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PROHORMONE USERS
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It takes 12 years on average for an experimental drug to be developed from preclinical testing in laboratories and animals, to Phase I, II and III human trials. Only 5 in 5,000 compounds that enter preclinical testing make it to human testing. One of these five tested in people is approved as a medicine. What this means is that we have good data regarding the pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetics of a particular drug and predicted side effects although longer term complications may only be evident when the drug has been on the market for a number of years. This is also the case with Anabolic Steroids, in that to a certain extent we know how they will behave in the body and the expected side effects, especially in the short term and thus from a medical point of view can advice accordingly. Prohormones and various supplements often do not undergo this extensive testing procedure, which means little raw data about these substances is available. In addition because these substances are not classified as drugs and readily available, a false sense of security about their safety can develop. There have been a number of cases of gynaecomastia as a result of prohormone and supplement use (see case study below), which attests to the fact that these substances cause hormonal disruption similar to Anabolic Steroids. This is also reflected by the increasing awareness of prohormone users on bodybuilding forums of the trend to use antioestrogens post cycle, similar to the practice of steroid users. Some studies show that these substances can also adversely affect cholesterol levels. (1) Thus it may be pertinent for prohormone users to look at their health with the same caution that steroid users employ. CASE STUDY Breast. 2004 Oct;13(5):428-30. Gynaecomastia and the plant product "Tribulis terrestris"
Jameel JK, Kneeshaw PJ, Rao VS, Drew PJ. Gynaecomastia is the commonest benign breast condition seen in men. It is well recognised that certain drugs that alter the normal sex hormonal profile in the body can induce gynaecomastia. Recently, an increasing use of androgenic-anabolic steroids among young men especially body-builders has increased the incidence of gynaecomastia. We report a case of a young weight-trainer who developed gynaecomastia due to oral intake of a herbal tablet which he used as a steroid alternative for body-building. Reference (1) Arch Intern Med. 2000 Nov 13;160(20):3093-104. The Andro Project: physiological and hormonal influences of androstenedione supplementation in men 35 to 65 years old participating in a high-intensity resistance training program. Broeder CE et al. The Human Performance Lab, East Tennessee State University |
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