Bodybuilding is a journey of learning – identifying boundaries and how to break through them. For many, the choice to use anabolic-androgenic steroids for enhanced muscular development is clear and absolute. But impulsive moves and risky application can be avoided with a little prior research and planning. The following is a list of valuable sources of information for anyone considering, or currently using, anabolic steroids.
PubMed
Developed by the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) at the National Library of Medicine (NLM), located at the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Publishers participating in PubMed electronically submit their citations to NCBI prior to or at the time of publication. If the publisher has a web site that offers full-text of its journals, PubMed provides links to that site as well as biological resources, consumer health information, research tools, and more. There may be a charge to access the text or information but the vast amount of clincal research available is well worth it.
Anabolic Steroids In Sport And Exercise
By Charles E. Yesalis (2000)
Charles Yesalis is a professor of health policy, administration, exercise and sports science at Penn State. His book is a collection of articles that examine anabolic-androgenic steroids, their effects and long-term medical prognosis of use. This academic book will appeal to serious AAS researchers. Yesalis offers the research findings and opinions of steroid advocates and detractors in an unbiased scientific document. The book includes chapters on drug testing, analysis of performance, health implications and the legal aspects of steroid possession and distribution; as well as a comprehensive history of steroid use in sports and exercise.
Anabolic Steroids & The Athlete
By William N. Taylor (2002)
William Taylor carefully explores the chemistry and physiology of testosterone and its derivatives. This text is well researched and scientifically reliable. Read it once to gain knowledge; read it twice with a highlighter.
Current concepts in anabolic-androgenic steroids
By Nick A. Evans (2004)
The muscle-building effects of anabolic-androgenic steroids have been questioned for decades. Nick Evans shows recent scientific investigations into supraphysiologic doses that supports the efficacy of these regimens. Testosterone has potent anabolic effects on the musculoskeletal system. For athletes requiring speed and strength and men desiring a cosmetic muscle makeover, illegal steroids are a powerful lure, despite the risk of subjective side effects. Recent clinical studies have discovered novel therapeutic uses for physiologic doses of AAS, without any significant adverse effects in the short term.
A league of their own: demographics, motivations and patterns of use of 1,955 male adult non-medical anabolic steroid users in the United States
By Jason Cohen, Rick Collins, Jack Darkes and Daniel Gwartney (2007)
A survey of 1,995 men provides a comprehensive profile of non-medical anabolic-androgenic steroid users around the United States. The typical user was a highly-educated and gainfully employed, earning an above-average income. He was not active in organized sports; use was motivated by increases in skeletal muscle mass, strength, and physical attractiveness. The survey breaks several myths about the typical steroid-user.
Anabolics, 9th Edition
By William Llewellyn (2008)
William Llewellyn, is a world-renowned authority on pharmaceutical ergogenics and their effects on muscular performance. He is an accomplished research scientist, author, publisher, inventor and columnist. Llewellyn’s frequently updated AAS reference book is commonly regarded as a “must-have” by bodybuilders using performance enhancing drugs, or otherwise researching their use.
Pharmacology of anabolic steroids
A T Kicman
King's College London, Drug Control Centre, Department of Forensic Science and Drug Monitoring, London, UK
Athletes and bodybuilders have recognized for several decades that the use of anabolic steroids can promote muscle growth and strength but it is only relatively recently that these agents are being revisited for clinical purposes. Anabolic steroids are being considered for the treatment of cachexia associated with chronic disease states, and to address loss of muscle mass in the elderly, but nevertheless their efficacy still needs to be demonstrated in terms of improved physical function and quality of life. In sport, these agents are performance enhancers, this being particularly apparent in women, although there is a high risk of virilization despite the favourable myotrophic–androgenic dissociation that many xenobiotic steroids confer. Modulation of androgen receptor expression appears to be key to partial dissociation, with consideration of both intracellular steroid metabolism and the topology of the bound androgen receptor interacting with co-activators. An anticatabolic effect, by interfering with glucocorticoid receptor expression, remains an attractive hypothesis. Behavioural changes by non-genomic and genomic pathways probably help motivate training. Anabolic steroids continue to be the most common adverse finding in sport and, although apparently rare, designer steroids have been synthesized in an attempt to circumvent the dope test. Doping with anabolic steroids can result in damage to health, as recorded meticulously in the former German Democratic Republic. Even so, it is important not to exaggerate the medical risks associated with their administration for sporting or bodybuilding purposes but to emphasize to users that an attitude of personal invulnerability to their adverse effects is certainly misguided.
The physiological and pharmacological basis for the ergogenic effects of androgens in elite sports.
Choong K, Lakshman KM, Bhasin S.
Boston University School of Medicine, Section of Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Nutrition, Boston Medical Center, Boston, MA 02118, USA.
Androgen doping in power sports is undeniably rampant worldwide. There is strong evidence that androgen administration in men increases skeletal muscle mass, maximal voluntary strength and muscle power. However, we do not have good experimental evidence to support the presumption that androgen administration improves physical function or athletic performance. Androgens do not increase specific force or whole body endurance measures. The anabolic effects of testosterone on the skeletal muscle are mediated through androgen receptor signaling. Testosterone promotes myogenic differentiation of multipotent mesenchymal stem cells and inhibits their differentiation into the adipogenic lineage. Testosterone binding to androgen receptor induces a conformational change in androgen receptor protein, causing it to associate with beta-catenin and TCF-4 and activate downstream Wnt target genes thus promoting myogenic differentiation. The adverse effects of androgens among athletes and recreational bodybuilders are under reported and include acne, deleterious changes in the cardiovascular risk factors, including a marked decrease in plasma high-density lipoproteins (HDL) cholesterol level, suppression of spermatogenesis resulting in infertility, increase in liver enzymes, hepatic neoplasms, mood and behavioral disturbances, and long term suppression of the endogenous hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis. Androgens are often used in combination with other drugs which may have serious adverse events of their own. In spite of effective methods for detecting androgen doping, the policies for screening of athletes are highly variable in different countries and organizations and even existing policies are not uniformly enforced.
Pharmacology of anabolic steroids
A T Kicman
April 2008, King's College London, Drug Control Centre, Department of Forensic Science and Drug Monitoring, London, UK
Athletes and bodybuilders have recognized for several decades that the use of anabolic steroids can promote muscle growth and strength but it is only relatively recently that these agents are being revisited for clinical purposes. Anabolic steroids are being considered for the treatment of cachexia associated with chronic disease states, and to address loss of muscle mass in the elderly, but nevertheless their efficacy still needs to be demonstrated in terms of improved physical function and quality of life. In sport, these agents are performance enhancers, this being particularly apparent in women, although there is a high risk of virilization despite the favourable myotrophic–androgenic dissociation that many xenobiotic steroids confer. Modulation of androgen receptor expression appears to be key to partial dissociation, with consideration of both intracellular steroid metabolism and the topology of the bound androgen receptor interacting with co-activators. An anticatabolic effect, by interfering with glucocorticoid receptor expression, remains an attractive hypothesis. Behavioural changes by non-genomic and genomic pathways probably help motivate training. Anabolic steroids continue to be the most common adverse finding in sport and, although apparently rare, designer steroids have been synthesized in an attempt to circumvent the dope test. Doping with anabolic steroids can result in damage to health, as recorded meticulously in the former German Democratic Republic. Even so, it is important not to exaggerate the medical risks associated with their administration for sporting or bodybuilding purposes but to emphasize to users that an attitude of personal invulnerability to their adverse effects is certainly misguided.
PubMed
Developed by the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) at the National Library of Medicine (NLM), located at the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Publishers participating in PubMed electronically submit their citations to NCBI prior to or at the time of publication. If the publisher has a web site that offers full-text of its journals, PubMed provides links to that site as well as biological resources, consumer health information, research tools, and more. There may be a charge to access the text or information but the vast amount of clincal research available is well worth it.
Anabolic Steroids In Sport And Exercise
By Charles E. Yesalis (2000)
Charles Yesalis is a professor of health policy, administration, exercise and sports science at Penn State. His book is a collection of articles that examine anabolic-androgenic steroids, their effects and long-term medical prognosis of use. This academic book will appeal to serious AAS researchers. Yesalis offers the research findings and opinions of steroid advocates and detractors in an unbiased scientific document. The book includes chapters on drug testing, analysis of performance, health implications and the legal aspects of steroid possession and distribution; as well as a comprehensive history of steroid use in sports and exercise.
Anabolic Steroids & The Athlete
By William N. Taylor (2002)
William Taylor carefully explores the chemistry and physiology of testosterone and its derivatives. This text is well researched and scientifically reliable. Read it once to gain knowledge; read it twice with a highlighter.
Current concepts in anabolic-androgenic steroids
By Nick A. Evans (2004)
The muscle-building effects of anabolic-androgenic steroids have been questioned for decades. Nick Evans shows recent scientific investigations into supraphysiologic doses that supports the efficacy of these regimens. Testosterone has potent anabolic effects on the musculoskeletal system. For athletes requiring speed and strength and men desiring a cosmetic muscle makeover, illegal steroids are a powerful lure, despite the risk of subjective side effects. Recent clinical studies have discovered novel therapeutic uses for physiologic doses of AAS, without any significant adverse effects in the short term.
A league of their own: demographics, motivations and patterns of use of 1,955 male adult non-medical anabolic steroid users in the United States
By Jason Cohen, Rick Collins, Jack Darkes and Daniel Gwartney (2007)
A survey of 1,995 men provides a comprehensive profile of non-medical anabolic-androgenic steroid users around the United States. The typical user was a highly-educated and gainfully employed, earning an above-average income. He was not active in organized sports; use was motivated by increases in skeletal muscle mass, strength, and physical attractiveness. The survey breaks several myths about the typical steroid-user.
Anabolics, 9th Edition
By William Llewellyn (2008)
William Llewellyn, is a world-renowned authority on pharmaceutical ergogenics and their effects on muscular performance. He is an accomplished research scientist, author, publisher, inventor and columnist. Llewellyn’s frequently updated AAS reference book is commonly regarded as a “must-have” by bodybuilders using performance enhancing drugs, or otherwise researching their use.
Pharmacology of anabolic steroids
A T Kicman
King's College London, Drug Control Centre, Department of Forensic Science and Drug Monitoring, London, UK
Athletes and bodybuilders have recognized for several decades that the use of anabolic steroids can promote muscle growth and strength but it is only relatively recently that these agents are being revisited for clinical purposes. Anabolic steroids are being considered for the treatment of cachexia associated with chronic disease states, and to address loss of muscle mass in the elderly, but nevertheless their efficacy still needs to be demonstrated in terms of improved physical function and quality of life. In sport, these agents are performance enhancers, this being particularly apparent in women, although there is a high risk of virilization despite the favourable myotrophic–androgenic dissociation that many xenobiotic steroids confer. Modulation of androgen receptor expression appears to be key to partial dissociation, with consideration of both intracellular steroid metabolism and the topology of the bound androgen receptor interacting with co-activators. An anticatabolic effect, by interfering with glucocorticoid receptor expression, remains an attractive hypothesis. Behavioural changes by non-genomic and genomic pathways probably help motivate training. Anabolic steroids continue to be the most common adverse finding in sport and, although apparently rare, designer steroids have been synthesized in an attempt to circumvent the dope test. Doping with anabolic steroids can result in damage to health, as recorded meticulously in the former German Democratic Republic. Even so, it is important not to exaggerate the medical risks associated with their administration for sporting or bodybuilding purposes but to emphasize to users that an attitude of personal invulnerability to their adverse effects is certainly misguided.
The physiological and pharmacological basis for the ergogenic effects of androgens in elite sports.
Choong K, Lakshman KM, Bhasin S.
Boston University School of Medicine, Section of Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Nutrition, Boston Medical Center, Boston, MA 02118, USA.
Androgen doping in power sports is undeniably rampant worldwide. There is strong evidence that androgen administration in men increases skeletal muscle mass, maximal voluntary strength and muscle power. However, we do not have good experimental evidence to support the presumption that androgen administration improves physical function or athletic performance. Androgens do not increase specific force or whole body endurance measures. The anabolic effects of testosterone on the skeletal muscle are mediated through androgen receptor signaling. Testosterone promotes myogenic differentiation of multipotent mesenchymal stem cells and inhibits their differentiation into the adipogenic lineage. Testosterone binding to androgen receptor induces a conformational change in androgen receptor protein, causing it to associate with beta-catenin and TCF-4 and activate downstream Wnt target genes thus promoting myogenic differentiation. The adverse effects of androgens among athletes and recreational bodybuilders are under reported and include acne, deleterious changes in the cardiovascular risk factors, including a marked decrease in plasma high-density lipoproteins (HDL) cholesterol level, suppression of spermatogenesis resulting in infertility, increase in liver enzymes, hepatic neoplasms, mood and behavioral disturbances, and long term suppression of the endogenous hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis. Androgens are often used in combination with other drugs which may have serious adverse events of their own. In spite of effective methods for detecting androgen doping, the policies for screening of athletes are highly variable in different countries and organizations and even existing policies are not uniformly enforced.
Pharmacology of anabolic steroids
A T Kicman
April 2008, King's College London, Drug Control Centre, Department of Forensic Science and Drug Monitoring, London, UK
Athletes and bodybuilders have recognized for several decades that the use of anabolic steroids can promote muscle growth and strength but it is only relatively recently that these agents are being revisited for clinical purposes. Anabolic steroids are being considered for the treatment of cachexia associated with chronic disease states, and to address loss of muscle mass in the elderly, but nevertheless their efficacy still needs to be demonstrated in terms of improved physical function and quality of life. In sport, these agents are performance enhancers, this being particularly apparent in women, although there is a high risk of virilization despite the favourable myotrophic–androgenic dissociation that many xenobiotic steroids confer. Modulation of androgen receptor expression appears to be key to partial dissociation, with consideration of both intracellular steroid metabolism and the topology of the bound androgen receptor interacting with co-activators. An anticatabolic effect, by interfering with glucocorticoid receptor expression, remains an attractive hypothesis. Behavioural changes by non-genomic and genomic pathways probably help motivate training. Anabolic steroids continue to be the most common adverse finding in sport and, although apparently rare, designer steroids have been synthesized in an attempt to circumvent the dope test. Doping with anabolic steroids can result in damage to health, as recorded meticulously in the former German Democratic Republic. Even so, it is important not to exaggerate the medical risks associated with their administration for sporting or bodybuilding purposes but to emphasize to users that an attitude of personal invulnerability to their adverse effects is certainly misguided.
