Testosterone And Dietary Fats

Do you remember those crazy low fat diets when everyone switched to low fat products hoping to reduce body fat? Insane times, huh? Ok, if you’re not aware, fat does not make you fat. Before you go and grab a doughnut or start munching away on a lump of  lard (because everyone does that), let me be clear that not all fat is equal. Decent fats do not make you fat – typically plant based fats from the likes of olive oil, coconut oil, avocado, butter (from grass-fed cows), nuts, seeds and also saturated fats in meats, fatty fish and eggs. This list is far from exhaustive. We need to consume plenty of healthy fats in order to increase testosterone so we can build muscle and burn fat. When you consume low fat foods, not only are they typically loaded with added sugar (that makes you gain fat and reduce testosterone), but people on low fat diets are missing a major consideration – fat does not raise insulin levels – your fat-storing hormone. Carbohydrates and sugar cause insulin spikes, not fat. Now, without further ado, let’s take a look at the types of fat we need to be consuming for maximum testosterone boosting and muscle-building effects. And not to forget, fat loss. Yup, fat loss! Eat fat to get lean. Go figure. This is an awesome article from Anabolic men which you must read before you do anything else!

There are two crucial factors to look for when focusing on dietary fat intake to optimize T.

1. The actual amount of dietary fat you eat is important. This should be pretty high, but there’s an upper limit from where things start going to the opposite direction.

2. The ratio between different types of fatty acids plays a crucial role. Not all of them are equally as effective, and one of the groups actually decreases testosterone.

I’m assuming that most of you already know the difference between fats, but for the sake of simplicity, these are the three types of fat you need to know:

• Polyunsaturated fatty-acids (PUFAs) – omega fatty-acids (3,6,7,9), sunflower oil, canola oil, soybean oil, safflower oil, flaxseed oil, walnut oil, margarine, light spreads, etc.

• Monounsaturated fatty-acids (MUFAs) – olive oil, almond oil, avocado oil, hazelnut oil, macadamia nut oil, peanut butter, etc.

• Saturated fatty-acids (SFAs) – red meat, butter, coconut oil, palm oil, dark chocolate, egg yolks, cheese, whole milk, etc.

Here’s what science tells us about these fats and testosterone production:

a) In this study, the researchers tested several nutritional factors to see how they correlate with pre-exercise testosterone levels in healthy men. What they saw was that the diets high in saturated fat and the diets high in monounsaturated fat, significantly increased testosterone levels. Whereas the diets high in protein, or the diets high in polyunsaturated fats, both reduced testosterone levels in a pretty much dose dependent manner. The researchers also saw that the higher the dietary fat intake, the higher the testosterone (diet containing mixed fats).

b) The data of the study above is consistent with the results that are seen in vegan/vegetarian studies. Vegetarians eat lower amounts of dietary fat, and their PUFA/SFA ratio is higher than what is seen in most omnivores. That’s more than likely the main reason why vegans/vegetarians have noticeably lower testosterone levels than meat eaters do (study,study, study, study, study).

c) Several studies have also shown that when diets lower in total fat intake (~20%), are compared to diets higher in total fat intake (~40%). The higher fat intake groups always have more testosterone, and less SHBG in their blood serum (study, study, study)

d) In this study two elite ice hockey teams were put on different diets for a period of 7 months. The other team received a diet containing 40% fat and 45% carbs, whereas the other team ate a diet with 30% fat and 55% carbs (protein intake was identical). Both during and after the study, the researchers saw that the higher fat intake group had higher free testosterone levels, along with lower sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) levels.

At this point it becomes quite obvious that you need to eat plenty of fat to increase testosterone levels, and that the types of fat you need to focus on are the saturated fats and monounsaturated fats. Whereas the consumption of polyunsaturated fats should be kept low.

Eating 35-40% of your daily calories from mostly SFAs and MUFAs would be my recommendation for optimal testosterone production. No more than that because you have to leave some room for carbohydrates and protein too.

“But what the heck? I’ve heard that saturated fat causes heart conditions?!”
Answer: Don’t fret over such nonsense. Recent research has shown multiple times that the correlation between dietary fat intake and cardiovascular disease risk is pretty much non-existant. Brett from the Art of Manliness actually has a post here, which shows how he ate a high-fat diet that doubled his testosterone levels, while his blood profile stayed optimal the whole time.

Conclusion

Eating a diet high in fat is a sure way to increase your baseline testosterone levels. In fact it’s one of the easiest ways to do so.

Research has also shown that the higher intake of saturated fats and monounsaturated fats leads to higher testosterone levels, whereas a higher intake of polyunsaturated fats leads to lower testosterone.

So not only does the amount of fat you eat matter, but also the type of fat.

Thank you for reading!

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