High levels of testosterone in women may contribute to psychological, physical and physiological symptoms such as mood disturbances and abnormal growth of musculoskeletal tissues. "Idiopathic hyperandrogenism" refers to overproduction of male hormones with unknown or obscure causes. According to a study published in the "Annals of The New York Academy of Sciences," the ovary is the main source of androgens like testosterone in women with idiopathic hyperandrogenism. Excess testosterone can also result from therapeutic hormone treatments, because physicians may prescribe testosterone during hormone replacement therapy for postmenopausal women or female-to-male transsexual treatment.
Skeptical
High levels of testosterone may make a woman more skeptical than women with lower testosterone levels. Testosterone may balance or counter the effect of the hormone oxytocin, which may contribute to social bonding and trust in human interaction. An article on the Live Science website notes that testosterone may increase social "watchfulness," which enhances a woman's preparation for competition over social rank and resources. The article describes an experiment in which women ranked the trustworthiness of unknown people in a photograph. Women who received testosterone exhibited less trustful behavior than women who received a placebo.
Social Status Seeking
Women with high levels of testosterone may exhibit more social-status-seeking behavior. According to an article in "Scientific American," researchers compared bargaining behavior among women who received a dosage of testosterone with women who receive a placebo. The article reports that women who took the placebo made bargaining offers that were more unfair than women who took testosterone. These results indicate that women who took testosterone displayed more socially efficient bargaining behavior. The article suggests that socially efficient bargaining corresponds with approval-seeking and social-status-seeking behavior.
Virilization
High androgen levels in women may develop a condition known as virilization. A woman with virilization develops exaggerated masculine characteristics. Features of virilization include excess facial and body hair and baldness on the scalp. Virilization may lower a woman's voice or cause acne problems and may enhance a woman's sex drive. Virilization shrinks the uterus and breasts and stops normal menstruation. According to the Merck Manuals online medical library, adrenal gland enlargement, a tumor, anabolic steroids and ovarian cysts may contribute to virilization.
Clitoromegaly
Woman with high levels of testosterone may have a long or abnormally large clitoris, a condition referred to as clitoromegaly, or macroclitoris. According to an article published by the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario, androgen exposure can promote excessive growth of the clitoris. Androgens are male hormones such as testosterone. According to the Merck Manuals online medical library, women who use anabolic steroids like testosterone may experience clitoral growth.
Male Children
High levels of testosterone may make a woman more likely to have male children. According to an article in the Sunday Times, reproductive scientist Dr. Valerie Grant hypothesized that "dominant" women have high testosterone levels and are more likely to produce male children than less dominant women. Dr. Grant suggests that the testosterone follicles which produce a woman's egg can reliably predict the sex of an embryo, because the follicles produce an egg that is preconditioned to produce a male or female fetus.
References
- Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario: Isolated Transient Neonatal Clitoromegaly with Hyperandrogenism of Unknown Etiology:
- Merck Manuals Online Medical Library: Anabolic Steroids:
- Merck Manual of Medical Information: Virilization
- Sunday Times: Women With High Testosterone Levels May Be More Likely To Have Sons
- Scientific American: Testosterone Bumps Up Status-Seeking Behavior
