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AAS increase muscle size, the heart is a muscle......
Check this out.
Quotes from article by John Stamatopoulos
FACT 1! A group of bodybuilders who used steroids were compared to bodybuilders who had never used steroids. The men's hearts were examined using echocardiography, (a type of sonar picture that allows doctors to see the heart without having to use any invasive procedures). They found that during steroid cycles the users had left ventricles (the main pumping chamber of the heart) that were 25% greater in mass than the non-users! This increas in mass caused the walls of the steroid user's heart muscle to be almost 20% thicker while on steroids! Although the heart was bigger during active steroid use, the cardiovascular fitness of these individuals was nearly 18% less than non-users. When the steroid users were off the steroids, their heart size decreased, but never fully returned to its normal size!(1,2) Now, if some of you think that it was just a "coincidence" and nothing more, read very carefully the second fact.
FACT 2! A study published in the journal "Cardiology" (1997;88:50-51), offered a unique perspective of the effects of long term anabolic steroid usage and heart function. The study was unique because it involved fraternal twin bodybuilders, one of whom has used steroids for 15 years, while the other was drug free. Both of these men had trained for over 20 years. They were described in the study as "extremely large with profound muscular hypertrophy". They had won several state and national titles in bodybuilding and powerlifting. The twins had bodyfat levels below 10 percent, and followed the same diet and training regime on a yearly basis. The primary test to access their cardiac function was echocardiography. (As I previously said, it's a machine that uses reflected ultra sonic waves to show the structure and function of the heart.)
Both men showed normal blood pressure readings. The drug-free twin showed a testosterone level of 6.2 nanongrams per mililiter of blood, and the steroid twin had a higher than normal level of 11.5 ng/ml! (The normal range for testosterone is 2.8-8.8, and as you can easily understand, the steroid twin had testosterone levels almost 3 times the high normal level) The echocardiography tests showed that both men, with similar genetic backrounds and the same training and diet regimes, showed little difference in gross heart function. However, the steroid user showed a LARGER left ventricular wall size with a decreased ventricular compliance. (That means that the pumping chamber of his heart was LARGER than his brother's, while also being a bit stiffer!)
The heart stiffness that occurs in steroid-using bodybuilders is thought to be brought on by an increased sensitivity of heart muscle to catacholamines, such as epinephrine, induced by steroids. And guess what friends, this scenario may have played a role in the sudden deaths due to heart failure that have occured in a small percentage of regular steroid users.
References:
1. Melchert RB, Welder AA. Cardiovascular effects of androgenic-anabolic steroids. Med. Sci. Sports Exer., 1995:27:1252-1262
2. Sachtleben TR, et al. The effects of anabolic steroids on myocardial structure and cardiovascular fitness. Med. Sci. Sports Exer., 1992;25:1240-1245
Makes you think, but I am by no means saying that they are conclusive to the point of steroids = bad heart. As for one thing there is no mention of what drugs at what dosages, or that say the steroid bodybuilders could of had reduced CV fitness for a whole load of reasons - from their huge mass to not doing exercise for their CV.........
Still interesting, any comments?
Check this out.
Quotes from article by John Stamatopoulos
FACT 1! A group of bodybuilders who used steroids were compared to bodybuilders who had never used steroids. The men's hearts were examined using echocardiography, (a type of sonar picture that allows doctors to see the heart without having to use any invasive procedures). They found that during steroid cycles the users had left ventricles (the main pumping chamber of the heart) that were 25% greater in mass than the non-users! This increas in mass caused the walls of the steroid user's heart muscle to be almost 20% thicker while on steroids! Although the heart was bigger during active steroid use, the cardiovascular fitness of these individuals was nearly 18% less than non-users. When the steroid users were off the steroids, their heart size decreased, but never fully returned to its normal size!(1,2) Now, if some of you think that it was just a "coincidence" and nothing more, read very carefully the second fact.
FACT 2! A study published in the journal "Cardiology" (1997;88:50-51), offered a unique perspective of the effects of long term anabolic steroid usage and heart function. The study was unique because it involved fraternal twin bodybuilders, one of whom has used steroids for 15 years, while the other was drug free. Both of these men had trained for over 20 years. They were described in the study as "extremely large with profound muscular hypertrophy". They had won several state and national titles in bodybuilding and powerlifting. The twins had bodyfat levels below 10 percent, and followed the same diet and training regime on a yearly basis. The primary test to access their cardiac function was echocardiography. (As I previously said, it's a machine that uses reflected ultra sonic waves to show the structure and function of the heart.)
Both men showed normal blood pressure readings. The drug-free twin showed a testosterone level of 6.2 nanongrams per mililiter of blood, and the steroid twin had a higher than normal level of 11.5 ng/ml! (The normal range for testosterone is 2.8-8.8, and as you can easily understand, the steroid twin had testosterone levels almost 3 times the high normal level) The echocardiography tests showed that both men, with similar genetic backrounds and the same training and diet regimes, showed little difference in gross heart function. However, the steroid user showed a LARGER left ventricular wall size with a decreased ventricular compliance. (That means that the pumping chamber of his heart was LARGER than his brother's, while also being a bit stiffer!)
The heart stiffness that occurs in steroid-using bodybuilders is thought to be brought on by an increased sensitivity of heart muscle to catacholamines, such as epinephrine, induced by steroids. And guess what friends, this scenario may have played a role in the sudden deaths due to heart failure that have occured in a small percentage of regular steroid users.
References:
1. Melchert RB, Welder AA. Cardiovascular effects of androgenic-anabolic steroids. Med. Sci. Sports Exer., 1995:27:1252-1262
2. Sachtleben TR, et al. The effects of anabolic steroids on myocardial structure and cardiovascular fitness. Med. Sci. Sports Exer., 1992;25:1240-1245
Makes you think, but I am by no means saying that they are conclusive to the point of steroids = bad heart. As for one thing there is no mention of what drugs at what dosages, or that say the steroid bodybuilders could of had reduced CV fitness for a whole load of reasons - from their huge mass to not doing exercise for their CV.........
Still interesting, any comments?
