Male Menopause (Andropause).

According to the book Male Menopause by Jed Diamond (1997), Andropause (the

more scientific name for the popular term “male menopause”) is a multi-dimensional

change of life with hormonal, physical, psychological, interpersonal, social, sexual, and

spiritual aspects. Andropause occurs in all men, generally between the ages of 40 and

55, though it can occur as early as 35 or as late as 65. It signals the end of the first part of

a man's life, and prepares him for the second half. Just as adolescence is the transition

period between childhood and adulthood, Andropause is the passage between first

adulthood and second adulthood.

The term “male menopause” is, of course, a misnomer. Men don’t have menstrual

periods and so they don’t stop having them. Unlike women, men can continue to have

children late into their lives. In terms of other life changes, women’s and men’s

experience are quite similar. Male Menopause is often used synonymously with

Andropause. (Cetel, 2002; Diamond, 2000; Tan, 2001).

Andropause is not a new phenomenon. Heller and Myers (1944) identified

symptoms of what they labeled the “male climacteric” including loss of libido and

potency, nervousness, depression, impaired memory, the inability to concentrate, fatigue,

insomnia, hot flushes, and sweating. Heller and Myers found that their subjects had

below normal levels of testosterone and that symptoms improved dramatically when

patients were given replacement doses of testosterone.

The concept of Andropause is more widely accepted in England and Europe than

it is in the United States (Carruthers, 2004). In the U.S. many clinicians believe that,

since men can continue to reproduce into old age and there aren’t the same dramatic
drops in hormone levels that are characteristic of menopause in women, Andropause

does not exist. Others feel that Andropause is real, but is synonymous with

hypogonadism or low testosterone levels (Tan, 2001).

Morley (2000) has developed a ten-item survey to screen for Andropause, but

emphasizes loss of testosterone as the primary cause. Mintz, Dotson, & Mukai, (2001)

take a broader perspective and believe that other hormones, diet, and exercise are equally

important. Depression is one of the most common problems of men going through

Andropause, yet it is greatly under-diagnosed in men. Failure to diagnose depression in

men can be deadly (Diamond, 2004).

Several intervention strategies have been found to be effective (Diamond, 1997,

2000, 2004; Gillespie, 2001). These include:

• Hormone replacement therapy,

• Exercise, dietary changes, stress reduction,
• Acupuncture, Chinese medicine, herbal treatments,
• Couple counseling, career refocusing, and spiritual support,
• Chemical dependency treatment, sexual compulsivity treatment,
• Treatment for depression.
• Finding and engaging one’s “calling” in the second half of life.
References:

Carruthers, Malcolm. Androgen Deficiency in the Adult Male: Causes, Diagnosis and

Treatment. London & New York: Taylor & Francis, 2004.

Cetel, Nancy. Double Menopause. New York: John Wiley, & Sons, 2002.

Diamond, Jed. Male Menopause. Naperville, IL: Sourcebooks, 1997.

Diamond, Jed. Surviving Male Menopause: A Guide for Women and Men. Naperville,

IL: Sourcebooks, 2000.

Diamond, Jed. The Irritable Male Syndrome: Managing the 4 Key Causes of Depression

and Aggression. Emmaus, Pa: Rodale Press, 2004.

Gillespie, Larrian. The Gladiator Diet. Beverly Hills, California: Healthy Life

Publications, 2001.

Heller, C.G., Myers, G.B., “The Male climacteric: Its symptomatology, diagnosis and

treatment.” JAMA 1944; 126:472-77.

Mintz, A.P., Dotson, A. & Mukai, J. Hormone modulation, low glycemic

nutrition, and exercise instruction: Effects on disease risk and quality of life.

Journal of Anti-Aging Medicine, 4, 357-371, 2001.

Morley, J.E., “Clinical Diagnosis of Age-Related Testosterone Deficiency,” The Aging

Male, Volume 3, Supplement 1, February 2000, p. 55.

Tan, Robert S. The Andropause Mystery: Unraveling truths about the Male Menopause.

Houston, Texas: AMRED publications, 2001.