Anabolic steroids

Chemical structure of the natural male sex hormone testosterone, 17 β -hydroxy-4-androstene-3-one

Chemical Structure of Trenbolone - Example of an anabolic steroid with recognizable similarity to natural testosterone

Anabolic Steroids are synthetic derivatives of the male sex hormone testosterone . They were during World War II developed and originally served to weakened and malnourished prisoners of war better convalescence to allow. In addition, due to their protein-building effect, they were used in consuming diseases and muscle atrophy, as well as an anemia remedy . Very soon they were also used in sport , where they were administered to healthy athletes as illicit doping to improve performance. In medicine , anabolic steroids are still used today for insufficiency of the testes (lack of the body's own testosterone production), for growth disorders or for physical weakness (e.g. in old people). Generally they belong to the group of anabolic steroids ; the most important representatives are dehydrochloromethyltestosterone , nandrolone , metandienone , stanozolol , furazabol and metenolone .

effect

All common preparations are based on the male sex hormone testosterone. A distinction is made between two effects:

• the anabolic effect (restorative effect, from ἀναβολή anabolé "throw", from ἀνά ana "on" and βάλλειν bállein "throw")

Due to the effect of the anabolic steroids on the protein metabolism , which is desired by the users, the build-up of protein in the muscles is increased. It has often been claimed that a significant effect only occurs with intensive muscle training at the same time. However, a study published in 1996 indicates that this does not seem to be the case, at least for beginners - participants gained significantly more muscle mass on average by consuming steroid without training than by training without steroid consumption. Anabolic steroids can also increase the consumer's ability to regenerate. He can thus train more often and with fewer breaks.

• the androgenic effect ( virilizing effect (virilis "male"), from gr. ἀνήρ, ἀνδρός anér, andrós "man"; -gen "generating" from γίγνομαι gígnomai "become")

While the anabolic effects of the anabolic steroids are in most cases the actual reason for their use, the androgenic effects are usually an undesirable side effect. This is understood to mean the influence of the artificial hormones on the internal and external sexual characteristics as well as on the psyche.

In the synthetic production of anabolic steroids, one tries to keep the androgenic component as low as possible, but this is always present and possibly leads to undesirable side effects for the consumer.

doping

Anabolic steroid hormones represent the group of the most frequently used doping substances. According to calculations by the Italian sports scientist Alessandro Donati, around 700 tons of anabolic steroids are used for doping purposes by 15 million users worldwide every year.

In fitness and popular sports (originally from the bodybuilding scene), the use of these substances has meanwhile become widespread and is often referred to as a cure in a trivializing way . A number of bodybuilder deaths made known by the media, such as that of professional bodybuilder Andreas Münzer in 1996, and knowledge about deaths, including in the amateur field, have hardly led to a reduction. The continuously growing presence in the media and the sometimes deliberately promoted glorification of a muscular body has led to an unusual increase in the use of anabolic steroids and a dangerous acceptance of this type of aesthetic in the last ten years, especially among adolescents and young adults. The psychological dependence that anabolic steroids after short-term consumption is caused is, according to the current scientific knowledge, comparable to psychotropic stimulants and intoxicants .

Another factor that promotes the ever increasing consumption of anabolic steroids can certainly be seen in the demands of today's performance society. According to the British Crime Survey , around 42,000 people, mostly men (the number of unreported cases is far higher), take steroids in Great Britain alone. Researchers assume that a significant proportion of the heart-related deaths among young competitive athletes in various disciplines in Germany could be traced back to the use of anabolic steroids.

Anabolic steroids were banned for the first time in 1974 after detection methods for the degradation products of synthetic hormones had been developed. At the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal, controls were carried out for the first time on synthetically produced anabolic steroids, and the use of the body's own steroid hormone testosterone has also been banned since 1984, but the detection of doping with the body's own hormones remains difficult to this day. Doses of natural testosterone cannot be proven, so the test determines the ratio of testosterone to epitestosterone . If the testosterone control value is above the specified value, the athlete must demonstrate by means of a long-term control that he naturally has an elevated testosterone level. This test quickly resulted in epitestosterone being taken additionally, which is why this substance was also placed on the prohibited list in 1992 - whereupon the pregnancy hormone HCG became interesting in the doping scene in order to keep the testosterone level within the required limits. HCG is said to have been widely used in cycling as early as 1983.

The synthetic anabolic steroids that are most commonly used (for non-medicinal purposes) include dehydrochloromethyltestosterone , nandrolone (= nortestosterone), trenbolone , metandienone , stanozolol and metenolone . Since 1998 , so-called prohormones of testosterone and nortestosterone have been traded as dietary supplements abroad, especially in the United States . The use of these hormone precursors is also prohibited by officially recognized sports associations such as the IOC .

Discipline-specific dosages

Since anabolic steroids research has been criminalized in sports, it is uncertain whether the anabolic steroids themselves or the dosages used are the cause of the negative consequences of anabolic steroids use. The Spanish textbook by Garcia Manso indicates the daily dose:

• Weightlifting 10-100 times the therapeutic dose (goal: strength / speed strength)
• Bodybuilding 10-100 times the therapeutic dose (target: muscle mass)
• Speed ​​(athletics) 1.5-2 times the therapeutic dose (goal: strength / speed strength)
• Endurance (athletics) 1x the therapeutic dose (goal: anti-catabolic effect)

The therapeutic dose is the dose specified for the drug by the manufacturer. In the literature, stacking is recommended to keep the dosages within reasonable limits . This means the planned change between different of the 17 different anabolic substances. The stacking must be coordinated as part of the periodization of the athletic training .

Side effects

Known side effects of anabolic steroids vary depending on the dose and duration of use. Are known:

• Liver damage (mainly with orally administered steroids)
• Focal segmental glomerulosclerosis , a type of damage to the kidney corpuscles that can lead to chronic kidney failure .
• significantly increased risk of cancer after prolonged consumption
• Reinforcement of aggression
• Psychotic episodes (anxiety psychoses, paranoia etc.) and severe depression up to suicide after stopping the steroids
• Stress on the circulation due to increased blood pressure
• Disruption of the hormonal balance (the body produces fewer of its own hormones)
• increased risk of heart attack by altering the blood lipid values
• In young people who are still growing, anabolic steroids lead to premature ossification of cartilage structures that are still growing (growth is terminated if the final size is smaller)
• Virilization in women ("masculinization": deep voice, body hair, clitoral enlargement, etc.)
• acne
• Testicular atrophy and impaired sperm production (due to the disturbed, partially suppressed hormone balance)
• In genetically predisposed people, they accelerate the hair loss process .
• Psychological side effects (e.g. sleep problems, mood swings, strong psychological dependence; see above)

Illegal trafficking

There is often a large black market in anabolic steroids in countries where the sale and purchase of anabolic steroids is prohibited or where these can only be obtained with a prescription. These steroids are mainly manufactured overseas and imported illegally. As in most cases of smuggling, anabolic steroid smuggling is mainly an organized crime .

The number of counterfeit anabolic steroids has also increased in recent years. The reason for this lies in the modern technology that makes it possible to forge the product designs more easily. Often everything from vegetable oils to highly toxic substances can be found in these products. Cases have been reported of people dying after taking anabolic steroids. Often times, taking illegally acquired steroids leads to blood poisoning, methanol poisoning, or abscesses at the injection site. This, and the lack of care by specialists for illegally taken anabolic steroids, are sometimes important reasons for driving and motivating the legalization efforts described below.

Legal position

In many states, placing anabolic steroids on the market without a doctor's prescription is a criminal offense. Still, there are states where anabolic steroids can be legally purchased without a doctor's prescription. In Germany, anabolic steroids fall under the Medicines Act and also under the Medicines Prescription Ordinance , so that they can only be traded with permission and only given to the end consumer by means of a prescription. Anabolic steroids are rarely prescribed by doctors because of the unfavorable benefit-risk ratio (limited therapeutic benefit and severe side effects at the same time ).

Decriminalization movement of anabolic steroids

See also : drug legalization

A number of scientists are advocating the decriminalization of anabolic steroids. This movement is primarily centered on the United States. Still, this movement rejects the use of anabolic steroids among teenagers and competitive athletes. Furthermore, the media would not provide any scientifically based facts about anabolic steroids. The lawyer Rick Collins criticized the legal situation in the USA in his book Legal Muscle .

Historical literature

• GA Overbeek: Anabolic Steroids. Chemistry and pharmacology. Springer-Verlag, Berlin / Heidelberg / New York 1966.

Web links

• ACSM Position Stand: The Use of Anabolic-Androgenic Steroids in Sports (PDF; 320 kB; English)
• Anabolic Steroids - The Most Commonly Used Doping Substance - Documentation

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Shalender Bhasin, Thomas W. Storer, Nancy Berman, Carlos Callegari, Brenda Clevenger: The Effects of Supraphysiologic Doses of Testosterone on Muscle Size and Strength in Normal Men . In: New England Journal of Medicine . tape 335 , no. 1 , July 4, 1996, ISSN  0028-4793 , p. 1-7 , doi : 10.1056 / NEJM199607043350101 , PMID 8637535 .
2. ^ Alessandro Donati: World Traffic in Doping Substances. (PDF; 542 kB) WADA, February 2007.
3. ↑ Young bodybuilder from steroids full of scars. Maintaining muscle mass is more important for many than one's own health. In: Innovationsreport , August 22, 2008, accessed on February 3, 2009.
4. ↑ Alex Vermeulen: Androgens and the Cardiovascular System . In: Medizin 2000 plus , 2000, 11, pp. 28-29, hdl: 1854 / LU-126807 , ( dopingnews.de ( memento of March 7, 2009 in the Internet Archive )).
5. ↑ Juan Manuel Garcia Manso: La Fueza. Findamentatcion, Valoracion y Entrenamiento. Gymnos, Madrid 1999, p. 139. cf. Arnd Krüger : Spanish doping documentation at its best. ( Memento from November 1, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) In: NZZ , December 9, 2000.
6. ↑ Steve Gallawax: The steroid bible. 3. Edition. BI Press, Sacramento 1997, ISBN 1-890342-00-9 .
7. ↑ Leal C. Herlitz et al. a .: Development of focal segmental glomerulosclerosis after anabolic steroid abuse . In: Journal of the American Society of Nephrology . tape 21 , no. 1 , January 2010, ISSN  1533-3450 , p. 163-172 , doi : 10.1681 / ASN.2009040450 , PMID 19917783 .
8. ↑ Elevated Testosterone Kills Nerve Cells . September 27, 2006.
9. ↑ Charles Yesalis: Anabolic Steroids in Sport and Exercise. 2000, ISBN 0-88011-786-9 .
10. ^ Dori Stehlin: For athletes and dealers, black market steroids are risky business . In: FDA Consumer , 1987
11. ↑ Rick Collins: Pumped: A Truth-Enhancing Seminar on Steroid Use and the Law . 2006.

This article is about a health issue. It is not used for self-diagnosis and does not replace a diagnosis by a doctor. Please note the information on health issues !