Can Food or Supplements Increase Testosterone and Muscle Mass?

Many products claim to boost testosterone, and while there may be some truth to this, it doesn’t mean that these products will actually increase muscle mass!

To have any appreciable effect on muscle, testosterone will need to be increased well beyond the normal physiological range, which is generally between 280 and 1100 ng/dL for men. For this reason, even if a product is shown to increase testosterone by 25% (which sounds like a lot), this wouldn’t provide any real advantage for muscle building. 

To put things in perspective, most studies showing significant benefits of testosterone on muscle size and strength used supra-physiological doses given by injection. These testosterone injections increased blood testosterone levels in men by 500-600% (up to around 3000 ng/dL). 

Natural testosterone boosters—whether they be supplements, food, exercise, or simply a good night’s sleep—don’t increase testosterone enough to have any significant impact on muscle building.