Boron & Testosterone: The Best T Booster For Fast Results [6 Hours]

Boron & Testosterone: The Best T Booster For Fast Results [6 Hours]

Here’s the brutal truth about biohacking testosterone:

It’s NOT something that happens overnight …

… Even if those annoying ‘T booster’ radio ads tell you otherwise.

TRT is a legitimate quick fix for low T, but if possible I’d prefer avoid the lifelong commitment, high cost, and sharp objects.

What I really want to know is does a natural solution exist for this problem?

Research suggests that boron might be the key.

In today’s guide we explore the link between boron and testosterone in men.

Let’s get started.

Don't care about the details?

Click Here to go straight to the dosage conclusion.

A Better Definition

The word “boron” makes me think about my college days - sitting in chemistry and learning about the periodic table.

It makes me think BORING …

A passion for hacking T levels has me reconsidering this notion though. In reality boron is great.

Here’s why …

Boron has traditionally been considered nothing more than a simple element. We know that in humans, it’s consider to be an important micronutrient and trace mineral. For years we thought we knew everything there was to know about this simple nutrient.

In recent years though, scientists have challenged this status quo.

Even though we don’t yet understand the exact mechanisms for every function it has in the body, we do know that supplementation can improve several health conditions - including testosterone deficiency.

Science is starting to prove that it is a literal powerhouse when it comes to men’s health, as well as a variety of other health issues.

An Actually T Booster (According To PubMed)

There is a growing body of evidence that testosterone is linked to boron in a very direct way.

Here is a quick summary of the studies:

Link Result
Study 1 28% Increase in free testosterone
Study 2 20% increase in total testosterone
Study 3 11.5% increase in total testosterone


When that first study came out in 2011, boron started to take the T booster market by storm - Why?

Not only did it show a 28% increase, it also gave us insight into how quickly we can start seeing results.

How fast exactly?

Within 6 Hours:

  • Researchers recorded a significant reduction in sex hormone-binding globulin (SHGB).

Within 7 Days:

  • A significant increase in free testosterone levels.
  • A significant decrease in mean plasma estradiol (E2) levels.
  • An increase (not statistically significant) in dihydrotestosterone (DHT), cortisol and vitamin D.

Mo does a great job summarizing the research:


How Does It Work? Is It A Steroid Or Something?

You might be wondering:

How does boron boost testosterone levels?

The short answer is SHBG.

As I mentioned above, it only takes 6 hours to see a significant reduction in SHBG. Check the related article link for a quick refresher on why this is important.

Hand picked related article:

10 Simple Ways To Lower SHBG (#9 Is Fake News!)

It’s well established that this binding globulin attaches to testosterone, inactivates it, and ultimately prevents us from reaping the benefits. It is a regulator. By supplementing with boron, we are regulating the regulator.

Here’s how it works -

  1. Boron decreases SHBG.
  2. SHBG binds to the dominant hormones.
  3. Testosterone is the dominant male hormone.
  4. Less SHBG = More testosterone.

So, does it work like an anabolic steroid?

No.

Instead, it modulates how your body uses anabolic steroids. The goal of anabolics is often to jack up T levels, but this is not a smart strategy. That’s because after being released, 98% of new testosterone ends up bound to SHBG rendering it unusable(5).

Boron has a better strategy because it takes advantage of the massive reserve of T that is already in our blood.

It Optimizes Your Hormone Profile

The best part (in my opinion) about boron is that it optimizes your overall hormone profile.

Specifically, the ratio of free testosterone-to-estradiol as well as total testosterone-to-estradiol are improved after boron supplementation.(2).

Why are ratios important?

Sure, crazy high levels of testosterone sounds like fun, but jacking up your T without considering other hormones leads to terrible side effects (think gynecomastia).

Which brings us to a common question:

Does boron increase estrogen?

There are people out there that will tell you that boron increases estrogen (E2) levels…

…and it’s true. It does increase E2 - if you’re a female.(5)

Way back in 1999 there was a study that led many researchers to assume (erroneously) that boron increases estrogen in humans in general - both males and females.

They were wrong. The results of this study showed an increase in E2 for females for the same reason that we see an increase in T for men.

  1. Boron decreases SHBG.
  2. SHBG binds to the dominant hormones.
  3. Estrogen is the dominant female hormone.
  4. Less SHBG = More estrogen.

The claim that boron increases estrogen in men is nonsense.

As a matter of fact:

We now know that not only does it not increase, but it has actually been proven to decrease levels.(2)

A Quick Review Of Other Benefits

12 Benefits Of Boron

Source - Happiness Medicine

Besides optimizing testosterone levels, scientists have found that this trace mineral has a variety of other health benefits.

  • Inflammation: It reduces inflammatory cytokine concentration in the blood. These substances are responsible for localized inflammation, atherosclerosis, and many other disorders associated with chronic inflammation (5).

  • Kidney stones: Patients who suffer from kidney stones have found significant relief after 2 or 3 days consuming boron supplements. Boron reduces the concentration of calcium in the urine and is associated with more comfortable kidney stone repulsion as well as less bleeding when the stones do pass(6).

  • Bodybuilding: Boron supplements are safe to use for bodybuilders who want to increase their testosterone levels to achieve significant increases in lean body mass and strength.

  • Cancer: Recent findings suggest that boron has a significant role in cancer prevention and treatment. New therapeutic approaches use boron to provide therapeutic radiation to cancer patients with minimal toxicity rates (7).

  • Increase bone density: By modulating sex hormones, boron improves bone density. Moreover, boron is known to modulate the action of vitamin D at the cell membranes, which enhances bone turnover rates (5, 8, 9, 10).

  • Arthritis: In a study, up to 71% of patients with osteoarthritis improved their symptoms by using boron and did not experience any side effects (11).

  • Wound healing: By modulating inflammation and the action of certain enzymes in the blood, boron improves and accelerates wound healing (12, 13).

  • Protects against oxidative stress: Studies show that boron protects against free radicals, even those triggered by extremely toxic substances such as organophosphorus compounds (14).

  • Brain health: Boron has been implicated in brain health by modulating brain electrical activity, and low levels are associated with severe cognitive problems in humans (15, 16).

Top 5 Boron Rich Foods

It’s pretty clear at this point that boron is beneficial to your health.

The question now is:

What foods do I need to eat to get boron in my diet?

The most ideal way to get any nutrient is through dietary modification. Below you will find a list of foods that contain the highest concentrations of boron.(17)

  1. Dried Fruits

    They are great sources of boron and may contain up to 27 mg per kg. Examples of dried fruits are raisins, apricots and prunes.

  2. Nuts

    Especially Brazil nuts. Almonds and peanuts contain 23 and 18 mg per kg, respectively. Other nuts include hazelnuts, walnut, and cashews. A tasty way to obtain your boron from them is peanut butter.

  3. Beans

    Go for red, kidney beans, lentils and chickpeas.

  4. Banana

    They are a great source of boron, mainly because they are cheap and affordable.

  5. Avocado

    Another affordable source is avocado, which contains almost 2 mg per cup.

Is Boron dangerous?

Too much of a good thing can be bad. Boron is no different. It may actually become toxic if you take too much.

How much is too much?

According to the World Health Organization, the total daily intake (TDI) of boron is 20 mg per day in people over 18 years old.

What side effects would you notice if you had taken too much?

Here is a quick list:

  • Tremors
  • Convulsions
  • Weakness
  • Headaches
  • Depression
  • Diarrhea
  • Vomiting
  • Skin inflammation and peeling
  • Irritability

I wouldn’t worry too much though. Especially if you plan on getting it from your diet. Most people will never even have to think about these side effects so long as you don’t exceed more than 20mg per day.

For example:

To go over 20mg you would have to eat:

  • 17lbs of bananas
  • Over 2 lbs of dried fruit
  • Over 2 lbs of nuts

How To Take Boron For The Best Results

Before we start, I always recommend you measure your free testosterone levels before and after any changes to your protocol.

Hand picked related article:

The Ultimate Guide To Testosterone Levels By Age [Charts]

If you’re interested in giving boron a shot then there several things to consider when trying to decide on how to take it.

Take dosage for example:

If our goal was to take this trace mineral for general health purposes you might consider the RDA.

Did you know that boron doesn’t have a currently established RDA? Crazy, I know.

The point is that the first step in establishing the best way to take it is to be clear with what we want to accomplish through supplementation.

We want to know the best way to take it to give us the biggest boost in testosterone

The 3 topics we need to cover are:

  1. Form
  2. Dosage
  3. Recommendation

The Best Form

There are many forms of boron. It can be overwhelming trying to figure out which one is best.

If you have never supplemented with boron before, deciding which form to take is easy:

A Combination

While in the bootcamp phase of increasing testosterone levels naturally, we want fast results. The best way to do this is with a deliberate shotgun approach.

While it may be true that one form of boron may be more effective than another for you as an individual, we want to take advantage of it’s benefits ASAP. Save nit picking of this nature for the biohacker/optimization phase.

The triple (aka tri-boron) forms are:

  • boron citrate
  • boron glycinate
  • boron aspartate.

Dosage - Based On Science

Let’s figure this out together.

Upper Limit

For starters, we have already established in the ‘side effects ‘ section that we don’t want to exceed 20mg per day.

Minimal Effective Dosage

Even though smaller doses (3 mg) are effective for other issues like osteoporosis, studies have shown that similar (2.5 mg) dosages won’t significantly impact a man’s testosterone levels(18).

It appears that significant increases in testosterone levels start at a dose of around 6 mg.(5)

6 mg gives us a good starting point, but it may not be optimal.

Most Impact

At 10 mg per day we see the biggest increase in T at 28%.(2)

Key Takeaway

According to PubMed, the best dose to achieve a significant increase in testosterone levels is 10 mg a day(2).


Recommendations – Which Boron Supplement Is Best?

Before digging into the details of these products that I know and trust, an important disclosure:

My 2 recommendations in this section are affiliate links. That means that if you click them and then decide to make a purchase, I will earn a commission. There is no additional cost to you.. I take recommendations very seriously and only recommend products and services that:

1. I currently use or have used in the past.
2. I believe have contributed to my success in increasing testosterone levels.

Please do not spend any money on these products unless you feel you need them or that they will help you achieve your goals.

I have tested several different boron products over the years, but these days I alternate between just two depending on my current supplement stack.

Let me explain.

To get started, I recommend picking one of these:

1. Life Extension’s Boron - [Affiliate Link]

PROS

  • Low Price
  • Trusted Brand
  • High Quality
  • 180 Capsules
  • Contains all 3 common forms (citrate, glycinate, aspartate)

This is my “go to” when it comes to boron.

It’s also the product I recommend to men who have never taken boron before and are just getting started with adding supplements to their testosterone protocol.

CONS

  • 3 mg per capsule

There are very few products on the market that supply more than 3 mg per capsule. The reason for this is because of that old osteoporosis study (discussed above). Unfortunately, most boron products are marketed at females trying to prevent osteoporosis.

There are products available with a higher mg/capsule ratio, but I have yet to find, test, and research one that meets my standards.

2. Country Life’s Triple Action Bone Solid - [Affiliate Link]

PROS

  • Trusted Brand
  • High Quality
  • 240 Capsules
  • Contains several other T boosting ingredients (Vitamin D, Zinc, K2, etc.)
  • Made using Fruitex-B® (calcium fructoborate)

FruiteX-B® is what makes this product special. It is a clinically tested and patented ingredient that should theoretically be extremely bio-available to our bodies. I say theoretically, because current research is not definitive. Increased absorption comes from the fact that calcium fructoborate supplies boron in the form of a carbohydrate complex found in various foods (beans, certain vegetables, legumes, and fruit).

There has actually been quite a bit of research on FruiteX, but none with regard to testosterone specifically. Here’s what makes it so appealing to me:

  • Improves parameters that have been linked with increased testosterone (i.e. vitamin d, insulin sensitivity, etc.).(19)
  • In comparative studies, it starts to work significantly faster than it’s competition.(19)
  • Reduced incidence of toxicity.(19)
  • Also good for bones, joints, heart heath, cholesterol, and dyslipidemia.(19)

CONS

  • More expensive
  • 1mg per capsule

Even though this is a high quality product that I do use myself, I debated whether or not even to include it here.

Why?

I’m just not sure how useful this product is for the majority of readers. It only has 1 mg of boron per capsule. That means you need to take 10 of these a day. That’s a ton.

The reason I opted to list is because I know there are a few of you who are in the optimization phase and could care less about how many capsules you take (I’ve been there).

A Quick Recap (& Anonymous Testimony)

In a nutshell, this seemingly minor supplement has much to offer. Science is only recently starting to scratch the surface.

The key takeaways here are:

  1. There is a growing body of scientific research connecting boron and testosterone.
  2. It works fast. Especially when compared to other T boosters.

You can get your daily boron in dried fruits, nuts, beans, bananas, and avocados, but if you decide to supplement instead, the recommended dose to start seeing an increase in testosterone levels is between 6 mg and 10 mg a day.

Anonymous Review

I just got some awesome feedback the other day about this article.

Thought it was worth sharing:

“I started using boron after reading about it on your site. All I can say is wow. My sleep is still subpar (I wake up a few times during the night), but everytime I do I have an erection. Morning wood is back to the point it was when I was a teenager. Amazing stuff. Thank you!” - Anonymous

What Do You Think?

Now I’d like to hear from you:

Was there anything in today’s post that stood out to you?

Are you going to start taking this as a supplement? Or do you think we need more research?

Either way, let me know by leaving a comment below right now.

Join The Conversation On Twitter

« The 10 Best Testosterone Websites On The Planet (2020)
This Is How To Get A Dirt Cheap Testosterone Test »
David Becker, RN, CCRN
David Becker, RN, CCRN Mr. Becker is a father, husband, and CCRN in Trauma ICU. You can read his inspiring comeback story From 412ng/dl To 923ng/dl In 6 Months - Without TRT. Feel free to send David a message here.