Side effects of steroids: myth or truth?

Side effects of steroids: myth or truth?

Bodybuilding has become a cult among modern youth - today it is fashionable to be an athlete and have a beautiful, pumped-up figure. However, for this you need to train hard and eat right, and the result will still not be instantaneous - many simply quit training halfway, unable to withstand the strict regime. You can actually achieve what you want much faster if you take steroids - special preparations of animal or plant origin, one of the most important effects of which is called the rapid growth of bones and muscle mass. Despite the fact that many athletes use them, you can hear a lot of bad things about these drugs. Where is the truth?

What are steroids criticized for?

Undoubtedly, steroid substances are really capable of pushing a person to real feats and making him visually more masculine in a short time, however, doctors, as a rule, point to steroid side effects, and are quite numerous. Immediately, we note that the list below cannot apply a priori to all steroids at once - it would be more correct to say that each drug has its own set of side effects. In the same way, they can have completely different degrees of severity, and in some cases, the steroid itself is not so much dangerous as a combination of two drugs or their increased dosages, taken for an even faster effect. If we consider side effects without reference to the likelihood of occurrence, then usually doctors indicate the following risk factors:

• an increased load on the liver and kidneys, due to the need to excrete a large amount of extraneous "chemistry", quickly results in liver failure and other problems with these organs;
• people with a tendency to acne will definitely face the symptom after taking steroids;
• since steroids largely replace the functions of hormones (especially male), the body eventually gets used to the fact that it does not need to produce the same testosterone on its own - therefore, if the drug is abandoned, there is a sharp decrease in libido and sexual functions;
• hormonal disorders can have the opposite effect, destroying the formed muscles and provoking obesity;
• long-term use of steroids affects the state of the nervous system, increasing the risk of developing manic-depressive states, as well as upsetting emotional and cognitive functions, provoking rage or mental instability;
• the likelihood of developing chronic ailments, especially of the circulatory system, as well as cancer, increases.

The legality of steroid use

From the point of view of international sports organizations, steroids are doping, that is, their use is contrary to the spirit of fair play and does not paint a professional. A participant in any official tournament caught using illegal drugs is most often disqualified, and even deprived of previously won awards and titles.

Moreover, the phrase legal steroids in most countries of the world can be considered an oxymoron. Pharmacies sometimes come across drugs called "legal steroids", but this is nothing more than an advertising gimmick, and such a substance is not a steroid in the literal sense of the word - rather, it is a dietary supplement with minimal effect. In many ways, the criticism of steroid use by doctors is caused precisely by the fact that athletes take substances of dubious origin and content without appropriate medical supervision.