There are two types of steroids, anabolic-androgenic—AAS and corticosteroids. Both are beneficial for treating some medical conditions. Corticosteroids fight inflammation. Anabolic-androgenic steroids help people with diseases that cause tissue wasting, such as cancer and AIDS. Anabolic androgenic are also considered performance-enhancing drugs. These drugs are synthetic testosterone. Their use comes with dangers that far outweigh their benefits when not used for medical reasons but to build muscle artificially and improve physical prowess.
Short-term use has immediate side effects.
When using AAS to build muscle or improve performance, even if it’s for a short time, side effects begin to develop. Acne, fatigue, mood swings, decreased appetite, agitation, sleep disorders, and impotence are a few. Localized infection can occur when injected. There is often a distinctive smell. Most people who use steroids do it to become bigger and look better. New studies show using steroids can lead to a mental condition called body dysphoria, which causes the person to continuously be unhappy about how they look and loss of self-esteem.
Long term use has lethal consequences.
If you’ve spent any time in a gym, you’ve probably heard or have seen someone with roid rage. It’s excessive anger or aggression over something minor. Long-term use can cause paranoia, delusions, stroke, heart attack, kidney failure, liver tumors, and sometimes infections affecting the whole body from injecting the drug. It can cause men’s testicles to shrink, increase breast tissue in men, erectile dysfunction, baldness, and fertility issues in men. It causes excessive hair growth, decreased breast size, baldness, a deeper voice, fertility issues, and irregular menstrual cycles in women.
It’s difficult to quit using steroids once you start.
As with everything with the body and building muscle, each person has a different experience. Some people may not experience any side effects, while others may experience all of them, including lethal side effects. Some of the side effects can be reversed. Some are difficult to reverse, including low libido and erectile dysfunction. It may take up to a year. Some risks are permanent. It’s not worth the risk to play Russian roulette with your health when you can build naturally.
- Approximately 30% of people taking AAS will develop a dependency syndrome. About 65% of the people who quit AAS will start retaking them within a year.
- Men’s testicles shrink because the increased testosterone in the body signals they’re no longer necessary to produce testosterone.
- One study of 245 men followed three groups of people. One group was presently using AAS, one group had quit, and the third group never used them. The group using and who previously used had 25-29% higher self-reported mental issues like depression compared to the 6% of the never-users.
- Even though it’s slower, you’ll feel better, have better health, and get the satisfaction of knowing you accomplished it with your hard work.
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