December 3, 2005
Dear Bill.:
I have a few major questions about the use of
steroids.
We all know that the main side effects of anabolic steroid abuse is
trembling, severe acne, fluid retention, aching joints, high blood pressure,
lower HDL (the "good" form of cholesterol), jaundice, and liver tumors. All
scary right? I am curious if anyone has ever experienced such trauma? You
hear about it, but is there a safe and intelligent way to do test without
these effects? I would appreciate any insight that anyone may have.
-anonymous
Bill's Answer:
Before I answer your question I have to state that I neither for-or against the use of steroids for performance enhancement in the gym or for athletics. It is no secret that steroid use plays a huge role in any type of athletic event where the athlete might gain an "edge" over the competition, especially at elite levels of sports where athletes compete to make a living. Philosophically, at least, it would be great if there was a true level playing field in all athletic events and there was no drug use at all. Steroid use for performance enhancement, however, is an unavoidable side-effect of our society; everybody wants to be at the top, whether it is in business, athletics, social status, etc and we tend to do whatever is necessary to achieve that end. Given this fact in addition to the the legal systems inability to remove steroids from our society, they are here to stay. It is extremely important that one be well- informed about the facts of steroid use, which are non-existent in the media.
All of the side-effects you mentioned above are characteristic of steroid use. While this may sound terrible, get on pubmed and pull up some primary research about the side-effects for any other medication, even over-the counter ones; you will find a myriad of terrible side effects and a huge number of contraindications. In fact, the anabolic steroid control act in congress had the American Medical Association up-in arms when it was passed; this act basically placed steroids including testosterone in the same legal category as cocaine and heroin. Scheduling steroids in the same class as illegal narcotics gave Physicians much less power to prescribe them in situations where their use is indicated. Anabolic steroids are extremely useful for treating patients with any kind of disease that causes muscle wasting, such as burn victims, cancer patients, people with AIDS, etc.
Perhaps this will put the danger of steroid use into better perspective. Let's say that a small child, say one year old, were to accidentally ingest a large quantity one of three different drugs, Aspirin, Tylenol, or Anadrol 50, one of the most potent oral steroids with one of the worst reputations for side effects. (God-forbid this should ever happen, this example is for illustration only). If the child took the aspirin, this would be fatal; in fact, he would die ten-times over. If the child took the Tylenol, he would die 100 times over. If he took the anadrol 50, he would simply have a stomach ache!
The above example puts this into perspective very nicely, steroids are not toxic poison for your body; most over-the counter drugs could be considered more-so than steroids based on their toxicity. This is not to say, however that steroid use is benign- all of the above side effects are possible and as with any other compound, responses are largely dependent on the individual. Of all of the above side effects, a lowering of HDL is the most common; the more severe ones are rarely if ever seen at reasonable doses. Steroids can be used safely (if you are ok with the legal issues involved) for performance enhancement or bodybuilding. It is crucial, however, that if you are going to do a steroid cycle that you do all the research you possibly can about their use and effects before-hand in addition to consulting with a physician who can monitor your health before and after your cycle. Many physicians, mostly due to lack of knowledge, will simply say "don't do that because it is bad". There are, however, well-informed physicians are able to give you the information you need to safely use steroids for performance enhancement in addition to monitoring your health during and after your cycle, to avoid any problems should they arise. The sad truth is that most athletes simply throw caution to the wind and use steroids for years without so much as a checkup; this is not only irresponsible on the part of the athlete but also dangerous to their health.
Pinnacle Fitness Consultations