Mastering Andropause - An Ayurvedic Way

Abstract

Hormones keep constantly fluctuating throughout the life of a human, especially during the older ages and it produces a drastic change resulting in a myriad of symptoms. While these changes are the natural part of our life, it doesn’t mean that we are bound to live with these maladies. Over the past few years, there has been a lot of discussion about such a clinical syndrome, menopause. But a similar condition is present in men as well, with both physical and psychological changes and it is called as Andropause. Medically it is defined as a clinical and biochemical syndrome associated with advancing age and characterized by a deficiency in serum androgen levels with or without a decrease in genomic sensitivity to androgens. Typically, andropause can be considered as a syndrome producing a cluster of symptoms by affecting different organs of the body. As ageing has been associated with an abundance of concomitant diseases, the symptoms of andropause are usually missed during a clinical examination. In Ayurveda the contexts of andropause can be understood in the purview of Kalaja and Akalaja Jara with predominant Dhathu Kshaya Lakshanas. In this paper, we review the data on the definition, major clinical symptoms and the treatment modalities of andropause. We also look into the possible concepts and treatment approaches explained in ayurveda in tackling the particular condition.