Testosterone is an important part of men’s sexual wellness. The hormone is responsible for healthy sexuality characteristics including having a healthy libido. HCG (Human Chorionic Gonadotropin) is another important hormone. While this hormone predominately appears in women and is needed for pregnancy, it also stimulates sperm production in men and is given to young men if their testicles fail to drop naturally.
Why It’s Important to use HCG With Testosterone
Using HCG with testosterone injections is crucial to protect your testicles and ensure that your body continues to naturally produce testosterone. Men who take testosterone without a prescription tend to not realize they should use other medications at the same time. Only a doctor knows how much testosterone you need. Taking the wrong dose can affect sexual wellness, meaning it causes all manner of problems. Using the two together has a major impact on your health and wellbeing.
When you start taking testosterone injections, your brain receives signals saying there is enough testosterone in the bloodstream. It stops sending messages to the testes to continue testosterone production. Using outside testosterone means your body stops producing its own. Using HCG alongside testosterone means that these signals continue to get through and the testes continue to naturally produce this vital hormone.
Here’s how it all works:
When there’s not enough testosterone in the bloodstream, the hypothalamus releases gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) that tells the pituitary gland to release luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) to stimulate production of testosterone and sperm.
Injecting testosterone by itself cuts off GnRH supply, which cuts of LH and FSH supply. Therefore, using testosterone by itself reduces sperm count and causes infertility. Combining testosterone with HCG works as the HCG acts like luteinizing hormone, triggering the release of testosterone which in turn causes sperm production.
HCG prevents the side effects of testosterone injections such as testicular shrinkage and infertility. On top of that, it also increases adrenal functions to boost energy, libido, hormone production, and overall feelings of well-being in men.
If you are taking testosterone and HCG you may be wondering if it’s possible to take them together to save yourself an injection.
The Idea Behind Combining HCG And Testosterone
Mixing anything in a syringe usually doesn’t end well and does more harm than good. However, some believe that there’s no harm in mixing these two substances. The idea is that HCG is water-based while testosterone is oil-based. Given that oil and water don’t naturally mix, it makes sense that the two hormones would also stay separate in the needle. You can administer two shots at once and get two separate doses – in theory.
Does It Work?
Regenerative and Sports Medicine put this question to our own Dr Rand McClain. Dr Rand recommends against combining water and oil-based substances like this. While people have combined things like this before, such as safely combining AGC and testosterone, there’s no reason to believe that it will work for every combination and that it will always be safe. Something isn’t guaranteed to work the tenth time in a row because it worked nine times in a row before then.
One problem is your body won’t always readily accept the combination. Instead of taking in both doses as it should, it walls them off and this creates little lumps that lead to other problems. There’s too much potential for something to go wrong for it to be worth putting yourself at risk like that. In the worst-case scenario those small lumps can get bigger and cause flu-like symptoms or cellulitis. You’ll need to get them drained and go through a round of antibiotics to get back to normal.
How to Make Multiple Injections Easier
The reason combining injections became so popular is that it’s not fun to do multiple injections. The less you stick a needle in yourself, the better. It also marks your skin, and no one wants such obvious signs that they’ve been injecting. So, if combining the doses into one syringe isn’t possible, is there at least anything else you can do to make it easier on yourself?
Injecting into your shoulder muscles is a good place to start. Injecting testosterone directly into your muscles works just as well as – if not better than – injecting into subcutaneous fat. Some prefer fat injections because it takes longer for the testosterone to be absorbed. There’s a belief that it gives longer-lasting results. Injecting into muscle causes one big spike while injecting into fat causes several smaller ones.
This single spike may be better for you than smaller bursts. While the actual amount of testosterone swimming around your body might change, how you feel doesn’t. You still feel the extra power and energy the hormones give. You won’t notice the difference so there’s no point in putting yourself at risk just to save a little time.
Final Thoughts
Low testosterone levels are a real problem for men. While testosterone injections are the simplest solution to the problem, injections by themselves aren’t enough to get the job done. Injecting testosterone can do more harm than good if you don’t do it right. You also need to take HCG to ensure your body continues to produce natural testosterone.
Given that one is water-based and the other is oil-based, some people have taken to injecting them at the same time with one syringe. Water and oil don’t mix, so the substances won’t mix in the needle. However, there is no evidence to suggest this approach always works for everyone who tries it. Some people have seen success doing this, but the risk is still there. Real science trumps “gym science” every time.
If you are going to try injecting the two together, you should be aware of the risks and decide for yourself if the potential benefits are worth it or not.