Hegseth announces annual testosterone screenings for service members age 30 or older

WASHINGTON — The Pentagon will institute annual testosterone deficiency screenings for all service members ages 30 and older, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced in a social media video Wednesday.

“I’m authorizing a new screening program for testosterone deficiency for our service members, ensuring you have the right testosterone levels to operate at your absolute best,” Hegseth said in the video, posted to X.

Hegseth said in the video, posted under a caption reading “The High-T Department of War,” that maintaining proper testosterone levels was a way to keep troops on the “leading edge of lethality.” The statement aligns with the secretary’s push to establish a “warrior ethos” based on physical standards and readiness across the military.

Screenings for all active-duty and reserve personnel are effective immediately, according to a memorandum signed by Hegseth on Wednesday. The screening will be added to the periodic health assessment for troops over 30. Those under 30 can voluntarily choose to be screened.

If treatment is recommended following the test, service members can choose to receive testosterone replacement therapy.

The memo does not stipulate how testosterone deficiency will be defined for women, who produce the hormone at significantly lower rates than men.

Testosterone deficiency, also known as “low T,” is a condition where the body does not produce enough of the hormone testosterone, which is key to the development and maintenance of typical male physical characteristics such as muscle mass. Testosterone levels in men naturally decline by about 1% to 2% a year after age 30, according to the Cleveland Clinic. Low T can cause fatigue, low libido, muscle loss, mood disruptions and weight gain, among other physical and mental changes.

“This initiative is not about artificial enhancement. It’s about restoring and optimizing your natural capabilities, protecting your longevity and ensuring you have the biological foundation required to sustain and fight,” Hegseth said. “We owe our warriors the absolute best medical care in the world. And this program delivers on that obligation.”

Low testosterone levels have been linked to deployments where poor sleep, high-stress environments and poor nutrition can take a toll, according to a 2020 study on more than 50 special operation forces operators conducted by the Defense Department and other institutions.

The condition is referred to as “Operator Syndrome.”

“Operator Syndrome represents a unique convergence of health challenges that require proactive clinical intervention,” Hegseth wrote in the memo. “Additionally, applying lessons learned from treating Operator Syndrome across the total force including targeted testosterone therapy directly optimizes warfighter readiness.”

Officials in President Donald Trump’s administration, including Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., have advocated for wider availability of testosterone therapy for men. 

Some recent studies have bolstered the case for testosterone’s benefits for certain conditions, while allaying concerns about heart safety. There can be some side effects, though, such as a decrease in sperm count.

Current medical guidelines generally recommend against blanket testing of testosterone levels. 

Hegseth, a 46-year-old Army National Guard veteran and former Fox News host, has waded into health-related topics since he took charge of the Pentagon in January 2025.

The secretary has fought to ensure that troops who were forced to leave the military for refusing to take the COVID-19 vaccine are able to return to service.

The vaccine was mandatory for active-duty service members from August 2021 to January 2023 under former President Joe Biden. Approximately 8,700 service members were involuntarily separated for not complying with the vaccine mandate, and more than 3,000 of them did not receive honorable discharges, the Pentagon has said.

In March, Hegseth extended the deadline to apply for reinstatement to April 1, 2027.

The secretary in April lifted the annual flu vaccine requirement.

The military has resumed requiring flu vaccines for some service members after an outbreak of influenza last month among trainees at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas.

Fitness and readiness have also been cornerstones of Hegseth’s tenure.

Last September, he delivered a sweeping address to nearly 800 senior military leaders in Quantico, Va., in which he outlined major military overhauls. Some of the initiatives, also spelled out in a written message delivered to commands, included adding combat field tests for combat arms units, emphasizing “male-level” standards for fitness and subjecting every member of the joint force — including four-star generals — to a fitness test twice a year and meeting height and weight requirements.

“Frankly, it’s tiring to look out at combat formations, or really any formation, and see fat troops. Likewise, it’s completely unacceptable to see fat generals and admirals in the halls of the Pentagon,” Hegseth said.