Why we need testosterone products designed for women
For many, the effects of this hormonal shift are more than frustrating – they can be life altering. Symptoms like brain fog, hot flushes, night sweats, headaches, insomnia, fatigue, joint pain, low libido, anxiety, depression and even bone loss from osteoporosis are all common.
Read more:
Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) has helped many women manage these symptoms – but one key hormone is often overlooked in both treatment and conversation: testosterone.
Testosterone is typically viewed as a 'male hormone,' but it plays a crucial role in women's health too. In fact, women have higher levels of testosterone than either oestrogen or progesterone for most of their adult lives. And like the other sex hormones, testosterone also declines with age – with consequences that are only now being fully explored.
Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is now widely used to replace oestrogen and progesterone during and after menopause. These treatments – available as tablets, patches, gels and implants – are regulated, evidence-based and increasingly accessible through the NHS.
But when it comes to testosterone, the situation is entirely different.
Currently, there are no testosterone products licensed for use by women in the UK or Europe. The only exception is in Australia, where a testosterone cream specifically designed for women is available. Europe once had its own option – a transdermal patch called Intrinsa, designed and approved by regulators based on clinical evidence to treat low libido in women with surgically induced menopause. But the manufacturer withdrew product in 2012, citing 'commercial considerations' in their letter to the European Medicines Agency, the agency in charge of the evaluation and supervision of pharmaceutical products in Europe.
Since then, women across Europe have been left without an approved option.
In the absence of licensed treatments, some clinicians – mainly in private practice – are prescribing testosterone 'off label', often using products developed for men. These are typically gels or creams with dosages several times higher than most women need. While doctors may advise on how to adjust the dose, this kind of improvisation comes with risks: inaccurate dosing, inconsistent absorption and a lack of long-term safety data.
Some women report significant improvements – not just in libido, but also in brain fog, mood, joint pain and energy levels. However, the only proven clinical benefit of testosterone in women is in improving sexual desire for those with hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD) following surgical menopause.
Even so, interest is growing – fuelled by patient demand, celebrity use, social media buzz and a growing sense that testosterone may be a missing piece in midlife women's care.
While there is increasing consensus that testosterone can play a role in supporting women's health, the current situation presents two serious problems:
Safety and regulation: without licensed products, standardised dosing guidelines, or long-term safety data, off-label use puts both patients and clinicians in uncertain territory.
Access and inequality: testosterone therapy is rarely available through the NHS and is often only accessible through private clinics, creating a two-tier system. Those who can pay hundreds of pounds for consultations and prescriptions can access care, while others are left behind.
There are signs of change. For example, I founded Medherant, a University of Warwick spin-out company that is currently developing a testosterone patch designed specifically for women. It's in clinical trials and, if approved, could become the first licensed testosterone product for women in the UK in over a decade. It's a much-needed step – and one that could pave the way for further innovation and broader access.
But the urgency remains. Millions of women are currently going without effective, evidence-based care. In the meantime, off-label prescribing should used with care and use based on the best available science – not hype or anecdote – and delivered through transparent, regulated healthcare channels.
Women deserve more than workarounds. They deserve treatments that are developed for their bodies, rigorously tested, approved by regulators and accessible to all – not just the few who can afford private care.
When half the population is affected, this isn't a niche issue. It's a priority.
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
David Haddleton works for and owns shares in Medherant Ltd
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
26 minutes ago
- Yahoo
US, China to launch new talks on tariff truce extension, easing path for Trump-Xi meeting
By David Lawder STOCKHOLM (Reuters) -Top U.S. and Chinese economic officials will resume talks in Stockholm on Monday to try to tackle longstanding economic disputes at the centre of a trade war between the world's top two economies, aiming to extend a truce by three months and keeping sharply higher tariffs at bay. China is facing an August 12 deadline to reach a durable tariff agreement with President Donald Trump's administration, after Beijing and Washington reached preliminary deals in May and June to end weeks of escalating tit-for-tat tariffs and a cut-off of rare earth minerals. Without an agreement, global supply chains could face renewed turmoil from U.S. duties snapping back to triple-digit levels that would amount to a bilateral trade embargo. The Stockholm talks come hot on the heels of Trump's biggest trade deal yet with the European Union on Sunday for a 15% tariff on most EU goods exports to the U.S., including autos. The bloc will also buy $750 billion worth of American energy and make $600 billion worth of U.S. investments in coming years. No similar breakthrough is expected in the U.S.-China talks but trade analysts said that another 90-day extension of a tariff and export control truce struck in mid-May was likely. An extension of that length would prevent further escalation and facilitate planning for a potential meeting between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in late October or early November. A U.S. Treasury spokesperson declined comment on a South China Morning Post report quoting unnamed sources as saying the two sides would refrain from introducing new tariffs or other steps that could escalate the trade war for another 90 days. Trump's administration is poised to impose new sectoral tariffs that will impact China within weeks, including on semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, ship-to-shore cranes and other products. "We're very close to a deal with China. We really sort of made a deal with China, but we'll see how that goes," Trump told reporters on Sunday before European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen struck their tariff deal. DEEPER ISSUES Previous U.S.-China trade talks in Geneva and London in May and June focused on bringing U.S. and Chinese retaliatory tariffs down from triple-digit levels and restoring the flow of rare earth minerals halted by China and Nvidia's H20 AI chips and other goods halted by the United States. So far, the talks have not delved into broader economic issues. They include U.S. complaints that China's state-led, export-driven model is flooding world markets with cheap goods, and Beijing's complaints that U.S. national security export controls on tech goods seek to stunt Chinese growth. "Geneva and London were really just about trying to get the relationship back on track so that they could, at some point, actually negotiate about the issues which animate the disagreement between the countries in the first place," said Scott Kennedy, a China economics expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. "I'd be surprised if there is an early harvest on some of these things but an extension of the ceasefire for another 90 days seems to be the most likely outcome," Kennedy said. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has already flagged a deadline extension and has said he wants China to rebalance its economy away from exports to more domestic consumption -- a decades-long goal for U.S. policymakers. Analysts say the U.S.-China negotiations are far more complex than those with other Asian countries and will require more time. China's grip on the global market for rare earth minerals and magnets, used in everything from military hardware to car windshield wiper motors, has proved to be an effective leverage point on U.S. industries. TRUMP-XI MEETING? In the background of the talks is speculation about a possible meeting between Trump and Xi in late October. Trump has said he will decide soon on a landmark trip to China, and a new flare-up of tariffs and export controls would likely derail planning. Sun Chenghao, a fellow at Tsinghua University's Center for International Security and Strategy in Beijing, said that a Trump-Xi summit would be an opportunity for the U.S. to lower the 20% tariffs on Chinese goods related to fentanyl. In exchange, he said the Chinese side could make good on its 2020 pledge to increase purchases of U.S. farm products and other goods. "The future prospect of the heads of state summit is very beneficial to the negotiations because everyone wants to reach an agreement or pave the way in advance," Sun said. Still, China will likely request a reduction of multi-layered U.S. tariffs totaling 55% on most goods and further easing of U.S. high-tech export controls, analysts said. Beijing has argued that such purchases would help reduce the U.S. trade deficit with China, which reached $295.5 billion in 2024. Error while retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data
Fox News
28 minutes ago
- Fox News
Russia has land acquisition from others 'in its DNA,' says Finnish president
Finnish President Alexander Stubb discusses efforts to end Russia's war in Ukraine and U.S.-Finland relations on 'Sunday Night in America.'
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Pharmacy warning of unsustainable demand for weight loss medication
The National Pharmacy Association (NPA) has issued a warning that the burgeoning demand for weight loss injections may be unsustainable, citing a significant mismatch between public interest and clinical suitability for the treatments. The NPA, which represents over 6,000 independent community pharmacies, highlighted this concern. A poll commissioned by the association revealed that 21 per cent of respondents had attempted to access weight loss treatments in the past year, either online or directly from a pharmacy. This figure surged to 35 per cent among 16 to 34-year-olds, contrasting sharply with just seven per cent of those over 55. There were also 41% who agreed they would opt for weight loss treatments on the NHS if they were made available to them. This figure rose to 64% among 25 to 34-year-olds, despite many of these patients being unlikely to be clinically eligible. The NPA says the poll, in which 2,002 people were interviewed, reflects an increasing demand for private and NHS weight loss services. NPA chairman Olivier Picard said: 'Weight loss jabs are one of the biggest drug innovations this century, but growing demand for weight loss treatment highlights the need to make sure this is appropriate for those who want it. 'It's clear from this polling that many more people are interested in getting weight loss jabs than would actually be suitable for treatment. 'We want to make sure supplies are carefully managed so that those in most clinical need can benefit from weight loss medication.' Spiralling demand, fuelled partly by social media, could see people being tempted to resort to unregulated online suppliers instead of regulated pharmacies staffed by medical professionals, they fear. Online suppliers may not be offering weight loss jabs alongside a structured programme aimed at helping them change their behaviour. Wegovy and Mounjaro are among a number of drugs that are recommended to help tackle obesity on the NHS. Mounjaro and Wegovy are licensed by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) for use in patients with a BMI of over 30 or between 27 and 30 but with a weight-related co-morbidity. This occurs when an individual who has obesity develops another medical condition due to their weight. The NHS currently rolls out Mounjaro to patients with a BMI of over 40 and at least four co-morbidities, the NPA says. The NPA is calling for new regulations to protect patients buying weight loss medication online, so there is a full two-way consultation and all relevant historical medical records are reviewed before the treatment is prescribed. They are waiting for more details about the role pharmacies could play in the rollout of the NHS weight management programme. At least 85% of weight loss medication prescriptions were made by pharmacies in April this year, the NPA estimates. Mr Picard said: 'Pharmacists are experts in medication and many have extensive experience delivering weight loss injections as part of a package of care, including lifestyle advice. 'Pharmacies are well placed to help roll this treatment out on the NHS, and help people make the best use of these powerful medicines.'
