Secretary of Defense/War/Superheroes, Pete Hegseth, is going to test his soldiers, sailors and airman for their testosterone levels.
He has not said if these tests were limited to males, or individuals with an XY chromosome complement or whether individuals with XX chromosomes, or women in common parlance will be tested.
The Secretary, answering questions about why he might want to know the testosterone levels of his warriors, said he did not intend to treat soldiers who fall below the median levels with testosterone injections. But he wouldn't be opposed to soldiers increasing their levels with testosterone injections.
Or something to that effect.
He did not make his own testosterone levels available to the press.
He has not released his SAT scores, either.
Nor has he released his biceps measurements in inches.
The thing about testosterone levels of which Mr. Hegseth seems unaware, is that testosterone levels are not stable, like for example, cholesterol levels or red blood cell counts. Most men have a diurnal variation--highest around seven A.M. and lowest around 4 P.M. Levels vary across days of the week. When endocrinologists are trying to figure out which men have low testosterone levels, they ordinarily draw at least three levels over the course of two to three weeks. In fact, insurance companies require at least two levels before they will pay for testosterone replacement.
Other levels are germane: pituitary levels of the hormones which rise when the testicles fail to keep levels where the pituitary wants them to be, but Mr. Hegseth does not know about these, and he does not want to test them.
So, Secretary Hegseth is no endocrinologist. But that does not mean he doesn't have an opinion.
No comments:
Post a Comment