Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Wednesday that the Pentagon will begin requiring annual testosterone deficiency screenings for service members older than 30, with those advised to seek care able to opt for testosterone replacement therapy.
“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 a video posted on X under the title “High-T Department.”
According to Hegseth, the testing will be folded into troops’ yearly periodic health assessments. Service members younger than 30 will not be required to participate but may request screening voluntarily.
“We owe our warriors the absolute best medical care in the world, and this program delivers on that obligation,” Hegseth said in the video. “Taking care of your long-term health means ensuring you remain strong, resilient and capable — not just for your next deployment, but for the rest of your life, so you can thrive long after you take off the uniform.”
The Pentagon has not yet issued further guidance on how the policy will be implemented. The Defense Health Agency directed questions about the program back to the Pentagon.
How common low testosterone is depends heavily on the definition used. Studies have placed its prevalence anywhere from 2% to 50%, according to the American Urological Association.
Then-Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Marty Makary, citing a 2007 study, said during a 2025 panel on testosterone replacement therapy that 5.6% of men ages 30 to 79 have both low testosterone and symptoms such as depression and reduced strength.
Researchers have also found that military training can affect testosterone levels among service members.
“The high operations tempo and high stress that these service members go through can actually decrease testosterone, sometimes acutely and sometimes even in the long term,” Army Major Theodore Crisostomo-Wynne said at the 2025 FDA panel.
Major Crisostomo-Wynne is a urologist at Madigan Army Center and said he spoke to the panel in a personal capacity and was not representing the views of the Pentagon or Defense Health Agency.
He said testosterone deficiency is of particular concern in the special operations community where researchers have observed a new syndrome they are calling “The Operator Syndrome.”
“We think that it’s due to chronic stress, blast exposure, traumatic brain injuries and sleep disruptions, which lead to hormonal dysregulation, mood and cognitive changes,” Crisostomo-Wynne said. “And among the many medical and psychologic, you know, things that are at play in the syndrome, decreased testosterone and hormonal changes is one of the ones that seems to be prevalent in almost all of these guys.”
In his video, Hegseth called service members the military’s “most decisive tactical advantage.”
He said the battlefield “requires and demands maximum psychological and mental readiness, and by addressing these health markers early, we’re keeping you on the leading edge of lethality and giving you the same level of support that you give this nation the absolute best.”
