Sleep duration may affect testosterone levels for men and women differently by age
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Key takeaways:
- Associations between sleep duration and serum testosterone vary by age and sex.
- Sleep quality was not associated with testosterone concentration.
Middle-aged men who slept 9 or more hours per night and middle-aged women who slept 6 or fewer hours or 9 or more hours were more likely to have low testosterone levels than adults who slept 7 to 8 hours per night, according to study data.
In findings published in Andrology, researchers analyzed data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from the 2011-2012 cycle to the 2015-2016 cycle. Associations between sleep duration and testosterone levels varied by both sex and age. Men aged 20 to 40 years who slept 6 or fewer hours per night had higher odds for high testosterone levels than those sleeping 7 to 8 hours per night; and no associations wer found for adults aged 65 years and older.
“Both sleep deprivation (sleeping less than 6 hours) and sleeping 9 hours or more have been associated with increasing rates of obesity and cardiovascular disease,” David S. Lopez, MS, MPH, DrPH, associate professor of epidemiology at the University of Texas Medical Branch – School of Public and Population Health, told Healio. “In parallel, previous studies have reported an association between low levels of testosterone and increasing rates of obesity and CVD. Therefore, the [sex] differences in the association between sleep quantity and testosterone concentrations found in this study can provide insight about different rates of chronic diseases in men and women.”
Lopez and colleagues collected data from 8,748 adults who participated in three NHANES cycles. Total testosterone concentrations were obtained. Men had low testosterone if they had a concentration of less than 300 mg/dL and high testosterone with a concentration of more than 850 mg/dL. Women were divided into tertiles to determine low, moderate and high testosterone levels. Sleep duration was self-reported in a questionnaire. Sleep deprivation was defined as 6 hours or less sleep per night, and high amounts of sleep were defined as 9 hours or more per night. Sleep quality was also self-reported.
There were 4,512 women and 4,236 men included in the study. Men had a mean testosterone of 370.94 ng/dL, and 28.59% of men were classified as having low testosterone. Women had a mean testosterone of 18.82 ng/dL.
Young adult men aged 20 to 40 years were more likely to have high testosterone if they slept 6 hours or less per night compared with those sleeping 7 to 8 hours (OR = 3.62; 95% CI, 1.37-9.53). Men aged 41 to 64 years had a higher likelihood for low testosterone if they slept 9 or more hours per night than those sleeping 7 to 8 hours (OR = 2.03; 95% CI, 1.1-3.73). Women aged 41 to 64 years who slept 6 hours or less (OR = 1.57; 95% CI, 1.1-2.27) and those who slept 9 or more hours (OR = 2.06; 95% CI, 1.18-3.59) had higher odds for low testosterone than those sleeping 7 to 8 hours per night.
There were no associations observed between sleep duration and testosterone level for women aged 20 to 40 years or for all adults aged 65 years and older. Sleep quality was not associated with testosterone level.
“This is a cross-sectional study that leveraged a nationally representative sample of U.S. men and women; however, we can’t infer causality and provide any clinical recommendation,” Lopez said. “Yet, we hope that this study can garner enthusiasm in the scientific community to conduct larger prospective studies with the focus to improve sleeping habits and unhealthy low levels of testosterone in both men and women.”
For more information:
David S. Lopez, MS, MPH, DrPH, can be reached at davlopez@utmb.edu.
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