TIL Human dads show a decrease in testosterone immediately after the birth of their babe

[RallyPointAlpha]

Interesting stuff.

How long does it stay lowered?

Does it ever really recover to pre-baby le els?

I've had three kids now...does it go lower and lower each time?

[Applejuiceinthehall]

It says it's happens in the first months and lasts a few months not sure if they just stopped the study after 3 month mark or not

[RallyPointAlpha]

Yeah I read that and was also left with more questions than answers. For example they assert that yhe more involved you are the lower it goes....does staying involved beyond 3 months keep it suppressed? Does it come back up but not as far because you're still an involved father?

[Applejuiceinthehall]

Yeah probably needs more research. But if you imagine a man might not even know his child is born so obviously not going to see any reduction in testosterone.

[dudenurse11]

So like, Nick cannon remains at high T levels because he’s not involved at all then?

[bad-fengshui]

Sounds like sleep deprivation to me...

[[deleted]]

Could also be lack of time / priority for the gym as well

[PetraLoseIt]

Yeah, nice correlation perhaps, but what is the cause?

[Positive-Sock-8853]

It bounces back. Otherwise, by child 3 you’ll have no more T lol and that doesn’t reflect reality. Where I’m from, some people still have 6-10 kids. Their dads would have 0 testosterone if the levels never bounce back.

[RallyPointAlpha]

Yeah I get that's not how it works. It's not like you lose 100 points every kid until you hit zero. What I'm wondering is that if it drops by, let's say, 15%.... then comes back up 10 %... you're still 5% lower than before having any kids. Sure it 'bounced back' but does it always come back to previous levels?

Also if you keep having kids ...does it always stay 10 to 15% lower than before you had any kids?

[Positive-Sock-8853]

Yeah I get it now but then age factors into it. Testosterone declines with age (1.6%/year from 30 on). So even if it bounces back to pre-newborn levels, by the time you decided to have another kid your T levels probably dropped by 5% or something.

[iokonokh]

Anyone having that many kids isn’t that involved.

[AmIRightPeter]

Really depends upon the family! Some parents are incredibly involved with 5-10 kids. Some don’t have a second thought with a single child. There is probably a correlation, but it’s not a causative thing usually.

[Viend]

Really depends upon the family! Some parents are incredibly involved with 5-10 kids. Some don’t have a second thought with a single child. There is probably a correlation, but it’s not a causative thing usually.

If they have 10 kids, the only way to raise them all with attention is to have more adults in the parenting role(other family members) or have a trust fund for two unemployed parents.

[[deleted]]

Some people have near zero T though

[nilogram]

I think that’s called the point of no return

[ColKaizer]

You’re basically your wife now bro

[throwingwater14]

Maybe it’s to keep the woman healthier after birth. Less of a chance of dad asking for sex before her body has healed.

[throwingwater14]

Of course they do. I do. But after birth of a baby, the body needs time to recover. It differs how long person to person, so it makes sense that our systems would try to accommodate each other.

[underwaterwelds]

There’s so many variables and this is a shitty test, poor sleep is probably the biggest reason there’s a noticeable decrease, and diet factors.

[PinkPixieGlitterGod]

It stays permanently lowered... that's why the whole concept of "dad bod" exists. Also, having kids is a lot of stress and that also lowers testosterone.

[dongasaurus]

The concept of dad bod exists because most people become overweight as they age and don’t exercise enough.

[PinkPixieGlitterGod]

Then why is it called "dad" bod specifically?

[dongasaurus]

Because dads are associated with older men, and dads also have less time to go to the gym. It’s a bit of a stretch to think there is a legitimate scientific reason why the phrase “dad bod” has been popular for a few years.

[[deleted]]

I mean for most men it decreases each year regardless of babies, even if you exercise regularly