r/politics Jul 15 '26

No Paywall Hegseth announces annual testosterone screenings for service members

https://thehill.com/policy/defense/5969935-hegseth-testosterone-testing-dod/
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u/Zeplar Jul 15 '26 edited Jul 15 '26

Invasive screening aside, testosterone varies wildly between individuals and at different times of the day and year, and the number itself has basically no correlation with the biological effects because people have receptor sensitivity an order of magnitude apart. If you try to give people supplemental T to reach some population-average level, they'll end up with severe health defects including infertility.

Ironically the average trans individual probably understands this a lot better than Hegseth.