Across TikTok, Reddit, and podcast circuits, young men are being sold a blueprint for increasing their testosterone. Known as ‘T-maxxing’, this trend is a mix of diet rules, supplement stacks, gym routines, and lifestyle hacks all centered around boosting testosterone as the ultimate marker of health. But behind the steak, organ meats, and anti-soy rhetoric is a more complicated story—one that blends kernels of physiology with a heavy dose of misinformation, cherry-picked science, and cultural anxiety. So join us, two registered dietitians, as we unpack the science of testosterone, break down the foods and supplements at the center of T-maxxing, and explore the deeper cultural forces driving this trend—from body image to belonging to the pressure to “optimize” masculinity—even when that pressure is built on shaky science and unrealistic ideals.

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Things we talked about and additional reading: 

• Testosterone in hunter-gatherer men #1
• Testosterone in hunter-gatherer men #2
• Secular trends in testosterone over time
• Cholesterol intake not associated with total testosterone levels in men
• Associations between vitamin D status and testosterone levels in men
• Associations between omega-3 FA and testosterone levels in men 
• Fish Intake and Serum Testosterone Levels in Older Males
• Huberman Partners with Momentous Supplements 
• Andrew Huberman’s Mechanisms of Control | NY Mag
• Tongkat Ali meta-analysis
• Testosterone and human behavior 
• Testosterone causes both prosocial and antisocial status-enhancing behaviors in human males
• Testosterone and cortisol “dual hormone hypothesis”
• Experiment with manipulated “win” or “loss” on androgens and psychology in men 
• Gynecomastia and soy case report #1 
• Gynecomastia and soy case report #2
• Meta-Analysis: intake of soy on reproductive hormones in men 
• Are Soy isoflavones truly a public health concern?
• Gynecomastia from meat in Italian school 
• Gynecomastia from meat in Puerto Rican Children 

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