Menopause for thought

So now we know. Thanks to Professor Eberhard Nieschlag, the mythical male menopause – or the next best thing – is official. Sort of.

According to the professor, Hormone Replacement Therapy for men could be the Next Big Thing. As men's paunches grow – or "explore the further reaches of middle age", in the professor's more emollient words – their energy levels begin to droop and they experience what the professor describes as "decline in all things associated with male vigour".

Indeed. The mind has no need to boggle; male HRT is surely the answer to the prayers of both men and women. Professor Nieschlag stresses the positive effects of testosterone injections or patches on physical and mental agility. Of course he does, he's a scientist.

The rest of us – women as much as men – will probably be thinking of something more specific. If Professor Nieschlag was to market his discovery in the most persuasive manner – perhaps linking testosterone patches with Viagra – he would, very soon, be a hero to all of us who are no longer, as the professor might put it, fully testosterone charged.