Having man boobs ‘increases your risk of early death by 37%’ – 4 tips to banish your moobs
HAVING man boobs could increase your risk of an early death by 37 per cent, a study shows.
Men who have enlarged breast tissue were more likely to die before the age of 75, Danish researchers found.
The condition — known medically as gynecomastia — is caused by hormonal imbalances and affects more than a third of men.
Dr Elvira Brauner, of Copenhagen University Hospital, said: “Males diagnosed with gynaecomastia are at higher risk of death.
“These findings will hopefully stimulate more awareness among healthcare providers to apply interventions that alleviate underlying risk factors.”
Gynaecomastia is a medical condition that causes men’s and boy’s breasts to swell, and is most common in teenagers and older men.
It is caused by imbalances between the female sex hormone oestrogen and male sex hormone testosterone.
However, obesity can also increase the risk, because it can increase levels of oestrogen, which can cause breast tissue to grow.
Around a quarter of adults in Britain are obese and a further 38 per cent are overweight.
The study, published in BMJ Open, looked at how having gynaecomastia impacts men’s chances of dying early.
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Researchers looked at health data from more than 140,000 Danes from 1995 to 2021, with 23,429 being diagnosed with the condition.
Some 16,253 had gynaecomastia with no known cause, while the rest had a known risk factor, including medications and other health conditions like kidney failure or liver disease.
The number of people diagnosed with gynaecomastia increased over the more than 20-year study period, researchers said.
Those with a known risk factor were 75 per cent more likely to die early, while those with no known risk factor had a 5 per cent greater risk.
Men with no known risk factor for gynaecomastia were twice as likely to die from liver disease as those without the condition.
The researchers said the greater risks of death may be because gynecomastia is linked to a range of deadly diseases and the drugs used to treat them.
4 tips to banish man boobs for good
1. Diet
Losing weight can help you lower your oestrogen levels and reduce the risk of gynaecomastia.
One of the best ways to shed pounds is to eat a calorie deficit — eating less calories than you are burning each day.
2. Exercise
Increasing how much you work out can also help aid weight loss, reducing your risk.
While you can't target fat loss in specific areas of the body, chest exercises like push-ups and the bench press can increase your muscle mass in the area, reducing the appearance of moobs.
3. Medications
If you have concerns around hormone imbalances or breast tissue growth, you can visit your GP.
They will be able to give you tests to assess your hormone levels and may prescribe drugs to address them.
4. Surgery
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If the breast growth is particularly large, your doctor may recommend surgery.
Male breast reduction surgery is not usually available on the NHS, but can be arranged at private hospitals.