Yes, I am Grunt76. My email got hacked some years ago, and someone used my hacked email to get into my forum accounts, even using my good name and reputation to scam people. So now I'm using Grunt7684. I had other handles before Grunt76, and my presence on this board goes back to 1996 or so, if memory serves. But disagreements with Bobo made sure I had to change handles...
That being said, I don't think IGF-1 in general is responsible for my health issues. However, at some point, I was sold by a renowned source something he called "Receptor-grade" IGF-1, and this stuff didn't provide any of the effects of IGF-1. After using that ****, going back to normal IGF-1 didn't provide any results at all either, even using stuff I knew was really good. It's like that stuff broke my insulin or IGF receptors. Or both. I suspect it was the much feared IGF-1 receptor binder that someone (I forget whom) had written an article about, saying it should be avoided at all costs. After that, all the problems associated with insulin resistance started cropping up.
If any of you go back that long, you may recall (or dig out of past threads, if you are that dedicated, LOL) that I used IGF long before any AAS. As a matter of fact, I was AAS-free when this problem hit. But with the effects of insulin resistance (fat gain, mostly), I simply couldn't do it as a "natural" anymore. AAS helped me very much, obviously, especially that after 14 years of natural (and "natural", using only IGF for assistance) training, my body was so primed for them. Anyway, long story short, I used AAS as a great stopgap measure, keeping me in shape for a few years until the insulin resistance turned into type 2 diabetes. To top it off, my incompetent doctor didn't see my diabetes on my blood tests, even with glycaemia readings 2, 3 times above normal, for a year or more. This did a lot of damage to me that I am still feeling today. That includes the cancer, whose incidence in diabetics is much, much higher than in the non-diabetic populations. I might write an e-book about the biology of cancer and its relation to diabetes sometime, if I have the energy for it. Doctors don't understand any of it, they just know that "the incidence of cancer among diabetics is higher". That's really not much understanding, and requires shedding light on.
I am currently writing an e-book about the biology of type 2 diabetes and all the extremely useful information that doctors do not know about, and that's not just details. There are crucial things doctors aren't trained to know and acknowledge about this disease that are a game-changer. There are also major implications for bodybuilders and any users of pharmaceutical products, and finally, the e-book explains exactly why there is an epidemic of "diabesity" in America, and it has to do with much more than being lazy, although of course, what people eat is hugely important in there, if not exactly the way we bodybuilders think about it.
You know what the funny thing is? I've been nearly 4 years out of the gym now, and when I fall asleep at night, in that state just between being awake and dreaming, I still see myself in a gym doing squats, or chin-ups, or bent-over rows... When bodybuilding is part of you, it looks like, well, it never leaves. I miss it. I'm writing that e-book for all of you guys, trying to do what I can to spread the important information that may help some people falling into the same kind of trouble that happened to me.
Do you ever wonder why some people are members on these forums for a number of years, and then disappear? They "move on" from bodybuilding. Yet, if you are any good at it, you must wonder... Why would anyone ever move on? It's healthy and it feels great. I think health troubles hit a hella lot of people around bodybuilding circles, just like other people, and eventually they don't have the energy or the drive to keep going, even though they would like to. It certainly is my case, and I know I'm not alone.
Bottom line, I suggest that everyone here be very careful what you put into your body. I knew IGF-1 LR3 was safe, and I still know that. However, what you get sold as "IGF-1" could be anything, especially these days. And that goes for absolutely everything, including AAS and supplements. My advice is, don't hunt for bargains, hunt for quality. Because once your health is gone, it can be really hard to get it back.