Zinc is an essential micronutrient playing a vital role in many areas of your health. It is the second most abundant trace mineral in your body.
Zinc deficiency leads to low testosterone. How it does this isn’t fully understood.
A study by Oluboyo et al. (2012)1 examined the relationship between zinc levels and testosterone levels. The higher the zinc levels, the higher the testosterone levels.
Another study by Prasad et al. (1996)3 concluded that zinc played a major role in managing serum testosterone levels. The average zinc-deficient participant taking zinc supplementation in the study saw a 51.8% increase in testosterone levels.
Another study by Hunt et al. (1992)4 examined the effects of dietary zinc depletion on seminal volume and serum testosterone concentrations. The participants taking 10.4mg of Zinc compared to the ones taking 1.4mg saw higher semen volumes (3.30 vs 2.24 mL) and higher serum testosterone levels (775 vs 631 ng/dL).
A final study by Neek et al. (2011)5 concluded that Zinc 30mg/day supplementation on a group of active cyclists increased total testosterone by 100 ng/dL and free testosterone by more than 2 times.
Zinc citrate and gluconate are the best and most bioavailable forms. Recommended dosages are between 15-50mg of elemental zinc for adults. For example, 100mg of zinc gluconate is around 14mg of elemental zinc. A study by Wegmüller et al. (2014)6 found that zinc oxide was absorbed worse than zinc gluconate/citrate (60% vs 50%).
Relationship between serum levels of testosterone, zinc and selenium in infertile males attending fertility clinic in Nnewi, south east Nigeria.
Link - http://europepmc.org/article/med/23678636
What Are Zinc Supplements Good For? Benefits and More
Link - https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/zinc-supplements#_noHeaderPrefixedContent
Zinc status and serum testosterone levels of healthy adults
Link - https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S089990079680058X
Effect of Zinc and Selenium Supplementation on Serum Testosterone and Plasma Lactate in Cyclist After an Exhaustive Exercise Bout
Link - https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12011-011-9138-2
Effects of dietary zinc depletion on seminal volume and zinc loss, serum testosterone concentrations, and sperm morphology in young men
Link - https://academic.oup.com/ajcn/article-abstract/56/1/148/4715610
Zinc Absorption by Young Adults from Supplemental Zinc Citrate Is Comparable with That from Zinc Gluconate and Higher than from Zinc Oxide
Link - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3901420/