Field notes on men's health,
from clinicians who write the protocol.
No supplement copy. No bro-science. The signals worth measuring, the molecules worth taking, and the marketing claims worth ignoring.
GLP-1 Medications Explained: Semaglutide vs Tirzepatide vs Retatrutide
Three molecules, three mechanisms, three different outcomes. A clinician's read on which GLP-1 medication fits which goal, plus the dosing range most men do not know exists.
Finasteride vs Dutasteride vs Minoxidil: The Three Pillars of Male Hair Loss Treatment
Two drugs that block the hormone driving hair loss, one that pries follicles back open. A clinician's read on which combination fits which scalp.
Erectile Dysfunction in Your 30s: A Clinical Differential
ED in a 35-year-old is not a smaller version of ED in a 65-year-old. The differential is wider, the causes are more reversible, and the wrong fix wastes a decade.
The Lab Panel Every Man Over 35 Should Run Annually
Twelve markers worth pulling every year, and what a clinician actually does with each one. The annual physical most men get is missing more than half of this list.
The GLP-1 Microdose: Why Some Men Skip the Obesity Dose
Sub-therapeutic GLP-1 dosing is a quieter protocol with a different goal. Appetite regulation and post-meal glucose smoothing, without the weight cliff.
TRT vs Enclomiphene: Which Testosterone Path Fits Your Goals
Two protocols, two mechanisms, two very different downstream effects on fertility, dosing, and reversibility. A clinician's read on which one fits which man.
HRV Explained: What Your Wearable Is Actually Measuring
Heart rate variability is the most useful recovery metric on the consumer market and the most misused. A field note on what HRV actually shows, what it does not, and how to read your trend.
Muscle Loss on GLP-1s, and How to Prevent It
Every calorie deficit costs some lean mass. The protocol decides how much. Here is how to lose fat on a GLP-1 without giving back the muscle you spent years building.
Daily Tadalafil: The Dual-Use Case for 2.5 to 5 mg
Low-dose daily tadalafil is one of the most under-discussed protocols in men's health. It treats erectile function, BPH, and endothelial signaling in the same pill.
The Fertility Cost of TRT, and the Protocol That Avoids It
Exogenous testosterone suppresses sperm production in most men, often to zero. Here is what happens to the HPG axis, how long recovery takes, and the protocols that preserve the option.
Lipoprotein(a): The Inherited Heart Risk Number Nobody Told You About
One in five men carries an Lp(a) level high enough to double cardiovascular risk. The number does not move with diet or statins. Most men have never had it tested.
Looksmaxxing After 30: What Actually Works
Looksmaxxing is no longer a teenage internet subculture. The adult version drops the magical thinking and keeps the parts that actually move the needle after age 30.
ApoB: The Lipid Number That Matters More Than LDL
LDL is an estimate of cholesterol concentration. ApoB is a direct count of atherogenic particles. For cardiovascular risk, that distinction is the whole game.
Sleep Stacks: What Has Evidence and What Is Anecdote
Magnesium, apigenin, glycine, melatonin, trazodone. A comparison of the most common sleep supplements and medications by what the data actually shows.
Free Testosterone vs Total Testosterone: Which Number Actually Matters
Total T can read normal while free T tells a different story. Here is why the two diverge, what SHBG has to do with it, and which number a Vane clinician trusts.
Post-Finasteride Syndrome: What the Data Actually Says
A field note on the most contested side-effect conversation in men's medicine. What the trials show, what the syndrome literature shows, and how a clinician should think about the gap between them.
Libido vs Erectile Function: Two Different Systems
Desire and erection are not the same biology. Treating one when the other is broken produces a man who can perform but does not want to, or wants to and cannot.
hsCRP, Ferritin, and Homocysteine: The Boring Markers That Matter
Three labs that rarely make the front page of a health article, and routinely change how a clinician writes a protocol. What each one means, what counts as elevated, and what to do about it.
CGMs for Men Who Are Not Diabetic: Signal or Noise?
A continuous glucose monitor on a healthy man is mostly noise around a useful signal. The question is whether two weeks of data is worth the data anxiety it sometimes creates.
SHBG: The Silent Saboteur of Testosterone
Sex hormone binding globulin decides how much of your testosterone is biologically available. When it rises, free T falls, even if total T looks fine. Here is what drives it and how to read it.
Visceral Fat: The Number You Cannot See That Ages You Fastest
A man can look lean in a shirt and still carry the fat that drives cardiovascular and metabolic disease. Visceral adipose tissue is the variable BMI was never built to see.
The Half-Inch Men Lose After 35
Most men lose a measurable amount of height between 35 and 55. The cause is rarely a single dramatic event and the fix is rarely a single intervention.
Sauna vs Cold: Which One Actually Earns the Time
Heat has the cardiovascular and mortality data. Cold has the subjective recovery feel. A clinician's read on when each is worth the time and how to combine them.
OGTT vs HbA1c: Why Your Normal A1c Can Still Mean Prediabetes
HbA1c is the standard screen for diabetes. It also misses a meaningful share of insulin resistance. The case for the oral glucose tolerance test and fasting insulin as a complete metabolic read.
HCG on TRT: What It Does, What It Does Not
HCG keeps the testes working while you are on exogenous testosterone. It is the most evidence-supported add-on for testicular preservation. It is also widely misunderstood. Here is the real picture.
Tretinoin vs Retinaldehyde vs Retinol: The Male Skincare Floor
Most male skincare advice is either a 12-step routine or nothing. The actual evidence-based minimum is two products. The argument between them is mostly about potency and irritation.
Tirzepatide vs Semaglutide: Which GLP-1 Is Right for You
Two molecules, two mechanisms, two trial profiles. The right choice depends on your body composition, your insulin sensitivity, and how your gut tolerates each one.
How to Read a Hormone Panel Like a Vane Clinician
A guided walk-through of the markers we order on every man, what each one means in isolation, and how they fit together into a single clinical picture.
Pelvic Floor Dysfunction in Men: The Missing Piece
Pelvic floor problems are not a women's health condition. In men, a dysregulated pelvic floor distorts erection quality, ejaculatory control, and recovery from prostate surgery.
PRP, Microneedling, and Red Light: Which Hair Adjuncts Are Worth It
Once the medication stack is dialed in, the next question is whether procedures move the needle. A read on what has trial data, what does not, and what we actually recommend.
The Vane Baseline Panel, Itemized: What $79 Actually Gets You
Every marker on the Vane Baseline panel, why it is on the list, and what a Vane clinician does with the result. The clearest read of where your physiology is in one draw.
Symptoms of Low Testosterone in Men: What Is Real, What Is Not
Low T has a real symptom profile. It also gets blamed for a lot of things it does not actually cause. Here is the honest list, plus when the symptoms warrant a panel.
Ozempic Side Effects: What Is Common, What Is Serious, What Is Rare
Most Ozempic side effects are manageable nuisance. A handful are not. Here is the clinician's read on which ones to expect, which to watch for, and which to actually worry about.
Body Recomposition Through Your 30s, 40s, and 50s
The protocol that worked at 28 stops working at 38 and breaks at 48. The reason is not effort. It is hormonal trajectory, recovery, and the ceiling on muscle protein synthesis.
When Does TRT Start Working? A Week-by-Week Timeline
Different effects of testosterone replacement appear on different timelines. Some land in the first two weeks, others take three to six months. Here is the realistic schedule.
When Hair Loss Is Not Just Androgens: The Panel Before the Prescription
Roughly one in five men we evaluate for hair loss has a contributor that finasteride will not touch. Iron, thyroid, and vitamin D show up more often than the internet suggests.
How a Vane Clinician Writes a Protocol
The internal workflow, walked through on a composite patient. From the moment the panel comes back to the moment a protocol is signed. Why the same protocol is never written twice.
Jawline Starts at Body Fat
The single intervention that moves jawline, energy, skin clarity, and visceral fat is getting to 14 to 18 percent body fat. Every cosmetic tweak above that range is solving the wrong problem.
How to Lose Visceral Fat: The Levers That Actually Move It
Visceral fat does not respond to spot reduction, fat burners, or six-pack programs. The levers that actually work are unglamorous, well-studied, and compound.
Low Libido in Men Under 40: Hormone, Vascular, or Mental
A 32-year-old with low libido is almost never just low T. Here is how a clinician sorts hormone, vascular, psychological, and lifestyle causes into a workable diagnosis.
Finasteride Side Effects: What the Trials Actually Show
A clear-eyed read on the side-effect profile of finasteride for hair loss. Real rates, dose-response, what is common, what is rare, and what to do if you feel them.
Shift Work Sleep: Why Eight Hours Is Not Enough
Working against your circadian rhythm has a metabolic cost. A field note on what helps shift workers, what does not, and why the eight-hour heuristic breaks here.
Four Lies Men's Health Marketing Keeps Selling
Testosterone boosters do not work. BMI is not a useful number for adult men. One supplement stack does not fit everyone. And you cannot fix it without bloodwork. The data, briefly.
Hair Regrowth Timeline: What to Expect Month by Month
Most men quit hair-loss treatment in the first three months, exactly when the drug looks like it is making things worse. A clinician's read on what is normal and what is not.
Why Vane Publishes Outcomes
Most men's health companies publish satisfaction scores and retention numbers because the clinical data is mediocre. The case for sharing what actually changes: ApoB shifts, T trajectories, body composition, side-effect rates.
Best Lab Panel for Men Over 30: Quest, LabCorp, Function, InsideTracker, and Vane Compared
Five common ways to get a comprehensive lab draw, side by side. What each one covers, where the gaps are, what it costs, and which one a clinician would actually order.