Pete Hegseth wants a testosterone-fueled military. The science doesn’t back the macho fantasy

It’s been just about a month since U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth announced his plan for the “High-T” Department of War, which he says includes giving testosterone replacement therapy, known as TRT, to cisgender troops deemed to have low levels of the male sex hormone. The fallout has been swift, while Hegseth has doubled down. As previously reported by The Advocate, on July 22, U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes challenged Hegseth, asking thePentagon to explain why Hegseth is denying hormone replacement therapy (HRT) for transgender troops, categorizing the treatment as an unnecessary expense when he wants to recommend TRT as a performance-enhancing treatment for cis service members. He did not know how much the “high T” program would cost when asked, but asserted that the treatments would give “our warriors the absolute best medical care in the world.” “It’s about restoring and optimizing your natural capabilities, protecting your longevity, ensuring you have the biological foundation required to sustain the fight,” Hegseth said in his initial policy announcement.The question is whether testosterone replacement therapy is actually the cure-all treatment to strength, endurance, and physical prowess Hegseth and his Department of Defense have framed it to be? Experts say that the short answer is no. The long answer is that understanding healthy testosterone levels is far more nuanced than calling an increase of the hormone the answer to masculinity and strength. More so, too much testosterone can actually lead to some health concerns in the long term. “Testosterone is not a superhuman cure, and it should not be sold as a shortcut to strength, readiness, or resilience,” Dr. Demetre Daskalakis, Chief Medical Officer at Callen-Lorde Community Health Center and former director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, tells The Advocate. Related: The Pentagon said trans