Library.

“Men with excessive body fat mass tend to have insufficient androgen levels.”

Men with excess body fat are more likely to have lower testosterone, particularly with greater visceral adiposity. Observational and genetic evidence supports the association and suggests that increased fat mass can contribute to reduced testosterone. However, lower total testosterone does not always mean clinically significant androgen deficiency because free testosterone may remain normal.

“Smoking increases androgen levels in women.”

Smoking is generally associated with modestly higher levels of some androgens in women. A 2022 meta-analysis and several clinical studies support this pattern, although an earlier meta-analysis found no clear association for testosterone specifically. Because the evidence is predominantly observational and varies by hormone and menopausal status, it does not firmly establish that smoking directly causes an increase in every androgen across all women.

“Cannabis use increases androgen levels in women.”

Cannabis has not been shown to increase androgen levels in women generally. The study most suggestive of increased androgens involved only young men, while female-focused evidence is sparse, indirect and partly points toward hormonal suppression. A proposed association in heavy users with PCOS is too narrow and weakly supported to justify the claim’s broad causal wording.

“Women with excessive body fat have elevated androgen levels.”

Excess adiposity in women is generally associated with a more androgenic hormonal profile, especially higher free or bioavailable testosterone. Multiple clinical and mechanistic studies support this pattern. The wording is broader than the evidence, though: not every specific androgen is elevated in every group, and some of the apparent increase reflects lower SHBG rather than uniformly higher total androgen levels.

“In men, having too little body fat causes androgen levels to decrease.”

The evidence does not support the general claim that low body fat in men lowers androgens. High-quality studies more consistently show the opposite pattern: higher body fat is associated with lower testosterone, and reducing excess fat often improves it. A possible exception may exist in extreme leanness with severe energy deficit, but that is narrower and less well supported than the claim states.