By: Ryan Mclane

I have decided to write an article on a subject that a lot of teens seem to be ignorant on. Steroids. Every teen has heard of steroids, and they have heard that they shrink your balls and make you grow boobs, and what not. How much of that is true? You are about to find out in this article. I have to be honest. I was as ignorant as those people were about steroids, before I started doing research for this article. A lot has changed now.

What Are Steroids?

What are steroids, you ask? Well, why don't I give you a dictionary definition first? From the Merriam Webster Dictionary:
Steroid- (n) Any of numerous compounds including various Hormones (as anabolic steroids) and sugar derivatives.

Okay, so you have the dictionary definition for it. What it is basically saying is that a steroid is any pill or substance that you put into your body that contains hormones or sugar derivatives. I think I just repeated what the definition said, so you shouldn't have had much difficulty understanding it.

The national institute on drug abuse states: "'Anabolic steroids' is the familiar name for synthetic substances related to the male sex hormones (androgens). They promote the growth of skeletal muscle (anabolic effects) and the development of male sexual characteristics (androgenic effects), and also have some other effects. The proper term for these compounds is "anabolic-androgenic" steroids."

Anabolic steroids were made in the 1930's mainly to treat hypogonadism, a condition in which the testes (balls- you probably already knew that) do not produce sufficient testosterone for normal growth, development, and sexual functioning. The main medical uses of these compounds are to treat delayed puberty (You aren't hitting puberty fast enough, so they give you some roids), some types of impotence (You're shooting blanks), and wasting of the body caused by HIV infection or other diseases.

During the 1930s, scientists discovered that anabolic steroids could make the growth of skeletal muscle easier in laboratory animals, which led to use of the compounds first by bodybuilders and weightlifters and then by athletes in other sports. Steroid abuse has become so widespread in athletics that it affects the outcome of sports contests. Sources: http://www.nida.nih.gov/
http://www.steroidinformation.com

What are the Side Effects of Taking Steroids?

Skin Changes
Steroids have a side effect on the skin that looks terrible.

1. You could get stretch marks on the skin in which the muscles grew under.
2. You could get acne all over your body, I have seen a picture of an acne victim that uses steroids, and it was all over his back. If you don't have acne, it can start, and if you already have acne, it just gets worse. A LOT worse.
3. Your pores could get larger, giving you rougher skin. This is bad for women, because their skin is usually smooth.

Mental Changes
Steroids cause you to go into an aggressive mode, called "Roid Rage", and it is very hard on your life. In fact, Bertil Fox tried to convince Britain's courts that the reason he killed Leyoca and Violete Brown because of the anabolic steroids he was on. They also can cause depression, because when you stop taking steroids, the effects don't last (at least the good ones), leaving many people depressed because of their decision.

Reverse Sex Changes
This is when women become manly, and men become feminine. We'll start with feminization. Too much testosterone causes the body to turn it into estrogen, giving you big boobs, called gynecomastia. It also causes you to have an increase in fatty deposits, and you get soft muscles. This usually happens after you stop cycling with steroids, while your androgen level is down. An estrogen called Estradiol causes a low production of testosterone, and therefore you don't produce as much sperm. You can actually fight these side effects. Before I started researching this article, I didn't realize that there were anti-estrogens, like novaldex, Proviron, Fludestrin, and Teslac that can help stop feminization. I have also learned that these symptoms go away with time-they aren't permanent.

Masculinization is the problem with females taking steroids. Virilization is the most common side effect, although women can get increased body and facial hair, called hirsutism. Along with those comes voice-deepening, enlargement of the clitoris, acne, increased sex drive, hair thinning, baldness, aggression and depression, and changes in the skin texture. Using high testosterone products usually causes these symptoms, so girls don't take steroids, because the results aren't pretty. The same goes for guys. I wouldn't want to be shooting blanks and then have to take anti-estrogen pills, but the side effects seem far worse for women.

Heart Disease
The use of steroids causes your cholesterol level to raise, and it causes thickening of artery walls. You may also be at risk if you have stress, high blood pressure, or weight gaining. If you stop cycling your steroids, the side effects go away. Steroids also stunt your growth, and I don't need to write a paragraph about it.

Steroids cause Headaches
Steroids cause headaches because they alter your endocrine system because of the imbalance of your hormones. To treat these, Advil, Tylenol, Aleve, or any headache medicine will do. I'm not going to spend long talking about it; you've seen a thousand of these commercials on TV.

Kidney Problems
Steroids can have an effect on your kidneys. Most any drug affects your kidneys because your kidneys' main job is to filter toxic byproducts, and then excrete the byproducts. Whenever you take drugs, your kidneys have more stress acting upon them. Some symptoms of kidney disorders are edema, low back pain, renal colic, fever, kidney enlargement, or swelling of the costavertebral region.

Immune system side effects
This is probably one of the only side effects that can lead to an advantage if the proper precautions are necessary. Steroids greatly strengthen your immune system making it easier to recover and prevent illness. The only way to use this to an advantage would be to not let yourself get tired out, because that makes you dependent on your immune system. The bad side effect to this is, once you stop taking steroids, you get run down (tired out), and you get pretty sick. So, like most good things, they only last a while.

Liver Problems
Steroids use can affect your liver. Some side effects can be life threatening, but they are rare. Still, they can happen. Milk thistle seed is said to help the liver. Take this in large doses.

Impotence
Ouch! No guy likes this one. When you (a man, of course) start to take steroids, you get an increase in sexual functions. When you start to take steroids regularly, your body gets used to this and you don't really feel, well, like a guy anymore. You can't get an erection, and you lose your sexual desire.

Stomachaches and high blood pressure also occur with steroid use. You should regularly have your blood pressure checked when you go to a doctor anyway, there aren't really any symptoms. Stomachaches can be caught early if you find yourself nauseated, you have diarrhea, or you start vomiting. These can be treated with your basic stomachache medicines.

Water and Salt Retention
Steroids cause a water and electrolyte storage in your muscles, making them bigger and improving your strength. They also retain water and salt in your skin and blood. This causes extra strain on the heart. Taking diuretics can treat the retention.

Now that you know all the side effects, the choice is your. I do not encourage the use of anabolic steroids, so if you want them, find out which one you want to take on your own. If you are determined to take them, I have heard (Heard, so this might not be 100% accurate) that Deca-Durabolin has the least amount of side effects. There are alternatives, like steroidal supplements, or prohormones. Big Cat wrote an excellent article on prohormones. All the info you ever need.

Thanks, I hope it helped!

Ryan Mclane

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