In this Huberman Lab Essentials episode, I explain how to optimize hormones—particularly testosterone, estrogen, and related sex steroids—to enhance fertility and overall well-being. I discuss the sources of testosterone and estrogen and how their levels fluctuate with age in both males and females. I also cover how behaviors such as exercise, cold and heat exposure, light exposure, illness, and breathing patterns affect hormones. Additionally, I examine specific supplements and replacement therapies, highlighting important precautions to consider when adjusting hormone levels. Huberman Lab Essentials episodes are approximately 30 minutes long and focus on key scientific insights and protocol takeaways from past Huberman Lab episodes. These short episodes will be released every Thursday, while our full-length episodes will continue to be released every Monday. Read the show notes for this episode at hubermanlab.com. Thank you to our sponsors AG1: https://drinkag1.com/huberman Eight Sleep: https://eightsleep.com/huberman Function: https://functionhealth.com/huberman Timestamps 00:00:00 Huberman Lab Essentials; Hormones 00:01:15 Testosterone & Estrogen Sources & Age, Adrenals 00:03:34 Sponsor: Eight Sleep 00:05:05 Competition, Males & Testosterone; Dopamine 00:09:27 Testosterone Decreases, Expectant Fathers, Illness 00:11:30 Sleep Apnea, Testosterone, Estrogen, Cortisol, Tool: Nasal Breathing 00:15:57 Sponsor: AG1 00:17:00 Dopamine, Cortisol, Fertility, Tool: Light Viewing Behavior  00:19:31 Heat, Cold & Hormone Levels 00:21:14 Resistance & Endurance Training, Testosterone, Tool: Exercise Order 00:23:26 Estrogen, Menopause, Hormone Therapy 00:25:07 Sponsor: Function 00:26:54 Vitamins, Opioids, Supplements, Tongkat Ali, Cancer Risk 00:31:26 Luteinizing Hormone, hCG, Fadogia Agrestis, Tool: Blood Tests 00:36:00 Recap & Key Takeaways Disclaimer & Disclosures