Prolactin and Testosterone: What is the Relationship?

In this post, I am going to be looking at the relationship between prolactin and testosterone levels.

There can be many reasons for low testosterone such as chronic stress and high levels of estrogen.

But did you know that there is also a hormone called prolactin that can have a big impact on your testosterone levels?

Prolactin is a hormone produced by the pituitary gland and sent into the bloodstream.

It is also a hormone that triggers the production of milk in pregnant women. So as you can imagine, you don’t want this hormone to be too high in the body.

But that’s just part of the story…

Unsurprisingly studies have confirmed that many sexual problems are related to high prolactin levels. But there is more to the relationship between prolactin and testosterone than just this.

So go through this post if you want to know more about prolactin and testosterone levels.

Prolactin and Testosterone Relationship

Prolactin is an important part of your endocrine system that is linked to physical reactions like growing, eating and the desire for sex.

Prolactin not only regulates testosterone levels in men but also immune functions, salt water balance, brain activity, behavior, growth, and development. Prolactin tells the body that it’s satisfied after sex and should settle down for some time.

Prolactin and testosterone are more related to each other than you might think. Researchers have seen that higher levels of prolactin cause the gonads to make less testosterone, a condition commonly known as hypogonadism (inability of the testes to produce hormones).

So high levels of prolactin can lead to low sperm quality, erectile dysfunction, decreased libido, lower concentrations of sperm, and gynecomastia i.e. “man boobs”.

These symptoms can start to become very prominent in everyday life. You can start to develop man boobs which won’t go away even after spending hours on the treadmill. You will also have low sperm quality and steadily lose the desire for sex.

However, the first thing which will be affected is sperm quality. Actually, high prolactin levels affect the release of the gonadotropin-releasing hormone, which in turn affects the release of FSH and LH, the two hormones responsible for building testosterone levels in the body.

Bottom Line: Any man who wants to hold on to his libido and testosterone levels should take steps to lower prolactin in the body.

Studies on Prolactin and Testosterone Levels

There are many studies which examine the relationship between prolactin and testosterone levels. Here are some of these studies:

1) A study was done recently in which researchers looked at 3,000 European men between the ages of 40 and 79 and examined their testosterone levels, blood sugar levels, cholesterol levels, and prolactin levels.

The participants were also asked to fill out a questionnaire about their general health, smoking, and alcohol consumption. The results showed that prolactin levels were linked to poor sexual and psychological health.

The men who had low testosterone levels were also the ones to admit that their sex life was getting worse. They also said that they didn’t enjoy orgasm. They also had symptoms of anxiety and depression.

2) Another study was done back in the 90s which looked at the relationship between prolactin and testosterone levels in men. In the study, about fifty-seven male patients with poor sexual functioning were studied.

The blood testosterone levels were studied in all the patients. The patients were divided into two groups, those with plasma testosterone lower than 0.8 nmol/L and those with plasma testosterone greater than 0.8 nmol/L.

Afterward, the participants were studied for their prolactin levels. Interestingly, prolactin levels were higher in men with lower testosterone levels and vice versa.

3) Many rat studies have been done in the last two decades to find out the relationship between prolactin and male testosterone levels. Tests were run on the rats, in which their prolactin and testosterone levels were determined.

One of these studies suggested that testosterone regulates the secretion of prolactin through a long mechanism. All these studies point towards prolactin being crucial for regulating male fertility.

How to Lower Prolactin Levels

By now, you should understand that high levels of prolactin can lower testosterone levels in the body. So it’s important to look for ways to lower prolactin levels.

Here are some ways you can lower prolactin:

Ashwagandha Lowers Prolactin

Ashwagandha is a herb that is well known as an adaptogen which basically means that it can help to lower stress in the body.

But this herb doesn’t just lower stress because in one study it was shown that Ashwagandha can increase testosterone by 40% after the men in the study consumed 5 grams daily for 3 months.

The same study also discovered that it lowered prolactin levels by 15% making Ashwagandha a great supplement for any man to take. The Ashwagandha I recommend is from Organic India.

Vitamin E Lowers Prolactin

Vitamin E is well known for its ability to boost sperm production in the body and there are studies which indicate that it also boosts testosterone levels.

There was also a study done in which it was found out that taking 300 mg of Vitamin E for 8 weeks decreases prolactin levels by a massive 69%.

There has been a lot of research over the last few years to show how Vitamin E can help brain function and the researchers believe this is a result of it being a powerful antioxidant.

So the best way to get quality natural Vitamin E is by using a supplement that contains natural tocopherols.

Vitamin B6 Lowers Prolactin

Vitamin B6 is a very important vitamin and part of the Vitamin B complex. It helps in many bodily functions but probably the most important one is that it boosts testosterone levels.

Vitamin B6 also lowers prolactin levels and in a study, it was shown that 300mg of B6 pyridoxine increased growth hormone levels and lowered prolactin in humans.

The best way to consume Vitamin B6 is to supplement with B6 pyridoxine just like the men in the study above did.

Zinc Lowers Prolactin

In a previous post I did about the benefits of zinc for men, I went over some of the reasons why Zinc is often known as the “sex mineral”

The reason it’s called the sex mineral is because Zinc deficiency is one of the major causes of low semen volume and low testosterone.

But that is not the only reason it is known as the sex mineral because in a study Zinc was also shown to lower prolactin levels by almost 50% in men.

If you want to supplement with Zinc we recommend choosing Zinc orotate.

Conclusion  

I hope this article has shown you the relationship between prolactin and testosterone levels. High prolactin levels can lower testosterone and lengthen the refractory period. 

But the good news is that these natural ways mentioned above can help you keep your prolactin levels in check and also shorten the refractory period. 

Finally, if you found this article useful share with someone you know using the icons below.

Thanks for reading

[simple-author-box]