Hormonal
Self-administration of polydrug androgenic-anabolic steroid (AAS) regimens for 8-14 weeks significantly decreases HDL-C, HDL2-C, HDL3-C, and Apo-A1, while increasing Apo-B, creating a highly atherogenic lipid profile.
Using multiple anabolic steroids at high doses significantly worsens your cholesterol profile by lowering 'good' cholesterol (HDL) and raising 'bad' markers (Apo-B). This effect is not subtle; it creates a high-risk state for heart disease that does not immediately resolve after you stop using the drugs, especially if you use them for longer periods (14 weeks vs 8 weeks).
AAS administration led to decreases in serum concentrations of HDL-C (from 1.08 (0.30) to 0.43 (0.22) mmol/l), HDL2-C (from 0.21 (0.18) to 0.05 (0.03) mmol/l), HDL3-C (from 0.87 (0.24) to 0.40 (0.20) mmol/l, and Apo-A1 (from 1.41 (0.27) to 0.71 (0.34) g/l), whereas Apo-B increased from 0.96 (0.13) to 1.32 (0.28) g/l.
Why this rating
Study 1 is a prospective, non-blinded investigation with a control group, but lacks randomization and blinding, introducing potential bias.
Source
Effects of androgenic-anabolic steroids on apolipoproteins and lipoprotein (a)
Fred Hartgens et al. · British Journal of Sports Medicine · 2004
DOI 10.1136/bjsm.2003.000199
More from this paper
- Androgenic-anabolic steroid administration significantly lowers serum Lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] concentrations, which may have a beneficial effect on cardiovascular risk, although this benefit is offset by the adverse effects on other lipids.Good
- Recovery of adverse lipid profiles (HDL, Apo-A1, Lp(a)) after stopping AAS use is prolonged and depends on the duration of prior AAS use, with 14 weeks of use leading to slower normalization than 8 weeks.Good
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