate model that included age, race, BMI, ovarian status, and estrogen use.Discussions.……Race was a strong predictor of free but not total T levels, even after adjusting for other confounding factors, including BMI, suggesting differences in T binding between black and white women…..According To A Psychological Study, Black Women Are Less AttractiveBiased studies like these prolong separation of races in this country?Since the beginning of time, African Americans have been made to believe that they are in every way inadequate due to their color of skin. Researchers have worked hard to prove that African Americans are mentally and physically inferior to Non-African Americans.?Satoshi Kanazawa released?an article full of data?from a series of surveys that deemed black women less attractive than any other race, but determined that black men are more attractive than any other race. He's basically stating that every race and ethnic group will recognize black women as being less attractive than any other race based off of his collection of surveys and interviews. I smell propaganda. "Black women are still less physically attractive than non-black women net of BMI and intelligence." His explanation for why his data showed black women being less attractive than any other race is that they lack testosterone. He also said "Africans have more mutations in their genomes than other races. And the mutation loads significantly decrease physical attractiveness."Attraction in the Merriam-Webster dictionary is defined as "arousing interest or pleasure." Attraction cannot be limited or given a generic rubric, which is why I find his study so false. Kanazawa couldn't explain why the people in his study thought that way, so he blamed it on the fact that black women have more mutations and testosterone. He went on a tangent to further say, "men with higher levels of testosterone have more masculine features and are therefore more physically attractive. In contrast, women with higher levels of testosterone also have more masculine features and are therefore less physically attractive." So black women, due to the mass production of testosterone, automatically have manlier features which are responsible for the lack of attractiveness. I believe the intent of this study is to present extremely biased data because in every way it's going to lessen the value of another race and gender. In no way can a scientist put a certified stamp on everyone's opinions and ideas of beauty. His conclusion for this study is written as a guaranteed fact but is a generalization. You can't refute a fact but you can refute a generalization. I completely disagree with his findings and don't know a single person who?would?agree.According to , a black woman won a major beauty contest called Miss USA.?The article's?headline is "Army Reserve officer Deshauna Barber crowned Miss USA 2016." The very first Miss USA was Vanessa Williams, according to the same website. They are both African American woman. Isn't that a beauty competition? If they both won, wouldn't they have to be beautiful? Attractive perhaps? even reported that 86% of black men marry black women in 2014? On ,?an article on divorce rates?stated, "...marriages involving an African American wife and a white husband had comparatively lower chances of ending up in divorce..." The divorce rate of the former couple was almost 44% lower than the latter. Not only are black women physically appealing in the public eye but a variety of men are continuously seeking out black women in the marriage market.The main thing I want to focus on is that studies like these perpetuate the idea that there has to be some way we can scientifically separate one group of people from others. It's hard not to assume that when there have been multiple studies released into the public that wrongfully belittle African Americans in the past. The image of beauty cannot be scientifically proven because it's a matter of opinion; to falsely record your findings has an impact on the social environment of others. The study in itself was pointless due to the fact that its foundation was on a group of opinions that he tried to turn into facts. The study also had no purpose other than to further tease the elephant the room-- racism. A lot of women have low self-esteem, and research studies like this don't help at all for women of color especially.A study for a cure for cancer would be much more appreciated, thanks.FERTILITY AND STERILITY?VOL. 75, NO. 2, FEBRUARY 2001Copyright ?2001 American Society for Reproductive Medicine Published by Elsevier Science Inc.Printed on acid-free paper in U.S.A.Racial differences in sex hormone levels in women approaching the transition to menopauseJeanne M. Manson, Ph.D.,a Mary D. Sammel, Sc.D.,a Ellen W. Freeman, Ph.D.,b and Jean A. Grisso, M.D.aSchool of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PennsylvaniaTABLE 2TABLE 2Plasma hormone levels by racial group and visit.No. ofEstradiolDHEASTestosteroneFSHassays(pg/mL)(?g/dL)(ng/dL)(mIU/mL)Visit 1Caucasian20837.41027.187.01African American20230.5a84.8b7.857.28Visit 2Caucasian19934.998.47.586.91African American19531.180.9b8.587.29Visit 3Caucasian18238.395.17.657.45African American17333.983.1a8.817.37Visit 4Caucasian18335.994.98.007.39African American16132.678.8a8.577.38Note: Results are presented as the geometric mean for all subjects with available data.aP ? .05.bP ? .001 for comparison between racial groups at each visit.Manson. Hormones approaching transition to menopause. Fertil Steril 2001. Received June 19, 2000; revised and accepted August 28, 2000.Supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health (R01-AG-12745,E.W. Freeman, PI; K01- ES00352-01, J.M. Manson, PI; and 2MO1RR-00040-Racial?differences?in?testosterone:?Blackmen? have?highest,?white?men?in?themiddle,?Asian?men?have?the?leastMen from different?racial and ethnic groups?differ in the degree to which they suffer from prostate cancer. Researchers have hypothesized that differences in endogenous androgen levels may be at least partially behind this. To test this hypothesis, researchers gathered data on androgen serum concentrations and sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) in older men from 4 ethnic groups. African-Americans, Chinese, Japanese and Caucasian men were selected for the study"After adjustment for age and Quetelet's index, the levels of total and bioavailable testosterone were highest in Asian-Americans, intermediate in African-Americans, and lowest in whites. However, the DHT:testosterone ratio was highest in African-Americans, intermediate in whites, and lowest in Asian-Americans, corresponding to the respective incidence rates in these groups and providing indirect evidence for ethnic differences in 5alpha-reductase enzyme activity."?This study was conducted on older men.?Another study?conducted on young men found the same thing when comparing African-American and Caucasian men, with free testosterone being 21% higher in black males than white males and mean testosterone levels being 19% higher in black males:"Blacks in the United States have the highest prostate cancer rate in the world and nearly twice that of whites in the United States. The 2:1 black-to-white ratio in prostate cancer rates is already apparent at age 45 years, the age at which the earliest prostate cancer cases occur. This finding suggests that the factor(s) responsible for the difference in rates occurs, or first occurs, early in life. Testosterone has been hypothesized to play a role in the etiology of prostate cancer, because testosterone and its metabolite, dihydrotestosterone, are the principal trophic hormones that regulate growth and function of epithelial prostate tissue. This report gives the results of assays of circulating steroid hormone levels in white and black college students in Los Angeles, CA.?Mean testosterone levels in blacks were 19% higher than in whites, and free testosterone levels were 21% higher.?Both these differences were statistically significant. Adjustment by analysis of covariance for time of sampling, age, weight, alcohol use, cigarette smoking, and use of prescription drugs somewhat reduced the differences. After these adjustments were made, blacks had a 15% higher testosterone level and a 13% higher free testosterone level. A 15% difference in circulating testosterone levels could readily explain a twofold difference in prostate cancer risk."Other interesting hormonal differences among the races have been found:In extending the follow-up to young men in Japan, Ross found to his surprise that their testosterone levels were similar to those of U.S. whites. But the study also suggested that the Japanese had lower activity of 5-alpha reductase than did U.S. whites and blacks. This enzyme metabolizes testosterone into dihydrotestosterone, or DHT, which is at least eight to 10 times more potent than testosterone (see sidebar).?This?finding, Ross said, is “very consistent with the role of androgens in prostate carcinogenesis and in explaining the racial/ethnic variations in risk.”The 5-alpha reductase type I1 gene is one of several that Ross's group is investigating for possible effects on testosterone secretion and metabolism and other androgen activity. He said they have found some forms of this gene that are unique to African-Americans and a few that are unique to Asian-Americans as well.Race:?is?"breed"?an?appropriate?analogy?By Unknown (original) Heinrich Menu von Minutoli (1772–1846) (drawing) [Public domain], via Wikimedia CommonsLet me start off by saying that I definitely do not think that we should refer to different populations as different "breeds" rather than "races." Instead, I think that this analogy can helpfully act as a bridge towards think of genetic and phenotypic variation among populations in terms of what are known in phylogenetics as "clades." This article will draw on work done by academic Robin O. Andreasen,?who argues in her work?on the subject that we should adopt a form of naturalism in acknowledging genetic and physical differences among races, but that we should use the language and theoretical equipment of cladistics.The reason I think the analogy may be a helpful bridge in thinking racial differences more scientifically is because different breeds are analyzed according to dense clusters of genes in the forms of haplogroups and haplotypes just as different ethnic and racial groups are.?One of the most popular arguments for the notion that race is a "social construct" is derived from the point made by the geneticist Richard Lewontin, to the effect that intra-racial genetic similarity among individuals classed within any given "race" typically accounts for only about 7% of genetic similarity. Apart from this 7%, a Danish person, for example, may be genetically more closely related to a random East African individual than to other Danes.Lewontin concluded from this that racial classification is "meaningless." While his data concerning intra-racial vs. interracial genetic similarity were correct, the inference from this data that racial classification is meaningless is widely referred to by evolutionary biologists today as "Lewontin's fallacy." Indeed, 7% of genetic material consists of several thousand genetic loci, which is quite an impressive amount of genetic material.James T McGuinessOne?truth?of?human?physiology?reduces race?to?a?faulty?generalityThe fact that the human brain has it's own capacity growth dynamic in which new neuro pathways grow to facilitate specific types of problem-solving. called neuroplasticity, establishes that other outwardly observable physical commonalities that groups share do not imply a group "race" which can be said to be in some kind of scale of superiority of one group over others. In truth this fact means that we are all unique as individuals even if we share common attributes like skin color.The more one takes this to heart and embraces it, the sooner the whole mythology of race implying superiority or inferiority collapses into nothingness. Culture should not be confused with race. No one makes a worse case for white supremacy for instance than the white supremacist--ignorant troglodytes all.?Concerning Ethnic Differences of Testosterone in MenBY?KANGSTER?· DECEMBER 9, 2013If you live in a diverse country, then you have probably noticed the variations in the body structure between ethnic groups. While individuals within an ethnic group can vary widely in terms of body composition, you can probably still pick out some commonalities among each ethnic group. I’ll state my observations bluntly: African Americans on average?seem to be more muscular than the norm, while those of Asian descent on average?seem to be less muscular than the norm (I’m not advocating racism; it is a fact of life that people of the same ethnic group are more genetically similar than those of different ethnic groups). ?This observation is in fact reinforced by findings of researchers. ?Asian Indian adults were found to have more fat and less skeletal muscle than Europeans and Polynesians [1]. Another study focused on the Fat-free mass index, a measurement of Fat-free mass in relation to fat mass and height, of?Caucasians, African Americans, ?Hispanics, and Asians. Fat-free mass includes everything in your body that is not fat mass and is thus correlated with skeletal muscle mass. The study found that the FFMI was greatest in African Americans and the least in Asians [2].?One of the most important factors in regulating muscle mass, is the hormone that we relate to all things masculine, testosterone.?It is the reason why men are men. In fact, those that are genetically male (carry a Y chromosome) and display complete androgen receptor insensitivity (meaning they can’t respond to testosterone) develop as women [3]. ?However, if we were to look at our supposed culprit, we would find that there is no statistical difference in free testosterone levels between ethnic groups [4]. It should be noted that this study is limited by its small sample size for Asians.?One study even showed Asian men to have slightly higher testosterone levels than whites and African-Americans [5].?Although plasma testosterone levels are an important factor in sex hormone-dependent features, they obviously cannot explain the ethnic differences in these features. These differences seem to be mediated instead by differential enzyme and androgen receptor activity [6]. ?Specifically, ?5a-reductase, the enzyme that converts testosterone into DHT, activity seems to vary among ethnic groups.??DHT is an androgenic hormone whose affinity to the androgen receptor is multitudes times greater than testosterone. A study recorded the DHT:testosterone ratio, an indicator of 5a-reductase activity[7], among ethnic groups and found levels to be highest in African-Americans, intermediate in Caucasians, and lowest in Asian-Americans [5]. Tissue-specific coactivators of the androgen receptor also play a role in differences in tissue-specific?androgenicity. Different levels of these coactivators are found in different tissues(heart, skeletal muscle, and liver), and help determine the responsiveness of these receptors by binding to the androgen-androgen receptor complex [8-12].?The genetic differences in the gene encoding the androgen receptor itself contributes greatly to its ability to respond to testosterone and other androgens [13-15]. ?One of the most distinctive and important genetic differences found is called the CAG repeat polymorphism. This refers to the glutamine-tag attached to the androgen receptor becomes the sequence CAG is translated into the amino acid glutamine. The number of CAG repeats an individual has in his or her androgen receptor gene determines how effective his or her androgen receptor is at binding testosterone; those with less repeats are more sensitive to testosterone and those with a greater amount of repeats are less sensitive [16-21]. ?It has been found that those with short CAG repeats have the same symptoms of men with high testosterone levels, increased skeletal muscle mass, lower good cholesterol (HDL), and have an earlier onset of prostate cancer [21]. Those born with too many repeats (>38) may be at risk for certain genetic disorders [22].The inverse association between the number of CAG repeats in the AR gene and functionality of the AR protein. Longer CAG tracts result in lower transcription of target genes and, thus, lower androgenicity. Expansion of the encoded polyglutamine stretch to beyond probably 38 leads to the neuromuscular disorder X-linked spinal bulbar muscular atrophy (XSBMA), a condition in which defective spermatogenesis and undervirilization are observed. Conversely, low numbers of CAG repeats are associated with increased androgenicity of susceptible tissues.The mechanism behind the weaker transactivation of androgen receptors with longer CAG repeats was found in a study done in 1999. A coactivator of the androgen receptor, ARA24, was discovered which bound?differentially with the polyglutamine region of the androgen receptor. ARA24 was found to bind more weakly to androgen receptors with longer repeats and thus allowed for weaker signalling for the transcription of androgen-related genes [11].?Small but significant differences in the average CAG repeat length were found between different ethnic groups. Men of African descent were found to have the lowest number of repeats at 18-20, caucasians at 21-22, and east asians at 22-23[21]. Not only does this information reinforce our observations about body composition and androgenicity among different ethnic groups, but it also offers us some clinical value. The differences in enzyme, coactivator and androgen receptor activity may explain why certain individuals respond to testosterone therapy more strongly than others. It seems, however, that there is no clear winner in the roulette of testosterone sensitivity; one group may see greater strength in the earlier years of life, while the other gains vitality in the later years.?Contact me @ andrew.kang@emory.eduInt J Endocrinol Metab. 2012 Summer; 10(3): 563–568.Published online 2012 Jun 30.?doi:??10.5812/ijem.3661PMCID:?PMC3693622Testosterone and Aggressive Behavior in ManMenelaos L. Batrinos1,*Go to:1. IntroductionAggressive behavior has been variously defined and it is exhibited with a broad spectrum of manifestations from the tendency to aggressiveness to physical violence. It is a primitive and common social behavior that the media report with hidden satisfaction, using it as a means of describing exciting news, and the people of civilized countries accepts its manifestation with horror and a subconscious disturbance, because such manifestations shake the comfortable belief of the difference of human conduct from that of animals. Violent and aggressive behavior is a natural and physiological element that rules animal life, driven as it is by the instincts of survival and the preservation of species through reproduction. Attenuated residues of these instincts remain in humans, albeit suppressed by familial and social inhibitions, but it still manifests in modified and various forms in accordance with the idiosyncrasy, temperament and the psychological state of each individual (1-12).This review is a discussion of the implications of testosterone in aggressive and violent behavior, presenting the endocrine axis and the neural circuits involved in its action and focusing on the clinical aspects of the problem and neuroimaging findings. The omission of a vast body of experimental work in animals regarding the relationship of testosterone with aggression, by no means indicates a reduction of interest and esteem in the importance of these publications by the author. His intension was to review the research in the features and effects of these fundamental research findings with the physiology and psychology of man.2. Relationship of Basal Testosterone and Its Fluctuations with Aggressive BehaviorAggressiveness is exhibited in various forms and intensities from; thoughts, bodily arousal and anger to verbal, dominant, competitive traits and serious acts of violence. The manifestation of this behavioral spectrum is associated with and served by the mobilization of the muscular system. Studies of testosterone’s relationship with aggressive and violent behavior have been performed in parallel with those on the mediators of aggressive behaviors, the muscles. There is great interest in the implications of this hormone on aggression because of the social importance of this issue, it has been made more intense and vivid not only by researchers in the field, but also by other members of society such as; politicians, criminologists, law-makers, judges, police authorities and psychologists, who await informed research to define their attitudes on the basis of these studies and more specifically on the ability to answer these two questions:a. What is the relationship of normal levels of blood testosterone and its fluctuation with aggressiveness?b. Does the administration of hyperphysiological doses of testosterone increase aggression and violent behavior?A positive answer was anticipated regarding the first question from extensive experimental research in animals and research conducted in prisoners. Prison is an environment in which a majority of its inmates have shown violent behavior in the past and where dominance behavior prevails. The first study in prisoners was conducted in 1972, soon after the feasibility of testosterone estimation, by Kreutz and Rosel, who found that prisoners who had committed violent crimes during their adolescence had higher testosterone levels (13). In a single sample measurement of free testosterone in the saliva of 89 prison inmates, it was found that at the extremes of the testosterone distribution, the relationship between testosterone to aggression was more striking (14). Ten out of 11 inmates with the highest testosterone concentrations had committed violent crimes, whereas 9 out of 11 who had committed non-violent crimes had the lowest testosterone levels. Similar data were reported by others (4,?15,?16), but these results should be seen with caution because of methodological limitations (small number of subjects and samples), but mainly because of the unnatural conditions of life in prison. Studies in sexual offenders independent of their brutality gave diverging results. Blood testosterone was within the normal range or increased and testosterone associated or not associated with aggression was also reported (4,?17,?18). Clinical data from the non-prisoner population necessary to confirm the above findings in normal free men is limited. Most studies have been based on self-report questionnaires, which record actual aggression and its intensity with questionable likelihood. In a series of such studies, which gave conflicting results, the majority of these confirmed the relationship of testosterone with aggressiveness reported in prisoners (4). An investigation of testosterone, cortisol and thyroxin in a sample of 4179 veterans, which has increased credibility because of its size, has shown that basal testosterone levels were positively related to antisocial and aggressive behavior (19). It is of interest, however, that supraphysiological doses of testosterone in the order of 200 mg weekly (20), or even 600 mg weekly (21), which were administered to normal men had no effect on their aggression or anger levels. Dominance and competition are also manifestations of aggressive behavior (19,?22). Man is inclined to affirm his personality by trying to be distinguished and gain influence and power in his career, in sports and in everyday life, by competing with others. Acting in a dominant way of any kind may include violent acts, as is the case in prisoners. However, these dominant traits are usually manifested by angry faces or verbal aggression in trials to dominate or to be a winner in competitive tasks (23). Physical and mental competitive tasks have been found to be associated with higher baseline values and more often with fluctuations of testosterone. Studies with a limited number of subjects have shown a positive relationship of testosterone with aggressive phases of the game in judo contests and hockey players (4,?6,?24). In dominance contests taking place in political elections, voters in democratic elections exhibit biological responses as if they had personally participated in the political contest. A small scale clinical experiment of 57 male voters in the 2008 United States presidential elections showed that saliva testosterone measured on one morning and in three evening samples remained stable in the winner’s voters indicating a resistance to the circadian decrease in the evening, whereas it dropped in those who had voted for the looser (25). In sports it has also been reported that winners have higher testosterone levels than losers (26). Fans of sporting events also experience testosterone changes (27). More sensitive manifestations to subtle aggressive stimuli are regarded to be measures of aggressiveness obtained in the laboratory through paradigms using various combinations to provoke aggressive reactions (3). In the Taylor Aggressive Paradigm (TAP) the participant competes against a factitious opponent, to whom he delivers an intense shock if he loses the trial. With this test it was reported that baseline testosterone concentrations, despite individual differences, were positively correlated with the intensity of the aggressive reaction. The Point Subtraction Aggression Paradigm (PSAP) has been used more commonly to assess the relationship between testosterone with aggressive tendencies. In PSAP, stealing money from a factitious opponent in a trial to earn money is considered to be an aggressive act as it represents intent to cause harm to the opponent. Higher baseline testosterone that was found in individuals who rejected unfair offers, was interpreted as confirming this positive relation (13). Using PASP and measuring salivary testosterone, it was demonstrated that changes in testosterone were positively correlated with aggression. It was also found that an increase in testosterone during the PASP predicted subsequent willingness to choose competitive tasks (3,?28,?29). Studies of aggressive behavior and testosterone in the delicate years of adolescence yielded conflicting results that can be understood if one takes into consideration that at each age of puberty there is great inter-individual variability of psychological maturation and an even greater variability of testosterone secretion because of the asynchronous progress of pubertal development (30).Aggression research in human studies has revealed an interesting property of testosterone dynamics, its rapid fluctuations provoking reactive aggression in response to stimuli. It has been shown by competition paradigms in the laboratory, that short term fluctuations of testosterone were associated with eliciting aggressive behavior. These findings indicate two important features of testosterone physiology, a) changes in testosterone levels may be more important than baseline values in relation to aggressive behavior, b) and more significantly, testosterone by its rapid increase in response to a variety of stimuli, both physical and mental, is entitled to hold a position in the group of stress hormones. Rapid fluctuations of testosterone are believed to be effected by non-genomic actions, mainly through the G protein of the membrane since the DNA reaction with an androgen receptor takes time (31).3. Testosterone Action on the BrainAggressive behavior originates in brain centers that trigger metabolic arousal of the neuroendocrine system, this leads to the expression of aggressiveness through the mobilization of the body’s muscles. The neurons of the prefrontal area, the hypothalamus and amygdala which are concerned with aggression, express significant quantities of androgen and estradiol receptors, along with the enzymes necessary for the steroidogenesis of these hormones. The local production of testosterone in neuroendocrine neurons introduces a new factor into the interpretation of the interplay of this hormone with aggressive manifestations. Locally produced testosterone and estradiol coupling with the receptors may receive a greater variety of enhancing or diminishing influences and these could modulate their effect on aggressiveness more than the testosterone produced by the Leydig cells, which are only stimulated by luteinizing hormone (LH). The degree, however, of local testosterone’s contribution to its action on the brain is not known at present, but the promptness of its production and the variety of stimuli it can receive from neighboring neurons may render it more important than the testosterone arriving to the neurons through the circulation. Testicular and locally produced testosterone multiplys, and its action is diverse due to its transformation intracellularly into dihydrotestosterone (DHT) and estradiol by the enzymes 5a-reductase and aromatase respectively, which are also expressed in the neurons associated with aggression. The testosterone metabolite androstenediol acting on GABA receptors may be another factor for the action of testosterone.The effect of testosterone action on the brain begins in embryonic life. Testosterone receptors are expressed in the fetus earlier than the biosynthesis of testosterone which occurs in the seventh to eighth week of pregnancy. In the fifth month, the testosterone values in male fetuses reach a peack with levels approaching those of adult men. This secretory surge lasting for a few weeks inundates the brain with testosterone, inducing anatomical and organizational changes that mark the sex differentiation of the male brain in adulthood (7).During the last two decades, the study of testosterone’s action on the brain has been revolutionized through the use of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and positron emission tomography (PET) which has opened new horizons in the clinical investigation of brain function. With these technologies that permit the visualization and mapping of brain areas when it has been aroused metabolically in response to stimuli, hopes are born of penetrating previously unknown domains of psychic functions and emotions, aspirations similar to those expressed for the exploration of the universe after man first stepped on the moon. Case studies of patients with traumatic brain injuries or suffering from certain neurological disorders had provided vague information on the location of brain regions that might be associated with aggression. In the modern era, investigations are conducted with a higher degree of sensitivity with the aid of neuroimaging technology that permits the scanning of brain activation. A meticulous review of 17 neuroimaging studies by Buflein and Luttrell in 2005, demonstrated that the prefrontal lobe, temporal lobe and subcortical structures in the hypothalamus and amygdala are associated with aggressive and emotional behavior in a complex play of interconnections (32). The total number of subjects in these 17 publications was 532, of which 343 were studied with matched controls and the majority of the subjects were accused murderers or murderers and patients with mental diseases. Locally produced and circulating testosterone coupled with intracellular androgen receptors, reacts with the G protein of the neuron membrane and this activates the amygdala enhancing its emotional sensitivity. The amygdala plays a pivotal role in the neuroendocrine network by controlling perception and processing emotions. Cortisol receptors are also expressed in amygdala neurons as well as in serotoninergic receptors. These two chemical agents act antagonistically to testosterone in the manipulation of subcortical emotional activity and the restraining interference of the prefrontal cortex. The gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) - LH - testosterone axis is closely linked with the corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) - adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) - cortisol axis, and each of their end products, testosterone and cortisol respectively, influences the opposite axis (11). In a pilot study of salivary testosterone and cortisol interrelationships it was found that higher testosterone levels and lower cortisol levels are associated with higher levels of anger (33). Testosterone in the hypothalamus exerts an inhibitory action on CRH and the antidiuretic hormone induces a reduction in cortisol production. More pronounced is the inhibitory effect of cortisol on GnRH. Stressful situations, such as trauma and the like, inflict significant inhibition on testosterone secretion. High testosterone levels or an increase in basal concentrations are associated with aggressive manifestations, whereas high cortisol concentrations are linked to submissive behavior. The biological balance between testosterone and cortisol has a psychological equivalent. Motivational drives are mediated by punishment and reward and expressed by approach and avoidance tendencies, sensitivity to punishment is reduced when testosterone levels increase and this means that less fear is manifested in aggressive behavior, whereas the high cortisol levels released in stressful situations increases punishment sensitivity and avoidance, resulting in the choice of flight behavior. Therefore, when a high testosterone/cortisol ratio occurs it is more likely to result in socially aggressive behavior (34). At the neuronal level of this hormonal imbalance, testosterone activates emotional processes in the amygdala increasing the resistance of this subcortical structure to prefrontal inhibiting activity and cortisol facilitates cognitive control on impulsive tendencies aroused by the emotional subcortical structures. The degree of impulsivity present also plays a significant role in the activity of the emotional subcortical brain and this adds a third factor to the testosterone-cortisol balance, serotonin (35,?36). Clinical studies have shown that the serotoninergic system regulates impulses and aggressiveness, as it has activating and inhibitory receptors in the prefrontal and the subcortical areas. Blood serotonin (5-HT) and its metabolites found in the cerebrospinal fluid are negatively related with aggression and selective 5-HT reuptake inhibitors have been shown to exhibit aggression lowering effects (37). A recent PET study In 17 males of serotonin 5-HT1a inhibitory receptors binding potential in the prefrontal area and midbrain, demonstrated a higher number of 5-HT inhibitory receptors in the prefrontal area in subjects with the higher self reported aggressive scores (38). Facial expressions of anger, a common social aggressive behavior, have also been used in protocols for studying the relationship of testosterone with aggressiveness. An investigation in a group of 21 healthy males of the influence of blood testosterone levels on amygdala activation during an emotion recognition task, demonstrated a significant correlation between testosterone and amygdala reactivity to angry and fearful faces (39). It is of interest that the impact of testosterone on the amygdala response was observed to be within the normal range of blood testosterone concentrations. Recently a new influencing factor on aggressive behavior has emerged: the structural quality of the androgen receptor. The length of the trinucleotide CAG repeats in the promoter region of the human androgen receptor has been found to be associated with aggressive behavior. In a large scale study in India reported by Rajender et al., 241 men convicted for rape, 107 for murder and 26 for murder and rape had significantly shorter CAG repeats than the 271 male controls (40). Free testosterone was also found to be more positively related to aggressive risk taking in 301 adolescents with shorter CAG repeat length (38). Reactivity of the ventral amygdala assessed by fMRI was lowest among men with a larger number of CAG repeats (41). The clinical implications, however, of these and other studies of the genetics of human aggression is too early to be fully evaluated (42). The theory emerging from these studies is that prefrontal sections are centers which control the emotional signals coming from interconnected subcortical structures, by imposing a restraining effect to them. Disorders of these centers that diminish their function leave subcortical activity uncontrolled to express aggressive behaviors. In simplistic phrasing, the conditions for manifesting aggression are either a diminished functioning of the prefrontal cortex in relation to subcortical structures or an increased activity of these structures in relation to the prefrontal cortex. Testosterone, cortisol and serotonin are the major agents influencing this process, with testosterone activating aggression reactions and cortisol and serotonin acting antagonistically to testosterone to reduce its effect.4. ConclusionsThe goal of this review was to highlight the clinical data and the neuroimaging findings in man concerning the relationship between testosterone and aggressive behavior. Atavistic residues of aggressive behavior prevailing in animal life determined by testosterone remain in man, attenuated and suppressed by familial and social inhibitions, but still manifesting in various intensities and forms from thoughts, anger, verbal aggressiveness, competition, dominance to physical violence. Testosterone plays a significant role in the arousal of these behavioral manifestations in the brain centers involved in aggression and on the development of the muscular system that effects their realization. There is evidence that testosterone levels are higher in individuals with aggressive behavior, such as prisoners who have committed violent crimes. Several field studies have also shown that testosterone increases during the aggressive phases of sports games. Most of the studies, however, were conducted by self reported questionnaires, the accuracy of which is questionable. In more sensitive laboratory paradigms it was observed that a participant’s testosterone rises in the winners of competitions and dominance trials, or in confrontations with factitious opponents. This created the theory that fluctuations of testosterone may be more significant than basal values in the importance of testosterone estimation in relation to aggression. On the other hand, the rapid increase of testosterone in the above situations entitles testosterone to be characterized as a stress hormone. All the above studies have methodological limitations because of the small number of subjects and samples. More creditability comes from a large survey conducted on 4179 normal men which showed higher normal values in subjects with aggressive personality or antisocial conduct (25). It is of interest, however, that the administration of high doses of testosterone in normal men had no effect on the self reported aggression scores of the subjects.Aggressive behavior arises in the brain through interplay between the subcortical structures in the amygdala and the hypothalamus in which emotions are born and the prefrontal cognitive centers where emotions are perceived and controlled. Locally produced testosterone is assumed to be more important in the process of aggressive arousal than testicular testosterone arriving in the circulation. The action of testosterone on the brain begins in embryonic life. During the fourth to fifth month of pregnancy a surge of fetal testosterone occurs reaching adult testosterone levels which induces anatomical and organizational changes in the male embryos brain. Even earlier at the DNA level, the number of CAG repeats in the genes of the androgen receptors appear to play a role in the expression of aggressive behavior. Men with fewer CAG repeats have more active androgen receptors and enhanced testosterone action. Asynchronous psychological maturation and the variability of testosterone secretion depends on the stage of puberty, and this explains the inconsistent and conflicting results of the studies of testosterone relationship with aggression in adolescents. In adult males neuroimaging techniques that have permitted visualization of brain functions have shown that testosterone activates the amygdala enhancing its emotional activity and its resistance to prefrontal restraining control. This effect is opposed by the action of cortisol which facilitates prefrontal area cognitive control on impulsive tendencies aroused in the subcortical structures. The degree of impulsivity is regulated by serotonin inhibiting receptors. The major agents of neuroendocrine influence on aggression in brain process form a triad: testosterone activates subcortical tendencies towards aggression and cortisol and serotonin act antagonistically to testosterone.AcknowledgmentsNone declared.FootnotesImplication for health policy/practice/research/medical education:?The implication of the article concerns mainly health policy and education as it analyses the role of testosterone in aggressive behavioral acts.Please cite this paper as:?Batrinos ML. Testosterone and Aggressive Behavior in Man. Int J Endocrinol Metab. 2012;10(3):563-8. DOI: 10.5812/ijem.3661Financial Disclosure:?None declared.Funding/Support:?None declared.ReferencesBottom of Form?Testosterone Is High among Young Black Men with Little EducationAllan Mazur*Maxwell School, Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY, USAParticipation in the “honor culture” of poor black inner cities puts young men on constant alert for challenges to their reputations. Hypothetically, this vigilance raises their testosterone (T), which in turn facilitates dominance contests that may end violently. One prior study reports the predicted hormonal pattern including higher T among young black men with low education, compared to young white men with low education, but no race difference in T between young men who are better educated or in older men (Mazur, 1995). However, an attempt to find this pattern on another large sample failed to do so (Mazur, 2009). The present results, using the NHANES 2011–2012 data set, do replicate the predicted pattern among men. The pattern is not seen among teenage boys or among females.IntroductionHonor CulturesThe high rate of violence in the history of the American South, relative to the North, has been attributed to the South’s “culture of violence” wherein Southern men, when perceiving insults to themselves or their families, are expected to defend their reputations or else lose face (Nisbett, 1993;?Nisbett and Cohen, 1996). Apparently Southern men are inordinately sensitive to insult, reacting assertively – sometimes violently – to actions or speech that might not be construed as especially provocative elsewhere.There may be a general hypersensitivity to insult in any subculture that is (or once was) organized around young men who are unconstrained by traditional community agents of social control, as often occurs in frontier communities, in gangs, among vagabonds or bohemians, and after breakdowns in the social fabric following wars or natural disasters. When young men place special emphasis on protecting their reputations, and they are not restrained from doing so, dominance contests become ubiquitous, the hallmark of male-to-male interaction (Thrasher, 1963;?Sanchez-Jankowsky, 1991). This may partially account for the high incidence of violence among young black men in the U.S. In 2013, for example, the FBI reports that 38% of murderers were known to be black (race was unknown for 29% of perpetrators) and 51% of victims were black (The U.S. population was 13% black in 2010). Most perpetrators and victims are males under the age of 30.1Elijah Anderson, preeminent student of street behavior in the inner cities of America, portrays the importance of dominance contests and their continual presence for poor young black men:[M]ost youths have…internalized the code of the streets…, which chiefly [has] to do with interpersonal communication…, [including] facial expressions, gait, and verbal expressions – all of which are geared mainly to deterring aggression…Even so, there are no guarantees against challenges, because there are always people looking for a fight to increase their share of respect – of “juice,” as it is sometimes called on the street. Moreover, if a person is assaulted, it is important, not only in the eyes of his opponent but in the eyes of his “running buddies,” for him to avenge himself. Otherwise, he risks being “tried” (challenged) or “moved on” by any number of others. To maintain his honor, he must show he is not someone to be “messed with” or “dissed.”…The craving for respect that results gives people thin skins. Shows of deference by others can be highly soothing contributing to a sense of security, comfort, self-confidence, and self-respect….Hence one must be ever vigilant against the transgressions of others or even appearing as if transgressions will be tolerated. Among young people, whose sense of self-esteem is particularly vulnerable, there is an especially heightened concern with being disrespected. Many inner-city young men in particular crave respect to such a degree that they will risk their lives to attain and maintain it (Anderson, 1994, p. 88–99).TestosteroneThe hormone testosterone (T) does not appear to contribute directly to violence among young men. However, there is good evidence that high T promotes assertive, leader-like, and antisocial behavior, encouraging young men to engage in dominance contests to determine superior rank in a group’s status hierarchy (Booth and Osgood, 1993;?Mazur and Booth, 1998;?Mehta and Josephs, 2006;?Burnham, 2007;?Carré et al., 2011,?2013).Not only does T affect dominance but also the anticipation of competition raises T, as does the positive outcome of a competition (Booth et al., 1989;?Bernhardt et al., 1998;?Stanton et al., 2009;?Carré and Putnam, 2010). It follows that young men participating in an honor culture, ever vigilant for challenges to their reputations, ought to have elevated T. But is it true?The question has been addressed in two large epidemiological studies. One, based on 4,462 male U.S. Army veterans, answered in the affirmative. Younger black men who were poorly educated – those veterans most likely to be participants in inner-city honor cultures – did as a group have very high T; among older men or well-educated men, race made no difference in hormone levels (Mazur, 1995). However, a second study by the same researcher, using a different sample of 1,637 men drawn from the U.S. population, failed to replicate. In that sample, T of young, poorly educated black men was unexceptional, thus contradicting the first study (Mazur, 2009). The present analysis attempts to resolve this difference. Do young black men with little education, those most likely participants in honor cultures, have inordinately high T?Materials and MethodsThe National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), a continuous program under the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, is designed to assess the health and nutritional status of American children and adults, combining interviews, physical examinations, and laboratory tests. The most recently available dataset, NHANES 2011–2012, is the first in this program to report T measurements.2?In 2011–2012, 9,338 persons selected from 30 study locations completed the interview and examination. The survey oversamples minority groups, then weights observations to be representative of the nation. Here observations are used without weighting. There are 2,841 non-Hispanic whites (30.4% of the sample) and 2,582 non-Hispanic blacks (27.7%), about equally divided by gender, spanning ages from under 1 year to over 80 years old.Demographic variables include sex, race, age, level of education, and family income (also reported as the ratio of family income to poverty level). Education is coded differently for children (under age 20) than for adults, so they are analyzed separately. Racial categories used here are non-Hispanic white and non-Hispanic black.No variable indicates subjects’ residential environment, so they cannot be placed in or out of the inner city. Here, the presumption is made that black inner-city males are concentrated among black men who have below median education, or ≤high school (versus some college). For analysis of children, low socioeconomic status (SES) is indicated by the ratio of family income to poverty level income, dichotomized at the median of 1.76.Body mass index (BMI) is inversely related to T and therefore an important control variable. BMI is calculated as the subject’s weight (kg) divided by the square of height (m). For adults, a BMI from 18.5 to 25 is regarded as normal, and BMI over 25 as overweight. Marital status is another important control because T declines with marriage (Mazur and Michalek, 1998).Serum T is reported for about 85% of subjects age six and older. Time of collection is unspecified. Numbers available for this analysis are, for whites, 922 men and 903 women (≥20 years old), plus 242 males and 213 females of ages 6–19, and for blacks, 584 men and 1,036 women, plus 289 males and 464 females of ages 6–19. Serum total T was assayed by isotope dilution liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry, using stable isotope labeled internal standards and calibrators.3?Coefficients of variation are reported as <3%. In-house reference means (and ranges) are given as 432 ng/dL (122–1057) for men and 21.2 ng/dL (8.4–48.9) for women, although many values in the dataset fall above or below these ranges. One anomalously high T value of 2,544 ng/dL in a 60-year-old man, far above the next highest level, is discarded as a likely error, leaving the continuous range for T of adult males as 0.3–1,797 ng/dL. Because of concerns about the accuracy of extreme values, data were also analyzed for the T range 2.5–1,000 ng/dL, which eliminated twelve men (six black and six white) ranging in age from 33 to 72 years old. The continuous range for adult females is 0.3–379 ng/dL. The distribution for men has slight positive skew (=1.0). The distribution for women has highly positive skew (=9.6) so female values are transformed to natural logarithms for analysis, reducing skew to ?0.2.ResultsFigure?1?shows mean male T by age (collapsed into 10-year age groups). There are four separate plots for black men with ≤high school or some college, and for white men with ≤high school or some college.4?(Plotted points are based on 38–180 subjects.) All plots show T declining with age, with the steepest decline among poorly educated black men. SE bars show considerable overlap among the four plots. However in the 20–29 age group, mean T among black men with ≤high school is 64 ng/dL higher than mean T among better-educated black men (p?= 0.02,?t-test, two tail), who are similar to whites. In the age group 40–49, black men with ≤high school again have high T compared to the other three plots (p?= 0.04,?t-test, two tail). Among men 60 years of age or older, whites with ≤high school have the lowest T (p?= 0.001,?t-test, two tail).5?Reanalysis limited to the T range 2.5–1,000 ng/dL did not affect results to the precision reported here.FIGURE 1T is known to vary inversely with BMI (i.e., fatter men have lower T), and to decrease after men marry (Mazur and Michalek, 1998). Leanness and marital status vary by age and race, so these effects must be controlled. To test differences?within each age group, T was regressed on age, education (coded 1 for ≤high school, 0 for some college), BMI, marital status (1 if married, 0 if not), race (1 for black, 0 for white), and an interaction term for race*education (coded 1 for black with ≤high school, 0 otherwise).Table?1?shows only the regression coefficients for which?p?≤ 0.10. Age is a significant predictor only in the 60+ group (which has more age variation than other groups, some of its members more than 80 years old); T declines 6 ng/dL with each year older. Education?per se?is insignificant within every age group, while BMI is consistently important, an increase of one point lowering T by about 10 ng/dL. Marriage significantly lowers T among men in the middle age groups but not among those older or younger.TABLE 1Table 1. Regression coefficients for testosterone (ng/dL) as dependent variable, by age group.*Race?per se?is significant only among men 40–50 years old, an age specificity without theoretical explanation. Most relevant for the honor culture hypothesis is the significant interaction of race*education among men 20–29 year old, indicating an increase of 91 ng/dL of T among these young black men with low education.Does heightened T among young black men with low education begin before age 20? Teenagers have not had the time to advance their education beyond high school, so whether or not one enters college is no longer usable as a proxy for honor culture participation. A suitable alternative is family income (as a ratio of poverty level income), split at the median. Boys are divided into age groups 6–12 years old and 13–19. Sorting these by race, and again by high or low family income, gives groupings with 39–92 subjects. Among mostly prepubescent boys (ages 6–12), T is low, about 35–40 ng/dL, with no differences apparent by race or family income. In teenagers, 13–19 years old, T levels have climbed to around 400 ng/dL, again with no apparent difference by race or family income. If the honor culture heightens T during the late teens, this dataset has insufficient power to detect it.Honor cultures are cast as male affairs, but with T data in hand for both sexes, it is worth exploring whether or not a similar pattern exists among women. Mean T was calculated as a function of age for the four combinations of race and education used in Table?1?but now for women. All plots show T declining with age, from about 35 ng/dL in the 20–29 age group to about 20 ng/dL among women 60 years and older. The four plots essentially overlap without discernible differences among them. Given the high skew of T among adult females, both raw and ln-transformed values were analyzed with similar results. There is no indication of inordinately high T among young black women with low education.DiscussionIn the NHANES 2011–2012 sample, among young men with no education beyond high school, mean T of blacks is nearly 100 ng/dL higher than mean T of whites. Among older men or better-educated men, race made little difference in hormone levels. This specific pattern is consistent with the hypothesis that young men’s participation in the honor culture of poor black neighborhoods has the effect of elevating T. The finding clarifies an inconsistency between an early study that reported the identical pattern (Mazur, 1995), while a later study failed to find it (Mazur, 2009). When NHANES 2013–2014 becomes available, the test may be run again.None of these studies were able to sort poorly educated young black men into residential types, whether inner city neighborhoods, suburbs, or rural areas. We cannot tell if their elevated T is a distinctly inner city phenomenon or occurs as well outside these neighborhoods. However, we can infer some additional demographic characteristics of the lowly educated young black men in the NHANES sample by turning to the General Social Surveys (GSS), which since 1972 has annually or biennially sampled the adult U.S. population.6?As of 2014, there were 5,305 men between the ages of 20 and 29 in the cumulative GSS. Of these, a slight majority of black men live inside cities (excluding suburbs) of 50,000 or more population (51% of blacks with no more than high school education, 56% of those better educated) compared to 30% of white men, irrespective of education. Only 46% of the less-educated young black men report having lived with both their mother and father at age 16, compared with 61% of better-educated black men, 72% of less-educated white men, and 81% of better-educated white men. Fifty-eight percent of lowly educated young black men reported being fully employed, compared to 70% of better educated blacks, 61% of lowly educated whites, and 73% of better educated whites. While there is no way to specifically place any of these men in an “honor culture,” the demographic characteristics of America’s young lowly educated black men place them in living situations where honor cultures are reported to occur, and they would be concentrated among the young lowly educated black men of the NHANES sample.The implications of elevated T are uncertain. Studies show little if any?direct?link between high T and physical aggressiveness, but T may play an?indirect?role. In many settings, men’s circulating T is correlated with dominant behavior, criminal deviance, and a propensity to compete in status interactions such as those described by Anderson (Booth and Osgood, 1993;?Mazur and Booth, 1998;?Mazur, 2005;?Mehta and Josephs, 2006;?Carré et al., 2013).A man who has a recent rise in T, perhaps from a prior victory or a symbolic elevation in status, may be unusually assertive, challenging others in contests for dominance. Theoretically, the winner experiences rising T as a result of his victory, which should sustain or increase his assertiveness and his display of dominant signs such as erect posture, sauntering or striding gait, and direct eye contact with others. Thus bolstered, the dominant actor may seek out new challenges and is primed to win them.In everyday life, dominance contests are based on subtle cues, not on causing or even threatening physical harm to one’s adversary. But occasionally dominance contests escalate to a violent stage not originally intended or foreseen. The most common type of criminal homicide is what criminologist Jack Katz (1988) calls “the impassioned killing” of someone for what the killer regards as a good moralistic reason, perhaps the defense of his family, his property, or his good name. These are precisely the kinds of killings that might result from a dominance contest that escalated beyond the usual bounds of non-violence.The literature on T and dominance has for years debated the issue of sex differences. Males produce far higher levels of T than females, their relevant organs are different, and T plays different roles in the development of each sex from the embryonic stage onward. Nonetheless, it remains uncertain whether the relationship between T and dominance is primarily a male mechanism or works in females too (e.g.,?Carré et al., 2013;?Edwards and Castro, 2013). In the present study, at least, the sexes differ because the very high T seen among young black men with low education does not occur among young black women with low education.The biosocial model sketched here raises issues of scientific validity and policy ethics. The link between T and dominance has primarily correlational support and may be causally inaccurate. Any parsing of biomarkers by race and social class must be sensitive to the potential for invidious comparisons of groups. If high T does facilitate the high violence rate among young black men, there would be a troubling policy question of what, if anything, to do about it. Any notion of a medical or pharmaceutical fix, rather like prescribing Ritalin for hyperactivity, would reek of race-based chemical castration and should be regarded as outside the pale. However, social interventions might be workable and ethically acceptable. In one program, kindergarten boys were randomly assigned to a 10-year intervention or to a control group. The intervention attempted to develop social competencies and classroom performance, as well as training for parents to manage their child’s behavior. Years later, at a mean age of 26 years, participants responded to laboratory provocations. Results indicated that relative to control participants, men from the intervention demonstrated reduced aggression and T reactivity to social provocations (though not reduced basal T). Moreover, reduced T reactivity mediated the effect of intervention on aggressive behavior (Carré et al., 2014).Author ContributionsThe author confirms being the sole contributor of this work and approved it for publication.Conflict of Interest StatementThe author declares that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.Footnotes^^^^For each age group, percentages of white and black men with ≤high school are, in their 20s, 28 and 42%; in their 30s, 36 and 49%; in their 40s, 47 and 51%; in their 50s, 31 and 49%, in ages 60+, 43 and 63%.^Testing the three-way interaction of race, age, and education in an ANOVA format is problematic if the effect is occurring only in the youngest men. Nonetheless, I have made the calculations (with age continuous and centered on zero). The full model, including main effects, three two-way interactions, and one three-way interaction, produces insignificant coefficients. The reason is high multicollinearity between the three-way factor and two of the two-way factors (r?= 0.7). Running a model with main effects and the three-way interaction (i.e., no two-way interactions) gives a significant age*education*race coefficient (p?= 0.03).^ 12, 2010Testosterone Boosts Heart Risk in Men with Poor MobilityDaily treatments with a testosterone gel raised the risk of cardiovascular problems in older men with poor mobility. The adverse events were significant enough to bring an early halt to a clinical trial.Reduced muscle strength as we age sometimes contributes to difficulties in walking, climbing stairs and other activities. Some studies have shown that testosterone treatment can strengthen muscles in healthy older men, but its effect on older men with mobility problems had not been known.The Testosterone in Older Men Trial was designed to address this question. The researchers, led by Dr. Shalender Bhasin of Boston Medical Center, enrolled 209 men, ages 65 and older. All had low testosterone levels and mobility limitations, such as difficulty climbing 10 steps or walking 2 blocks. The men also tended to have chronic conditions, including diabetes, high blood pressure and obesity. Primary funding for the study came from NIH’s National Institute on Aging (NIA), with additional support from NIH’s National Center for Research Resources (NCRR) and other sources.The men were randomly assigned to receive 6 months’ treatment with either a testosterone gel or an inactive placebo gel. The gel was applied daily to the torso, abdomen or upper arms. Neither the men nor the clinical staff knew which gel each participant received.During the trial, a panel of experts reviewed the study’s safety. In December 2009, they found that 23 of the 106 men in the testosterone group had experienced cardiovascular-related events, compared to 5 of the 103 men who received placebo. The events included heart attack, elevated blood pressure and stroke, as well as one death from a suspected heart attack. The panel weighed the severity of the negative side effects against potential benefits. They recommended that the men stop taking testosterone and that enrollment be halted before reaching the planned number of 252 participants.Detailed findings were reported in the July 8, 2010 edition of the?New England Journal of Medicine. The scientists note that the increased cardiovascular risk in the testosterone group continued during the 6-month treatment period and did not decline during the 3-month observation period that followed. Overall, significantly more men in the testosterone group had heart, lung and skin problems during the study.Among the men whose strength or physical function was assessed, the testosterone group showed significantly greater improvements in leg-press strength, chest-press strength, and stair-climbing while carrying a load compared to the placebo group. However, no significant differences were seen between the 2 groups in walking speed or stair-climbing without a load.The authors caution that it’s difficult to draw broad conclusions about the safety of testosterone therapy based on this relatively small study. They note that participants were older and had higher rates of chronic diseases and mobility limitations than people in most other studies. Further research will be needed to clarify the safety issues raised by this clinical trial.EXCESS ESTROGENby?Britta AragonWHAT DOES IT MEAN TO HAVE HIGH ESTROGEN LEVELS?It’s called “high estrogen,” or “estrogen dominance.” It’s when our levels of this hormone are higher than they should be, optimally. When that happens, we can suffer from a number of potential side effects:Decreased sex driveHeadaches and migrainesMood swings/depression/anxietyBloating, water retention, and weight gainHair lossIrregular menstrual periodsSleep problems/insomniaFatigueMemory problemsSwollen or tender breastsMore difficult symptoms of PMSHigher levels of estrogen also increase risk of certain diseases, including:FibroidsOvarian cystsFibrocystic breast diseaseEndometriosisSome cancers, including breast and endometrial cancerThe influence of testosterone on blood pressure and risk factors for cardiovascular disease in a black South African population.Huisman HW1,?Schutte AE,?Van Rooyen JM,?Malan NT,?Malan L,?Schutte R,?Kruger A.Author informationAbstractOBJECTIVES:Traditionally high testosterone levels have been thought to have a detrimental effect on lipid profiles. Recently, reports have shown that testosterone has a beneficial effect on lipid profiles. On the other hand, androgens may increase blood pressure via the renin-angiotensin system. The aim of this study was to determine whether the level of testosterone is increased in hypertensive subjects or if other cardiovascular risk factors are altered with increased levels of testosterone in the Black population of South Africa.METHODS:For this study, 536 male and 666 female Black subjects were included. The subjects were divided into hypertensive and normotensive groups and high and low testosterone groups. Resting blood pressure was recorded with a finger arterial pressure device. Blood sampling and biochemical analyses were done by using standardized methods.RESULTS:The levels of testosterone in the hypertensive males and females were significantly higher compared to the normotensives. In the male high testosterone group, the level of triglyceride was significantly lower, while the high-density lipoprotein cholesterol level was significantly higher. In the female high testosterone group, systolic blood pressure, cortisol level, and renin activity were significantly higher.CONCLUSION:In the males, we found beneficial effects of testosterone, which may explain the reported lower incidence of atheroma. However, the testosterone level is also higher with hypertension. The elevated levels of systolic blood pressure and renin activity that were found in the female group with high testosterone levels may be an indication of the role of the renin-angiotensin system in this regard.PMID:?Does Exercise Lower or Raise Cortisol LevelsThe Stress Response To ExerciseWhen the adrenal glands are unable to launch a satisfactory stress response, the body begins to deteriorate. The more often this happens, the more the stress becomes exacerbated. This leads to greater demands upon the adrenal glands; eventually, they cease their ability to produce cortisol. Such a situation is often referred to as “a vicious cycle”, and results in complete adrenal gland exhaustion.Cortisol has been demonstrated to align closely in relationship to exercise and training status and overtraining in particular. Levels in excess of 800 nmol/liter are generally indicative of overtraining. High-intensity resistance/strength training, such as performing sprints or engaging in rigorous bodybuilding workouts, have been correlated with increased plasma cortisol concentrations.The most dramatic cortisol increases seem to occur when rest periods are short and total exercise volume is high. Upon its release from the adrenal gland, cortisol functions as an anti-inflammatory and a catabolic hormone.In an average individual, cortisol breaks down about 1% of muscle proteins daily, which are then replaced as induced by growth hormone and insulin-like growth factor. With training, cortisol breaks down an average of 3-5% of muscle proteins daily. Overtraining releases excessive amounts of cortisol, eventually catabolizing a dangerous excess of proteins.Upon its release from the adrenal gland, cortisol functions as an anti-inflammatory and a catabolic hormone. In an average individual, cortisol breaks down about 1% of muscle proteins daily, which are then replaced as induced by growth hormone and insulin-like growth factor. With training, cortisol breaks down an average of 3-5% of muscle proteins daily.Overtraining releases excessive amounts of cortisol, eventually catabolizing a dangerous excess of proteins.Conversely,?aerobic endurance training, most notably seen with elite runners, is linked with protein loss from muscle degradation, which is partly induced by cortisol. Endurance athletes general exhibit a higher cortisol response, while individuals who specialize in bodybuilding have a higher testosterone response. Cortisol causes atrophy predominantly in fast twitch, or type 2, muscle fibers. The anabolic effects of testosterone work directly in opposition to cortisol’s catabolic effects.Recovery ReactionsThe acute increases in cortisol following exercise also stimulate the inflammatory response mechanisms involved with tissue remodeling. This is a necessary adaptation that helps to repair cell damage inflicted by intense workouts.Research has shown that long-term cortisol elevations seem to be responsible for adverse catabolic muscular effects. Thus, reducing levels of cortisol is?necessary in order for an athlete to achieve tissue growth and positive adaptations to exercise training.Cortisol accelerates the breakdown of proteins into amino acids. These amino acids move out of the tissues and into the bloodstream. Eventually, they migrate toward cells within the liver, where they are converted to glucose in a process known as gluconeogenesis.While a prolonged elevated blood concentration of cortisol results in a net loss of tissue proteins and higher levels of blood glucose, such elevated plasma glucose levels allow cortisol to provide the body with the energy required to combat stress from an intense workout. This delicate system of checks and balances defines cortisol’s effects on the human body’s energy system.The Effect Of Vitamins On CortisolA research study done on 17 junior elite weightlifters looked at the effects of vitamin C on cortisol levels. Results demonstrated that the individuals taking 1 additional gram of vitamin C per day improved their testosterone to?cortisol ratio by over 20%. Such a decrease in cortisol can lead to increased muscle and connective?tissue hypertrophy as well as enhanced recovery from training. Beta-carotene, which is often used to facilitate or improve healthy skin function, may also minimize cortisol levels.As we have learned, cortisol plays a number of important roles in our daily health.? It turns on the “light switches” in the body so we can get moving in the morning. It elevates during exercise to enable us to perform at a higher level without negative interference. It also acts as a buffer to stress. Just as oil in a car engine lubricates the mechanisms, cortisol enables the human body to operate at a higher pace without dangerously “overheating”.Bottom of FormThe Truth About ExerciseHiking, especially with friends – ?This last week I went and hiked around Lake Radnor in Nashville with fellow entrepreneur?Matt Bodnar. ?We?hung out with deer, saw incredible scenery, and talked about life and business. ?I also happened to walk five miles over various elevations.Walking – ?No time to hike? ?Go for a walk. ?Even a 15-minute brisk walk is enough time to get close to a mile walked, which gets you?one step closer to Mordor.??Do you have a 30-minute meeting at work? ?Have a walking meeting instead. ?Steve Jobs was known for doing this.LARPING – ?Live Action Role Playing. ?Might seem silly to those on the outside, but to those playing, it’s an amazing adventure that reminds us how awesome our imaginations are. ?Also, depending on the game, you could be wearing a heavy costume, swinging heavy weaponry, and running for your life!Rock Climbing –?I love rock climbing. ?It’s one of the best arm/back/forearm workouts in existence, you get to feel like a badass when you reach the top of the wall, and all climbing routes are graded so you can level up the challenge as you get stronger/fitter/better. ?It’s a fit nerd’s dream!Geocaching?–?If rock climbing is a fit-nerd’s dream, then geocaching is a adventure nerd’s dream brought to life. ?Become a real life treasure-hunter (Lara Croft? Nathan Drake? You decide!), and get a great workout in while you’re at it.Dancing – ?Ever tried serious swing dancing? You’ll be sweating within ten minutes. ?How about hip hop? ?Drenched in sweat, and sore as hell the next day. Zumba? Tango? Flamenco? ?You’d be surprised what you can sign up for and what will elevate your heart rate.Roughhousing with your kids.?I don’t have kids, but when I do, you can bet your ass I’ll be the dad out rolling around in the back yard with them. ?Don’t forget?what it’s like to be a kid?– it keeps you young. ?I really enjoyed this article from Art of Manliness on the?importance of roughhousing!Climbing on stuff?– Last week on my hike at Midoricon, I was walking through the woods with NF Rebel Joe (No, not?THAT Joe).? It was awesome to see this guy, having lost 100 pounds since finding Nerd Fitness, explore the woods like it was no problem: climbing on stumps, balancing on fallen trees, climbing trees, and more. ?When was the last time you’ve done stuff like THAT? Hmmm? (Shout out to?MovNat!)Martial arts –?Be honest. You watched?The Matrix, you heard Neo go “I know Kung Fu” and you wanted to be able to one day?say the same thing. ?Whether it’s Kung Fu, Muay Thai, Tae Kwon Do, Karate or Capoeira, there’s a martial art out there that will make you feel like a badass.Build a standing desk?– Although we all know that?correlation does not prove causation, it’s no surprise that there’s a strong correlation between sitting all day and an early grave. ?Why not fix your posture, strengthen your legs, and spend the day being more productive with?a standing desk?Stop meeting for coffee –?Hat tip to?Charlie Hoehn?on this one. ?If somebody wants to meet up with you for coffee, suggest something active: throwing a baseball, tossing a frisbee, going for a hike – anything that gets you up and moving. ?I say yes to pretty much anybody that invites me to play golf. Wink wink.Clean –?Ugh, nobody likes to clean the house/apartment. I certainly don’t. So I make a game out of it. ?I see how much I can accomplish with a single song blasting at max volume. ?Of course, after getting through one song, I figure “welp, I’ve already started, might as well keep going.”Do handstands –?We have an article coming up teaching you how to do your first handstand, which I’m very excited about. ?This is a fun activity that builds up serious arm and core strength and will leave you sweating bullets after even a few minutes. ?Find a park, go do handstands, cartwheels, somersaults, and whatever else makes you feel young again.Parkour –?Our?beginner’s guide to Parkour?is one of the most popular on Nerd Fitness. ?I don’t care how old you are, there’s no reason you can’t get started with rolling around in your hard and vaulting over picnic tables and bike racks.Playout –?Is Parkour too serious for you??Try a playout!?Spiderman was on to something – climbing walls, swinging from skyscrapers, and popping flips around the bad guys. You might not be able to swing between buildings, but you can definitely visit a playground in your area and get creative!Adult gymnastics –?In the same vein as Parkour, gymnastics will help you build some of the BEST real world strength you can get with any type of exercise, and it’s all done in a playful way without a single weight being picked up. ?Swing from rings, somersault, flip onto pads, and more. ?There are gyms all over the country.Yoga?–?Build flexibility, strength, and learn to freaking relax. ?There are million kinds of yoga, so sign up for a few different kinds and see which one lines up the best with what you’re looking for.Play video games that make you be active –?Wii Tennis, Wii Fit, Just Dance on Xbox Kinect, and whatever games actually exist for the Sony Move (does anybody actually have this?). ?OK, DDR (Dance Dance Revolution) counts too. ?I know an hour of that is exhausting. ?Playing a normal game like?Grand Theft Auto V? ?Make a rule that you can only play while standing up. ?That’s what I do to keep myself from spending twelve hours on the couch in marathon gaming sessions!Play on a playground –?Obviously not when kids are around. Preferably with pants on. Go down the slide, swing across the monkey bars, climb the rope all, balance on the balance beam. ?Create an obstacle course for yourself and see how quickly you can get through it. ?You can even?work out on a playground?too.Join a Rec league –?New in town? Want to be active and meet people? ?Join a kickball or softball league. ?You get to exercise AND it’s a great way to?meet new people!Bike to work –?I know there are a lot of Rebels in our community who dropped a bunch of weight by making one change: they biked to work, or biked to their friend’s house, or started biking generlaly. ?You get from Point A to Point B, you save money on gas, and you get a workout. ?That would make?Michael Scott proud.Testosterone Lowering Foods For WomenDate: January 15, 2018High androgen or male-sex hormone levels lie at the heart of Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS.) These excess androgens like testosterone are the main culprits behind a myriad of pesky PCOS symptoms like?cystic acne,?excessive body hair, thinning hair on the scalp,?dark skin patches?and even your unexplained?weight gain.?Since a healthy diet is one of the best ways to treat and manage this endocrine disorder, why not give your PCOS diet an extra punch with testosterone-lowering foods! Let’s take a look at the top 8 foods that reduce testosterone naturally.Cold Water FishFatty fish is a rich source of Omega-3 fatty acids. In particular, cold water fish like salmon, sardines, tuna, mackerel, trout and herring are good foods to reduce testosterone.?Studies?have found that Omega-3 supplementation could reduce serum concentrations of testosterone and regulate periods. At Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences, Iran, scientists put 78 overweight women with PCOS on 3gr/day of omega-3 supplements for 8 weeks. By the end of the trial,?testosterone concentration was significantly lower in the group of women who were administered omega-3 group and regular menstruation was achieved by almost half the participants.The good news is that adding oily, fatty fish to your diet will bring about the same testosterone-lowering benefits. Plus fish is such an integral part of a healthy?PCOS diet?because it’s a good source of proteins, healthy fats and a variety of vitamins and minerals. Eating whole small fish like sardines and mackerel also gives your diet a must-needed calcium boost! Eat 2-3 servings of fish per week.Spearmint TeaIf you’re on a PCOS diet and trying to cut back on your soda and caffeine intake, herbal teas are a good choice as foods that reduce testosterone.?Spearmint tea?has significant anti-androgen effects that can be very beneficial for women dealing with PCOS. In a?study?conducted at Eastbourne District General Hospital, Sussex, UK, researchers studied the anti-androgen effects of spearmint tea in women with PCOS. 42 women with PCOS were given 2 cups of tea per day and were tracked over a period of 1 month. By the end of the trial, Free and total testosterone levels were significantly reduced in the spearmint tea group, while LH and FSH also increased. Patients also reported a?reduction in other symptoms of hyperandrogenism like hirsutism.It’s safe to drink 2-3 cups of spearmint tea every day. This is a really soothing, calming herbal tea that also helps relax you and keep?bloating?at bay. What’s better, it also aids in digestion and is good for your gut health. We call this one a win-win!MarjoramMarjoram is another natural food that reduces?testosterone and has often been used in alternative medicine to regulate the?menstrual cycle and promote hormonal balance. In particular, marjoram tea can help reduce levels of adrenal androgens in women with PCOS.?Researchers from The University of Jordan?gave 25 women with PCOS wither marjoram tea or a placebo tea twice daily for 30 days. By the end of the controlled trial, women who drank marjoram tea has significantly reduced DHEA-S (another androgen that’s produced by the adrenal glands) and fasting insulin levels.You can use marjoram as a herb to flavour your food. This Mediterranean herb goes well with soups, stews and curries, and can be used as a milder alternative to oregano. Enjoy a cup of testosterone-lowering tea by brewing fresh or dried marjoram herb with a cup of water for 5-10 minutes.Licorice RootLicorice is a fantastic remedy for hormonal imbalances in PCOS because of its anti-androgen abilities.?Scientistsfrom the?University of Padua, Italy found that Licorice can reduce serum testosterone and could be considered an adjuvant therapy of hirsutism and polycystic ovary syndrome. The other?study?found that PCOS patients on?spironolactone?— an anti-androgen pharmaceutical therapy, fare better when an additional dose of 3.5g of licorice a day is given.Brew a home-made tea with dried licorice roots. A lot of people find that a tea brewed from a combination of Licorice and White Peony Root is particularly helpful in balancing out hormones. Licorice root can be used to make healthy candies or treats as well.Have you tried any of these foods that reduce testosterone naturally? Write in and share your experiences with us!Ishika SachdevIshika Sachdev is a Holistic Nutritionist certified from Nutritional Therapy Association of America. Ishika believes that food is your ultimate medicine and cure for all kinds of health conditions, including lifestyle disorders like PCOD.How to Restore DHEA Levels?NaturallyDHEA is directly linked to your lifestyle, nutrition, emotional health and stress levels, metabolism, activity level, hormonal balance. People who suffer from hormonal imbalances, HIV/AIDS, Alzheimer’s disease, heart problems, depression, diabetes, inflammations, low immune function, osteoporosisFor short term stress (minutes), the adrenal glands will secrete adrenalin, for medium term stress (hours) cortisol, and for long term stress (days) DHEA.The problem occurs when your body is not adapting well to prolonged stress and pulls out an inappropriate response by producing too much cortisol and less DHEA. Sometimes, after the stressful situation ceases, the body can’t come back to its normal hormonal production and remains to this high cortisol and low DHEA modeThe good news is that the abnormal cortisol and DHEA levels produced by chronic stress can be balanced with natural DHEA supplements, elimination of stress, healthy nutrition, and other stress-reducing methods.Meditation?- has been proven to reduce stress, calm the emotions and mind, improve health, and reduce the cortisol levels.Yoga?– yoga postures regulate the adrenal function and restore the hormonal balance: Sukhasana, Sarvangasana, Viparita Karani, Setu Bandhasana, Shavasana, Supta Baddha Konasana, Balasana.Breathing exercises?– conscious breathing exercises, such as Belly Breathing, help reduce stress.Aerobic exercises?– they minimize mental or emotional stress, induce a state of dynamism, energy, joy in your body and mind, normalize hormonal levels.Anti-inflammatory Herbs?– inflammation is our body’s response to infection, injuries, autoimmune reaction, or allergy and is designed to heal and repair the tissues. Inflammation can be addressed with diet, herbal and nutritional supplements. Herbs like?turmeric, ginger, rosemary, sage, cloves,?cinnamon, thyme, chamomile, etc.Adaptogen Herbs?– help your body to relieve stress and balance hormones: Ashwagandha, ginseng, astragalus, licorice.Anti-inflammatory Foods?– dark leafy greens (kale, spinach, broccoli), blueberries, matcha tea, red grapes, garlic, celery, pineapple, coconut oil, etc.Magnesium?– there are natural forms of magnesium that are easy to absorb and assimilate into the body, such as magnesium oil.Vitamin C?– with antioxidant and anti-cortisol properties, can be taken from fruits, foods, and herbs, such as pineapple, sesame, lemon, parsley, etc.Zinc?- is a mineral that helps in over 300 enzymatic processes in the body, including steroid hormone production (DHEA).Lessons LearntBlacks have darker skin that absorbs sunlight to make Vitamin D, a cholesterol that is used to make hormones like testosterone. Blacks have higher testosterone, low SHBG, short CAG repeats, low DHEA, high testosterone/cortisol ratio than other races. Both the increase in testosterone an reactivity of the 5-alpha-reductase hormone that brings the net effect of aggression and acts of the dominance of the race.External sources of testosterone will not give the same effects as endogenous testosteroneHence blacks have more muscle to body fat ratio and can become athletic easily than their counterparts. This applies to male and females.Black females still have a much lower Testosterone level compared to males.Black females have higher testosterone and estrogen compare to females of other races. The order Black >Latinos> Whites> Asians can be used to refer to the distribution of testosterone in general.This difference stated above is not clear-cut, it like a normal distribution, or one can say there is the presence of breeds according to similarities in gens. Since race accounts for 7 % similarity in genetics the rest can cause similarities between individuals of different races. hence it is not right to determine individuals testosterone level by their color.Races do not play a part in predicting a person intelligence because every individual's brain adapts and matures differently at a different pace depending on stimulation(environment) and self-learning /desire to know more. Hence intelligence cannot be attributed to the racial difference or the presence of testosterone, however, testosterone appears to increase some cognitive skills e.g verbal memory and spatial abilities.Higher testosterone is higher in young uneducated males than educated, married and older black males. High testosterone was found in people who had experienced past trauma, e.g wars, slavery. It could be an adaptation to try and defend themselves from further disasters.High testosterone might be the reason for a lot of crimes committed by blacks especially the poor young uneducated males as a means of combativeness against their situation.It is shown Educating young black men from kindergarten on intellectual and how to manage conflicts reduces the effects of testosterone levels by the time they turn 26 years.Testosterone lowers DHEA, as a result, DHEA is lower in Blacks than other races. DHEA is said to be antibacterial, antiviral and anticancerous. And it decreases with age making older people more prone to disease and cancer.Blacks may be more prone to diseases and cancer due to the direct effect of Testosterone (Prostate cancer) or lower DHEA levels.Black Fmelaes, in particular, has higher incidence of breast cancer, ovarian cancer, endometriosis, uterine myomas, premenstrual syndrome because of higher estrogen levels than their female counterparts.It is said that cortisol and serotonin help counteract tesotrone levels. Exercise increase cortisol levels hence could help couteract testosterone levels; High intensive interval training, endurance training(aerobics) where seen to be more effective in increasing cortisol levels.Testostrone leads to weigh gain, high blood pressure, lowers HDL and may make blood more likely to clot hence predisposes the race to a higher risk of obesity, hypertension and heart disease; especially to those with low mobility.I think higher testosterone requires you to be more mobile and productive to use the excess manpower. Hence longer periods of exercise 1 hr a day of aerobics( as opposed to 30 or 45 minutes that can suffice other people with lower hormonal levels), can help blacks reduce this risk.Extra activities at work, which involve physical movent may also help, After school or work basketball, soccer, boxing, and adult playgrounds that allow climbing walls/rocks, hanging on poles may help keep the hormones in control. Long periods of work with short breaks can also help since higher amounts cortisol is produced.For women spearmint, peppermint herbal tea 2-3 cups a day, licorice root, Marjoram as a tea or spice may help reduce testosterone levels in addition to exercise and extra work.A fiber diet reduces estrogen levels. Estrogen I eliminated in the gut constipation will allow reabsorption.The lesser the body fat the lesser the estrogen the lesser he rick of the breast, ovarian cancer, uterine myoma endometriosis. Low-fat diet, low sugar diet helps reduce testosterone and estrogen levels. However, healthy fats such as omega 3 fatty acids in fish. can also reduce testosterone levels, In particular, cold water fish like salmon, sardines, tuna, mackerel, trout, and herring are good foods to reduce testosterone.?Studies?have found that Omega-3 supplementation could reduce serum concentrations of testosterone and regulate periods.Since testosterone makes blood clot faster and increases the rick of heart disease could taking alcohol as a tesostetorne lowering agent lower risk of heart disease? E.g can binge drinking on weekends prevent youth from getting into more trouble? Maybe that’s why it is socially acceptable for man to drink but not very much for women.Since estrogens are used in pesticides used to grow fruits and vegetables I suggest washing these first beofr consumption.Could testosterone be a reason for higher divorce rates among black American women?Since testosterone cause insensitivity to punishment could it be the reason why African American women spank their children more compared to other ethnic groups?Could testosterone be the reason why African American women think they can a manage single motherhood(unless it is necessary for their own safety and safety of the children)?Could hormones be the reason why more blacks get involved in homosexuality?Could testosterone be the reason why most African American women like to dress more like men?In African are the amount of reckless driving and car accidents associated with high testosterone?Is the increasing amount of mortality and disability caused by motorcycle accident in Africa among young uneducated men due to testosterone?Is the testosterone the reason why the African race is still surviving despite the economic, social and political hardships?Could it be that high estrogen in black females increases their chance of abuse in relationships due to strong emotional attachments?Could a high testosterone in black females be the cause of early puberty?Could high estrogen in black females be the cause of teen pregnancy?Studies show that testosterone may improve spatial abilities and verbal memory could it be the reason why many blacks are good at sports, rap music and dancing?!Look at black preachers and there congregation; even the black holy man and women of God seem to be more combative then their racial counterparts. Is it right to say that it is because they are violent? Or its just their combative nature.ConclusionEducation appears to reduce aggression and T reactivity to social provocations (though not reduced basal T). Exercise such as endurance training, High-intensity interval training, basketball, soccer, and boxing after work and school can help be combative for good works . I think it will to help them to have higher DHEA level and lower risk of diseases and cancer. Hard and longer work might just have a similar impact as a hard workout; since exercise should be done only when the necessary work has been well done. This should be supplemented with a testosterone lowering diet especially for females. I conclude by a saying “with greater power comes greater responsibility” that is Blacks, given more inert power and resilience should work harder, exercise harder and eat right to create a balance. Providing education from kindergarten, dignified jobs with healthy working environments, sport centers and healthy food could help the race reach its fullest potential. I believe empowering black people so that they can chanel their power to the right things will make brave, resilient and influential leaders. ................
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