# Will consuming testicles raise my testosterone levels?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-consuming-testicles-raise-my-testosterone-levels/587398>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [June 30, 2011, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-consuming-testicles-raise-my-testosterone-levels/587398 "2011-06-30T15:48:17Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\
**Post date:** [June 30, 2011, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-consuming-testicles-raise-my-testosterone-levels/587398/1 "2011-06-30T15:48:17Z")

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In Serbia, the belief is that consuming testicles raises the consumers level of testosterone. NOTE- Link to article and PHOTOS. Not safe for work. [Link](http://www.funzu.com/index.php/Crazy-pics/have-a-ball-at-serbias-testicle-cooking-championship-28062011.html).

Truth or rural legend? [Castration as a means of controlling sex offenders](http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/11/world/europe/11castrate.html) is fairly well documented and goes back thousands of years.

I’m suspicious of the Serbian tradition. What you eat goes into your tummy, where it is decimated by acids. Removal of testicles to remove testosterone, I get it. Eating testicles to increase testosteron? I call b.s.

Any endocrinologists about to prove or disprove?

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**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\
**Post date:** [June 30, 2011, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-consuming-testicles-raise-my-testosterone-levels/587398/2 "2011-06-30T16:11:15Z")

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Not if they’re one’s own.

d/r

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**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\
**Post date:** [June 30, 2011, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-consuming-testicles-raise-my-testosterone-levels/587398/3 "2011-06-30T17:58:29Z")

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> [@Tom\_Tildrum](#):
>
> Not if they’re one’s own.

You stole my joke! That is exactly what I came in to post.

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**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\
**Post date:** [June 30, 2011, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-consuming-testicles-raise-my-testosterone-levels/587398/4 "2011-06-30T18:19:45Z")

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> [@Mahaloth](#):
>
> You stole my joke! That is exactly what I came in to post.

Eat me!

;)😃

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**Author:** ![Disheavel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e274bd/32.png) [@Disheavel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Disheavel)\
**Post date:** [June 30, 2011, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-consuming-testicles-raise-my-testosterone-levels/587398/5 "2011-06-30T21:25:22Z")

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The birth control pill demonstrates that hormones/steroids are relatively safe to stomach digestion and steroids (especially if you’ve read "Snow Crash) get through tissue lining quickly so yes it will up your testosterone level. But I don’t believe there is a storage vessel, or sac, in the testicles with a load of testosterone. So don’t get teste with me but I think you are going to erect your testosterone level only proportionate to the mass of the testicles with reference to the original whole body mass and one’s own mass. So I wouldn’t personally go on your rock hunting expedition.