THE TESTOSTERONE REVOLUTION

In the rest of the world, T is everywhere. But here in SA, blackmarket channels are one of the biggest connects when it comes to this magic hormone. Problem is, without professional oversight, "supping" testosterone could leave you in a world of trouble. Instead of quelling anxiety, nixing depression or helping you rediscover your libido, you could be T-minus a few years from a serious crisis.

- BILL GIFFORD & KIERAN LEGG

SAAD ALAM WAS WORRIED. HIS DOCTOR HAD CALLED HIM INTO THE OFFICE TO TALK ABOUT HIS LATEST TEST RESULTS. AT 35, ALAM HAD BEEN FEELING OFF HIS GAME FOR A WHILE. HIS ENERGY LEVEL HAD TANKED, HIS BRAIN WAS LIKE A SIEVE AND HE HAD THE SEX DRIVE OF A WEEK-OLD BANANA. WORSE, DESPITE WORKING OUT RELIGIOUSLY, HE WAS GROWING A SET OF BABY LOVE HANDLES. HE'D GONE TO HIS DOCTOR TO TRY TO FIGURE OUT WHAT WAS WRONG, AND NOW HE WAS ABOUT TO FIND OUT. WAS IT CANCER? SOMETHING WORSE?

Nope. The diagnosis: Alam was suffering from “existential millennial angst.” Frustrated, he went on to see a dozen more specialists before one finally deduced, via a blood test, that his testosterone level was very low. Endocrinology experts say that a healthy man’s testosterone should range from about 264 to 916 nanograms per deciliter. Alam scored a 187. “The doctor said, ‘You’ve got the testosterone levels of an 80-year-old man,’ ” he recalls.

If the diagnosis was alarming, the fix was relatively simple. The doc prescribed hormone therapy, and within three months, Alam says, he felt like his old self again. But the story does not end there. Four years after he walked out of that first doctor’s office, Alam is the founder and CEO of a US telehealth startup called Hone that offers “hormone optimisation” to men in the throes of middle age.