Steroids and Liver Toxicity Article
In case anyone is interested there is an article up at MindandMuscle.net on steroids and liver toxicity.
http://www.mindandmuscle.net/mindand...ID=37&artID=16 Just an fyi, I know very little about it and I also know that the responsible steroid users do what they can to protect their liver. But it looked like some useful info in the article. |
Another View
Have Doctors been Exaggerating the Effect of Steroids on Your Liver?
By Bryan Haycock, MS, CSCS Anabolic steroid-induced hepatotoxicity: is it overstated? Researchers: Dickerman RD, Pertusi RM, Zachariah NY, Dufour DR, McConathy WJ The Department of Biomedical Science, University of North Texas Health Science Center, Fort Worth 76107-2699, USA. Source: Clin J Sport Med 1999 Jan;9(1):34-9 Summary: Subjects: The participants were bodybuilders taking self-directed regimens of anabolic steroids (n = 15) and bodybuilders not taking steroids (n = 10). Blood chemistry profiles from patients with viral hepatitis (n = 49) and exercising and non-exercising medical students (592) were used as controls. Measurements: The focus of the blood chemistry profiles was on aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase (GGT), and creatine kinase (CK) levels. (All indicators of liver function.) Results: In both groups of bodybuilders, CK, AST, and ALT were elevated, whereas GGT remained in the normal range. In contrast, patients with hepatitis had elevations of all three enzymes: ALT, AST, and GGT. Creatine kinase (CK) was elevated in all exercising groups. Patients with hepatitis were the only group in which a correlation was found between aminotransferases and GGT. Discussion: All in all this study was pretty straight forward. It set out to see if markers other than aminotransferase (AST) of liver function were correlated with steroid use in bodybuilders. In this study we saw the comparison of blood samples from steroid using bodybuilders, non-steroid using bodybuilders, med students, and patients with hepatitis. Several indicators of liver function were measured wich included aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase (GGT), and creatine kinase (CK) levels. Creatine kinase is a common blood marker of muscle damage and thus it was elevated in those subjects who exercised. The other markers have normal values as well in healthy subjects (see table 1). I include a table of normal ranges for these markers simply to give you some idea of what your particular blood test results mean if you should have them done while on a cycle. And yes, if you are lucky enough to have a doctor who is willing to monitor your health knowing you are using anabolics please have your blood work done before, during, and after your cycles. Table 1. Test Reference Range (Conventional)/ Reference Range (International) Aspartate aminotransferase NA 10-30 U/L Alanine aminotransferase NA 8-20 U/L Gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase NA Male: 9-50 U/L Female: 8-40 U/L Creatine kinase Fraction 2 (MB)<4-6% of totalMale: 38-174 U/L Female: 26-140 U/L Fraction of total: 0.04-0.06 Please don’t misinterpret the reason for my inclusion of this study in Research Update. I am by no stretch of the imagination claiming that this study proves that 17-a-alkylated steroids are not hard on the liver. On the contrary, extremely high doses of 17-alkylated androgens taken for extended periods of time have been known to produce signs of hepatic adenomas, hepatocellular carcinomas, and hepatis-peliosis, all of which can be serious problems. The reason I felt this study warranted mention was that it showed that some researchers are working hard to delineate or clarify the true effects, and side effects, of anabolic steroid use in bodybuilders. In particular, R Dickerman and colleagues over at the Department of Biomedical Science, University of North Texas Health Science Center have recently done several studies investigating the effects of anabolic steroids on various aspects of physiology.
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depending on the oral used, the dose chosen and the duration of use will determine the impact to the liver... but IME, toxicity to the liver is overhyped.
when it comes to orals, there's a difference between USE and ABUSE |
So you agree with the article then.
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Orals are the ones that cause problems if you ask me. Use them in moderation and stick with injectibles.
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