# Are female testosterone levels dropping too?

**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-female-testosterone-levels-dropping-too/769758
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [October 26, 2016, 7:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-female-testosterone-levels-dropping-too/769758 "2016-10-26T07:10:22Z")
**Posts on this page:** 1
**Page:** 1

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### Author: ![brujaja](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4af34b/32.png) [@brujaja](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brujaja)
#### Post date: [October 26, 2016, 7:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-female-testosterone-levels-dropping-too/769758/1 "2016-10-26T07:10:22Z")

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Many of you are probably aware of a [longitudinal mens’ health study done several years ago](http://www.ourstolenfuture.org/newscience/reproduction/2006/2006-1210travisonetal.html) that indicated mens’ average testosterone levels have been steadily dropping for years, across the board – in other words, a 40-year-old man ten years ago had higher levels of testosterone than a 40-year-old man does today. This is separate from the natural decline in testosterone levels that an individual man experiences as he gets older.

What I’m wondering is, has anybody thought to test womens’ testosterone levels over time to see if they are declining as well? As I understand it, testosterone is responsible at least in part for vitality or the will to action in men and women both. Perhaps it has something to do with the current high levels of obesity.