How Safe is TRT?

In 2016 there was a serious warning issued by FDA associating TRT with a high risk of stroke, heart failure, aggression, liver toxicity and infertility. They also went as far as making it illegal, except for certain medical conditions such as testicular disease.

A new study, however, might prove just the opposite. Carried out on over 5000 participants, it found no evidence that testosterone therapy increased cardiovascular risks in men over short to medium periods of time.

Dr. Jemma Hudson, from the Health Services Research Unit of the University of Aberdeen, together with her team divided the studies into two groups: placebo group, and TRT group.

The testosterone group reported slightly more deaths than the placebo group (110 vs 120), but it did not reach statistical significance. However, there was no apparent difference in blood pressure between the two groups. Moreover, cholesterol and triglycerides were lower in the TRT group.

Prostate cancer incidence was also unaffected.

As encouraging as this new research may be, keep in mind that those studies were carried out over a period of 9 months. Long term TRT might have very different adverse effects on your health over the years.

There is a study though, released by German drug company Bayer, on the effects of 11 years of TRT on a large group with promising results. It is important to mention, however, that Bayer also funded the study.