Testosterone Cypionate Appetite & Cravings Changes: What the Evidence Shows

Does testosterone cypionate change appetite or cravings?

The studies that come closest to answering this measured hormones linked to hunger, not hunger itself. [2][3][5][6]

The T-Trials, often cited for testosterone's benefits, assigned 790 men aged 65 or older to testosterone gel or placebo gel for 1 year. Its outcomes were sexual function, walking distance and vitality; appetite was not among them. The trial found significantly increased sexual activity and slightly better mood, but no significant benefit on vitality as measured by a fatigue scale. [4] TRAVERSE studied cardiovascular safety with topical testosterone gel and placebo, so it does not address appetite or food cravings with testosterone cypionate. [7]

The Depo-Testosterone label's adverse reactions section lists nausea and fluid and electrolyte disturbances, including retention of sodium, chloride, water, potassium, calcium and inorganic phosphates. It does not list appetite or food cravings. [1]

What the leptin and ghrelin studies show

Leptin. A 1998 study measured serum leptin in 269 elderly nondiabetic men and found an inverse correlation with testosterone (r = -0.39; P <0.001) that persisted after adjustment for body mass index and insulin. In a separate group of 10 healthy men, 200 mg testosterone enanthate weekly for 12 months suppressed leptin from 3.4 ± 1.4 to 1.9 ± 0.6 mcg/L, and leptin returned to baseline after injections stopped. [2] The study measured leptin, not hunger or cravings, and it used enanthate, not cypionate.

Ghrelin. A 2003 study compared 7 hypogonadal men with 9 overweight or moderately obese men and 10 normal-weight controls. Total and free testosterone and ghrelin were significantly lower in the hypogonadal men, and ghrelin correlated with total and free testosterone. After 6 months of testosterone replacement, ghrelin rose and no longer differed significantly from controls. [3] The report does not identify the testosterone formulation, and the study measured circulating ghrelin, not appetite or food intake.

Do body-composition changes mean appetite changed?

An observational meta-analysis of 32 studies and 4,513 patients found testosterone supplementation was associated with a time-dependent reduction in body weight and waist circumference: an estimated 3.50 kg of weight loss and 6.23 cm of waist reduction at 24 months, with reduced fat mass, increased lean mass, lower fasting glucose and lower insulin resistance. [5] These were observational studies, not randomized trials, and they did not measure cravings.

In a randomized crossover study of 24 hypogonadal men with type 2 diabetes, 200 mg intramuscular testosterone every 2 weeks for 3 months improved insulin sensitivity, HbA1c, fasting glucose and waist circumference. [6] Appetite was not measured, so these results cannot show whether hunger changed.