Steroids and pre-mature aging

[TheUsual]

My gf keeps giving me **** about how she has heard/read that long term use of gear accelerates the aging process. I suppose it makes sense because the hormonal ups and downs caused by using do probably take a toll on the body's aging process, but I try to dismiss her fears with statements like "well look at arnold and the rest" but I know that doesn't really count because he is always plastered with an inch of makeup as are all the other older, famous bodybuilders.

So anyways, does anyone know of any studies either confirming or denying this side effect of long term use? (I'm sure one or 2 cycles has no noticable effect)

 

[Jarconis]

yeah, ya see all those 45 yr old guys who run gear...they sure look their age....

 

[TheUsual]

yeah, ya see all those 45 yr old guys who run gear...they sure look their age....

Actually I don't know if I've ever seen someone 30+ that runs gear, excluding TV/Magazines/Movies of course. And also I'm not talking physique, that I am sure looks great, but more facial/skin appearance. It is that that I am worried about

 

[Greenguy]

There ARE dangers, but they can be ameliorated with proper use and PCT.

Aromatizing gear is good for your skin. The Estrogen makes it softer and smoother. At least that is my experience with injectable 4ad.

The more potent non-aromatizing gear causes more acne and does not have the estrogen to soften the skin.

As long as you are keeping your blood pressure and cholesterol under control, your only real health concerns are prostate hypertrophy or cancer.

Oh, and abuse of methylated orals will **** up your liver.

The only other danger I can see is possible infection, and screwing up your HPTA permanently from improper PCT/time off. HCG (during cycle ala Dr. Swale) will go a long way toward making PC recovery easier.

Greenguy

 

[N4cer]

If I'm not mistaken, test lowers collagen synthesis, decreasing skin resilience, making the skin appear older.

 

[TheUsual]

If I'm not mistaken, test lowers collagen synthesis, decreasing skin resilience, making the skin appear older.

Ah, that would make sense. I'll reasearch a bit about this... I wonder (assuming this is true) if this is only occur while "on", allowing your skint to recover once PCT has started. I would assume so.

 

[COLOSSUS]

If I'm not mistaken, test lowers collagen synthesis, decreasing skin resilience, making the skin appear older.

Who cares if your skin does look old if your running 20 inch arms, 28 inch legs, 45 inch chest and a 30 inch waist. look at Lou ferrigno (sp?) He looks WAY younger than what he actually is. You guys sound like a bunch of women.

 

[Cogar]

If you consider the use of steroids in the sense that they are used for HRT, they remove or reverse some of the problems brought on by aging (sample article below). However, that is somewhat off topic for those who frequent this forum, since the doses used by most will be higher. My guess is that there will be a point where steroid use passes from being beneficial to being detrimental. We have all read stories of bodybuilders who have used large amounts for years and ended up dying at relatively early ages. Therefore, where you draw the line will determine to some extent the results regarding aging.

Effects of testosterone supplementation in the aging male.

Tenover Joyce S
Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism 75 ( 4 ): p 1092-1098 1992

Serum androgen levels decline with aging in normal males, such that a significant number of men over 60 yr of age will have a mean serum total testosterone (T) level near the low end of the normal adult range. It is not known whether lower T levels in older men have an effect on androgen-responsive organ systems, such as muscle, bone, bone marrow, and prostate, nor are there data to evaluate the relative benefits and risks of T supplementation in older men. We assessed the physiological and biochemical effects of T therapy in 13 healthy men, 57-76 yr old, who had low or borderline low serum T levels ( ltoreq 13.9 nmol/L). Intramuscular testosterone enanthate (TE; 100 mg weekly) and placebo injections were given for 3 months each. Before treatment and at the end of both 3-month treatment regimens, lean body mass, body fat, biochemical parameters of bone turnover, hematological parameters, lipoprotein profiles, and prostate parameters (such as prostate-specific antigen (PSA)) were evaluated. Serum T level rose in all subjects with TE treatment, such that the lowest level of T during a week's period was 19.7 +- 0.7 nmol/L (mean +- SE). After 3 months of TE treatment, lean body mass was significantly increased, and urinary ydroxyproline excretion was significantly depressed. With TE treatment, there was a significant increase in hematocrit, a decline in total cholesterol and low density lipoprotein cholesterol, and a sustained increase in serum PSA levels. Placebo treatment led to no significant changes in any of these parameters. We conclude that short term (3 months) TE supplementation to healthy older men who have serum T levels near or below the lower limit of normal for young adult men results in an increase in lean body mass and possibly a decline in bone resorption, as assessed by urinary hydroxyproline excretion, with some effect on serum lipoproteins, hematological parameters, and PSA. The sustained stimulation of PSA and the increase in hematocrit that occur with physiological TE supplementation suggest that older men should be screened carefully and followed periodically throughout T therapy.

 

[Cogar]

Proper replacement therapy by means of estrogens for the postmenopausal female and androgens for the aging male is often of great benefit, physically and emotionally.

Estrogen-androgen levels in aging men and women: therapeutic considerations.

Greenblatt RB, Oettinger M, Bohler CS
J Am Geriatr Soc 1976 Apr;24(4):173-8

The influence of aging on serum levels of gonadotropins (FSH and LH), testosterone and estradiol was studied in the following groups: 4 normal men (ages 30 to 50), 38 men with symptoms of the male climacteric (ages 51 to 84), 25 men with relative impotence (ages 31 to 50), 10 normal women (ages 24 to 31), and 6 menopausal women (ages 58 to 76). FSH and LH levels began to rise in men in their 40's, and the increase became more conspicuous in the later age decades. The degree of elevation was nowhere comparable to that observed in the aging women. In the male, the serum testosterone levels showed a progressive decrease from the fifth age decade onward, whereas in the female there was an increase after the menopause. Estradiol levels showed no significant change in the aged male, but they were somewhat higher than in the aged female. Exceptions to the low-testosterone and low-gonadotropin relationship were observed in individual cases and might be explained by relatively high estradiol values. Proper replacement therapy by means of estrogens for the postmenopausal female and androgens for the aging male is often of great benefit, physically and emotionally.