Why Teen Boys Are Turning to ‘Testosterone Maxxing’

It would be understandable if you mistook this TikTok influencer with more than 464,000 followers as a long-lost cousin of the Hemsworth brothers. Not only does he have locks of shaggy blonde highlighted hair that fall over piercing blue eyes, he also has a perfectly even layer of stubble on his square jaw line, broad shoulders and biceps that stretch the limits of his sweater, and his voice is a rich baritone British accent. In his video, which has over 154,000 likes, he tells teen boys that he looks this way as a 19-year-old because he does a thing called “hormone optimization,” which he says is “the real way to looksmaxx.”

“Your hormones while developing will have the biggest effect on the way you look and you need to be doing everything you can to try and maximize your testosterone,” he shares with his audience on TikTok. “Optimizing your appearance and looksmaxxing is not guess work. [It] takes a lot of discipline, hard work, and intention. Some people get genetically gifted. I’m not one of them, and chances are you’re not either.”

Three clicks away from this video will lead viewers to the TikToker’s personal website, where he sells a monthly membership that promises to “transform your looks”—starting as low as $29.99. The site even features before and after pictures of teenage boys who he claims followed his method.

Research has found that boys’ social media feeds are awash in this kind of masculinity influencer content, some of which explicitly touts the use of testosterone medication or “testosterone-maxxing” during adolescence. But few, if any, talk about the risks that come with taking these drugs as a teenager. 

“Boys who are still developing should not be using exogenous testosterone,” Timothy Piatkowski, PhD, a leading researcher on performance enhancing drugs at Griffith University, tells Parents. Here’s what you need to know about the hormone medications being promoted online and how to talk to your son about the unrealistic pressures this content puts on young boys.

What Is Testosterone-Maxxing?

Testosterone-maxxing, also known as “testmaxxing,” refers to a practice where young men manipulate their hormone levels, either naturally or with testosterone medications, to maximize their physical appearance.

It’s part of a wider online community called “looksmaxxing” where young people, mostly young boys, share advice on how to enhance their social standing through diet, exercise, supplements, medications, surgeries, cologne, money-making techniques, and interpersonal communication strategies.

While this may sound like advice typically exchanged by adolescents, there’s a darker undercurrent to looksmaxxing. The concept originally started in “incel” (which means involuntarily celibate) or “redpill” communities that promoted the belief that men need to be desired by many women in order to be considered “real men.” But they also believe women are sinisterly controlling the dating market by only dating the most unrealistically handsome men. For incels, who self-identify as hopelessly unattractive, this perceived dynamic leads them to feel emasculated by women and results in them harboring significant misogynistic anger and resentment.

Looksmaxxing promotes unrealistic messages about the ideal male body, but its testosterone-maxxing sub-community takes it a step further. Some of the bodies highlighted in this social media content are far beyond what a normal or healthy male body should look like, especially in adolescence, and this can send a dangerous message. To be a real man, according to this content, young adolescent boys are expected to be tall and broad-shouldered with bulging biceps, pronounced trapezius muscles, and washboard abs. In other words, little boys are now expected to look like fully grown 30-year-old male cover models from the moment they hit puberty.

“Constant exposure to idealized body images and health misinformation contributes to unrealistic body expectations and body dissatisfaction,” says Jason Nagata, MD, MS, a pediatrician specializing in eating disorders in young men.

The Algorithms’ Influence

A recent study quantified just how constant this exposure is for boys between the ages of 16 and 25. It found that 60% of young men watch masculinity influencer content regularly and, of this group, 38% acted upon the influencers advice while 47% considered acting upon it.

Even though the majority of boys are watching this content, they are not necessarily seeking it out. Social media algorithms have been found to push boys to increasingly extreme content. A 2022 study by the international non-profit Reset Tech watched this happen in real-time. The organization created social media accounts using the ages of hypothetical boys both over and under the age of 18. Some of the accounts were created as “blank” accounts which meant they didn’t search, like, follow, or otherwise engage with any YouTube content, and instead just followed the content that was recommended by the platform. A little over an hour after the account was created, it started being served masculinity influencer content. By the fourth day the recommended content included a video glorifying Hitler, a neo-nazi video, and a video from a controversial alt-right comedian.

In terms of testosterone-maxxing, a 15-year-old boy could search “how to start lifting weights” and end up being served video recommendations telling him the only way to look good is to take steroids or testosterone. Once he lands on those videos, the algorithm will continue showing similar videos which can create a false reality where he believes that all male bodies look this way and that taking steroids or testosterone is the only way to achieve it.

Behind the scenes is a dynamic where both influencers and social media platforms are financially incentivized—the social platforms through the selling of targeted ads and the influencers through brand partnerships or sales from their own products or programs—to emphasize boys’ insecurities. And ultimately, boys are left to pay the price with their physical and mental health.

Physical Health Risks

A direct line has been drawn between this kind of masculinity content and risky behaviors. Adolescent boys who consume masculinity influencer content have been found to be “significantly more likely” to use performance-enhancing or body modifying substances including nootropics, supplements, diet pills, and steroids. Regular consumption of protein powders and shakes has also been linked to an increased chance of steroid use later on in adolescence.

When it comes to healthy adolescent boys taking testosterone medication, both Nagata and Piatkowski are firmly opposed. “One place where I advocate for no use of androgens is among non-fully developed boys,” says Piatkowski. “They can get all the ‘gainz’ from training, diet, and supplementation.”

Healthy adolescent boys who take testosterone without oversight from a doctor run the following risks:

• Suppression of the body’s ability to produce testosterone
• Lowering sperm production
• Reduced fertility
• Increased red blood cell count which raises the risk of hypertension, blood clots, heart attacks, and strokes
• Acne and other skin conditions
• Balding

It’s also illegal to use steroids and testosterone medication. They are also both classified as Schedule III drugs in the United States, which means that possession or use of them without a prescription can lead to fines, jail time, or a permanent criminal record.

Despite these consequences, the social pressure to conform to this new hypermasculine body ideal is so strong that it has created a booming black market—which (of course) leads to additional health concerns. “Testosterone replacement therapy should only be used under the supervision of a medical professional who can monitor for side effects and complications,” says Nagata.

Mental Health Risks

The negative impacts of testosterone-maxxing content extends far beyond physical health risks. It’s obvious that there is a mental health crisis among American teenagers, with rates of anxiety and depression doubling in adolescents who spend more than three hours a day on social media (the average American teen spends 4.8 hours on their phones every day). The testosterone-maxxing trend only amplifies this crisis.

Adolescent boys who consume masculinity influencer content are less likely to prioritize and care for their mental health; are more likely to report high levels of psychological distress, including high rates of worthlessness, nervousness, and sadness; and are more likely to engage in disordered eating, and be dissatisfied with their own appearance and their muscles, in particular.

This becomes a recipe for increased mental health challenges. Most notable is bigorexia, a form of muscle dysmorphia that causes an obsession with developing bigger muscles. “Since 2002, there’s been over a 400% increase in hospitalizations for eating disorders in boys,” Nagata says, noting that bigorexia is the most common eating disorder in teenage boys.

In addition to disordered eating and body dysmorphia, testosterone-maxxing corrodes an even more essential part of a boy’s identity because it takes aim at the very definition of masculinity. In a society that relies so heavily on categorizing people into a gender binary, targeting a young man’s masculinity can be a particularly painful and isolating experience.

“Testosterone is treated as a biological shorthand for masculinity, tied to traits like physical strength, aggression, and sexual performance,” Piatkowski says. “Boys and young men are especially vulnerable to this messaging during developmental stages where identity and body image are still forming. So testosterone becomes an easy target for insecurity and commercial exploitation. The result is a highly engaging, persuasive cycle that plays on vulnerability and sells identity as much as health.”

Signs Your Child May Be Influenced

This hypermasculine ideal has seeped into our mainstream culture to the point that muscle building goals are common among boys. A third of teenage boys across the U.S. report trying to build larger muscles and gain more muscle weight. So if a young man expresses interest in bulking up, this by itself does not have to be a cause for concern. “Not all boys who are trying to build muscle will develop an eating disorder,” Nagata says.

The Body Dysmorphic Disorder Foundation provides a comprehensive list of signs parents can look out for:

• Spending an excessive amount of time and overexertion in weightlifting to increase muscle mass
• Being preoccupied or panicked if they are unable to attend their usual workout sessions
• Overtraining or training when injured
• Disordered eating and using special diets or supplements
• Compulsive comparing and checking of one’s physique
• Significant distress or mood swings
• Prioritizing one’s schedule over all else
• Interference in relationships and ability to work
• Steroid abuse and often other substance misuse

What Parents Can Do

What makes this situation particularly challenging for parents is that a lot of times it is happening outside of their awareness. A parent’s social media algorithm will feed them very different content than what it serves to their 14-year-old son. But Nagata and Piatkowski say there are still ways for parents to provide guidance and support if they find their son impacted by testosterone-maxxing content. 

• Experience the content yourself. Get to know the content your child is watching. Try searching for terms like “fitspiration,” “testosteronemaxxing,” “TRT,” “looksmaxxing,” and “#gymtok.”
• Limit social media use. Consider monitoring or limiting social media access, especially appearance-related content.
• Teach media literacy. When they come across a health tip they are interested in following, show them how to consider the source, check the author and date, and look for evidence supporting the information.
• Find your calm before engaging in conversation. Discussions around social media have the best chance of success when a parent is able to approach it calmly. Find a way to decompress before taking on this conversation to ensure you are able to create a space where your son feels able to share his experiences.
• Shift the focus to health. Change their attention to realistic habits that promote positive health and wellness like good nutrition, hygiene, sleep, and moderate exercise.
• Open up their information sources. Sharing evidence-based health information from reputable sources can counter social media misinformation, while encouraging open dialogue and removing shame from the exchange. “The goal is to replace fear-driven decision-making with informed, values-aligned reflection,” Piatkowski says.
• Involve a health care provider. If you are concerned about your child’s behavior regarding their self-image, bring this up with their primary healthcare provider who may be able to assess them for an eating disorder and provide appropriate referrals. 

Piatkowski also provided specific advice on how to have a conversation with boys on this topic, not only as a researcher but as a father. He says the main two goals should be: keeping the relationship open so their son feels safe talking to them and gently grounding the conversation in accurate information. With this in mind, he recommends taking the these three steps:

• Meet him where he is. Start by listening more than you speak. If he mentions wanting to “bulk up” or “get on gear,” follow up with questions that help you understand his interest. This makes him feel heard rather than shut down. For example, you can say, “Tell me what has you interested in that,” instead of, “That’s dangerous, you can’t do that.” 
• Validate the feeling, not the risky choice. It is easy to get caught up in fear-based reactions if your son shares that he is engaging in or thinking of engaging in risky behaviors. Try to focus on finding the feeling underneath his interest in the behavior, by saying something like, “I get why you’d want to make changes to your body, especially with what you see online. It’s a lot of pressure. Can I share some things I’ve learned about how this stuff works?”
• Use curiosity rather than correction. Teenagers tend to resist direct advice, so frame it as exploring together. You can try saying, “Let’s check out what’s actually in some of these products and what they can do long-term.”

It’s unfortunate that boys and men are now being subjected to similar levels of bodily scrutiny and insecurity that women and girls have had to endure for decades. This is not the kind of gender equality we have been striving for as a society. Both boys and girls should have the freedom to experience childhood free from the pressures of contorting their growing bodies into narrow definitions of beauty or feeling the inevitable resentment and pain that comes from trying to achieve these impossible standards.

But for as long as social media is a part of the childhood experience, parents and children will be forced to navigate this confusing world of misinformation and unrealistic messaging. As overwhelming as this can feel, parents can take heart in knowing that they can still play a role in how these messages shape their son’s world and their identity. With this information in hand, a British stranger with a misinformed view of men’s health won’t be the final word in boys’ ears, it will be their parents.