There are many misconceptions of what most people call "man boobs." This condition has caused much embarrassment to millions of adult males. And the sad thing is that a lot of this embarrassment can be avoided by understanding what man boobs are, what causes them, and what can be done to reduce or even eliminate them.

The proper medical term for man boobs is gynecomastia. When a male has gynecomastia, he suffers from the over-development of his mammary glands, causing his breasts to enlarge. In some cases, the mammary glands may even create and secrete milk. There are times when boys going through puberty develop enlarged breasts. But in most of these cases, the young male loses these man boobs naturally.

The actual cause of adult man boobs is still not clear by doctors, although there is a general consensus that it has to do with an imbalance of sex hormones in the male body. Namely the decrease in the hormone testosterone and/or the increase of the hormone estrogen.

Possible factors that can be triggers of gynecomastia include:

Medications that effect testosterone or estrogen hormone levels, chronic liver or kidney disease, certain types of cancers (especially those affecting the sex organs) and obesity.

Not only does being obese increase the levels of fatty tissue around the breast area (and therefore making man boobs more pronounced), but obesity also lowers the amount of testosterone being produced. Men with man boobs should see a doctor immediately to ensure that the enlargement of their breasts, and not something more serious like a tumor.

Although having man boobs is not deadly in itself, it can be seen as a warning sign for other detrimental diseases and health problems in the future. Along with the emotional toll this takes on many adult men, there are reports of enlarged breast tissue become tender and sometimes painful.

To treat gynecomastia and reduce man boobs, a visit to the family physician should be the first step. Any prescriptions being taken should be evaluated to see of it is having an adverse effect on hormone levels. The individual should be checked for those cancers that effect testosterone and estrogen levels.

Also, starting an exercise program in combination with a healthy diet will result in weight loss. As the overall body fat level goes down, there will be a gradual increase in the production of testosterone. This will cause further reduction in the size of man boobs.