Should I use Androstenedione to build my body?

Androstenedione is a natural hormone precursor synthesized in several organs in the body including the ovaries, adrenals and testes. In humans, enzymes can convert it to the male sex hormone, testosterone and in the female, to estradiol

Androstenedione is also made synthetic and offered for sale on the internet. The entire hormonal industry is unregulated and so the product quality or quantity cannot be confirmed.

Every website that sells androstenedione hypes up their product claiming it is the most potent anabolic steroid on the market. These same people also claim that by buying androstenedione, you will have a stronger body with bulging muscles- of course you will also be a top notch athlete- at least these are the claims.

The facts- make no mistake androstenedione is a potent compound and can be used to make testosterone. Testosterone is often given to children with growth retardation and hypogonadism and can help them enormously. However, as far as bulging muscles and strength, the data on the topic are scare. Children with growth deficiencies who had been given testosterone have not been followed for long periods- rest assured not all have gone on to become Olympic champions.

There is some evidence that androstenedione does not always increase muscle mass, power or the ability to heal after an injury. Part of the reason is that the products used in these studies could have been fakes or counterfeits.

In any cases, use of anabolic steroids in sports is frowned upon by the sporting agencies. Almost every professional sports agency randomly checks urine for a variety of drugs.  

Androstenedione is now classified as a controlled substance and is a banned anabolic steroid. This means it is illegal to possess, use or distribute the drug and there are harsh penalties, when the authorities catch up with you.

What people never talk about is that androstenedione is not an innocuous drug. It has a number of disturbing side effects including severe acne, decreased libido, diminished size of gonads, and mood alterations. In women, this drug can cause a deep voice and features of masculinization. Another side effect which is often not mentioned is that most anabolic hormones decrease your good cholesterol and put you at risk for future heart attacks.

Therefore, the choice is very simple. Take androstenedione and build rip-roaring muscles with a lot of acne, decreased libido and small testicles or work hard, build your body the natural way, have an acne free face and keep on “banging” away for many years. 

Androstenedione 101

Introduction

Androstenedione is a steroid-like chemical which acts as a precursor for synthesis of testosterone and estrogen. It is a known fact that androstenedione has anabolic properties. Androstenedione occurs naturally in the body but can also be manufactured synthetically. This steroid can be administered by mouth, injection or a nasal spray.

Because androstenedione is known to be converted into testosterone, there has been a lot of media hype about its potential as an anabolic steroid. Starting in the 60s, andostenedione was manufactured and has been sold as a dietary supplement. Often called Andro, it was widely available in most health and food stores. Andro received world wide attention after the Mark McGwire baseball scandal. In the last few years, Andro has continued to make news, especially in the field of professional baseball and cycling.

In cyberspace, both sellers and manufacturers of androstenedione claim that the steroid can rapidly increase muscle size and strength. These anabolic effects help to build a body which can tolerate extremes of exercise and help recovery after injury. Others claim that Androstenedione can increase sexual performance, make one look young and even grow hair. There is not one iota of scientific evidence to back up any of these claims. There are no rigorous controlled trials that have been done to document the fact that androstenedione has any anabolic properties or any other medical benefits. All data on androstenedione have been exaggerated by unscrupulous manufacturers and distributors of the product.

Prohormones & Bodybuilding 101 part 2

For decades anabolic steroids have had a bad rap and now the ill-reputation also follows the prohormones. Most prohormones were easily available in health food stores and cyberspace. Well, the lax rules by the FDA have come to an end. Today, in America, the FDA subjects prohormones to the same category as anabolic steroids and considers them illegal to dispense, possess or distribute without a prescription.

For decades, the hormone Androstenedione was sold as a dietary supplement to build muscles. When it comes to a prohormone, a drug like Androstenedione can be ingested and then converted by the body into testosterone. Androstenedione is still used in hospitals to treat individuals with stunted growth. However, now the FDA has banned this substance from sale as a dietary agent. Of course, website and health stores sell it under other names.

Why the FDA is always banning everything related to anabolic steroids is a puzzle – the reason is that there is a strong belief that these prohormones possess a real health risk. As far as androstenendione and health risks are concerned, there is no study to show that. All the reports about side effects are anecdotal and there have only been a few complications reported. Motor vehicles accidents kill thousand times more people, but so far there is no ban on the use of cars! Just because Chris Benoit killed his family is not a reason to ban all steroids. There are estimated to be at least 2 million adverse drug reactions (with many deaths) each year in North American hospitals- so why have all these drugs not been banned?

Do prohormones work?

Definitely, they work, if one can get the real prohormone-it works just like the actual anabolic steroid. These prohormones can increase muscle mass, reduce fat, boost endurance and exercise performance. There is a major thrust among certain individuals who do not want to age to use prohormones. The anti aging or life extension purists believe that these hormones can prolong life and keep the body young. Many prohormones are sold at Life Extension websites under different names.

As far as side effects are concerned, there is no difference between the real hormone and prohormone. The side effects are dose dependent and increase with dosage. The typical side effects of anabolic prohormones include acne, oily skin, hair loss, breast growth, etc. when the prohormone is stopped, the side effects disappear.