What are Oral Steroids?

Oral steroids are synthetic drugs used as testosterone replacement therapy in males with low testosterone levels. The testosterone replacement therapy causes growth and development of male sexual organs and also contributes to muscle mass growth. The general purpose of oral steroids is to increase muscle mass and enhance physical performance. Despite the fact that all the steroids are used for similar purposes, they are different in terms of traits, benefits, doses, duration of action, side effects and others. It is important to note that the most common concern with oral steroids is the suppression of endogenous testosterone (natural production of hormone by the body). Most of the possible side effects with oral steroids are dose dependent, therefore these may be controlled by properly managing the dose.

Possible side effects with oral steroids

As already mentioned, one of the most common concerns with oral steroids is the suppression of the endogenous testosterone; even so, it is not the biggest trouble. While oral steroids provide good results in terms of muscle mass growth, these are not the safest steroids due to the fact that are toxic and may cause liver damage. Even if it is toxic to the liver, some research reports often exaggerate the real effect of oral steroids to the liver. Further, it should be noted that liver possesses remarkable healing capabilities; therefore, by diminishing the dose and the interval between them, one may notice improvement in the liver function. Other measure of precaution is to diminish the length of using oral steroids. Overall, it is indicated a short period of administration; however, if the steroid is mild, the period may be extended.

Benefits of oral steroids

Oral steroids are known for providing good results in a short period of time, therefore they are quite popular among athletes who wish to improve their overall physical appearance and enhance physical performance before competitions. The benefits of using oral steroids may be considered the following:

·        They increase the muscle mass and enhance physical performance in a relatively short period of time;

·        Oral steroids are easy to administer and are well tolerated by most users, even women. Women should use oral steroids only in low dosage in order to avoid strong virilizing effects. Overall, oral steroids are a better choice for women rather than injectable steroids.

The most popular oral steroids

There are numerous oral steroids, however, we will discuss the most popular oral steroids used by the athletes before competitions:

·        Oxymetholone (Anadrol);

·        Methandrostenolone (Dianabol);

·        Methenolone (Primobolan);

·        Oxandrolone (Anavar);

·        Fluoxymesterone (Halotestin);

·        Stanozolol (Winstrol).

Even if these are much less than injectable steroids, they encompass all the traits most athletes will ever use.

What else should you know about oral steroids?

Besides all that has been mentioned about oral steroids, there are still some things one needs to know before starting to use them.

·        Considering the fact that oral steroids carry a much shorter half-life than most of the injectable steroids, they have to be used daily. While the daily administration with injectable steroids may be a problem, there is no such concern with oral steroids.

·        It is important to set the right dose considering the expected results and the existent medical condition.

·        Despite the benefits of using oral steroids, these are contraindicated in males with diabetes since it has the ability to increase the blood glucose level.