3J

Musclechemistry Member
Is there any evidence for the recommendation to not cycle too young?

This question gets asked by young new guys constantly and its about time we provided some real evidence to back up our stance on not cycling before you reach your mid 20s.
First lets look at the physiological impact aas has if you cycle too early...


"High-dose sex steroid treatment of boys does not affect their fatherhood or semen quality, as assessed after a mean follow-up of 21 years; however, serum testosterone levels are significantly reduced in androgen-treated tall men...
The treatment of tall stature is based on the understanding that exposure to gonadal steroids leads to epiphyseal fusion of the long bones during pubertal development."

"Leydig cell function was significantly affected by androgen treatment. In treated men, both serum testosterone and non-SHBG-bound testosterone levels were significantly reduced compared with untreated men. We hypothesize that the decreased T levels may be caused by reduced Leydig cell growth during puberty and suboptimal functioning of the Leydig cells in later life."


My interpretation

The group of guys in this study were treated back in the 60s & 70s with sustanon 250 for 1 1/2 years in order to stop them from getting too tall - this was seen as a bad thing back then.
They then did a follow up 21yrs later to see if there were any lasting side effects compared to base levels of untreated men.

The good news was that there was NO negative impact on fertility/sperm quality - this should calm those that fear that they wont be able to have children if they cycle. Although I should add that fertility issues to arise when women cycle but that's another post entirely.
The bad news is that serum T levels were SIGNIFICANTLY lowered for the guys treated with aas during their adolescence, it was still in the normal range but only just - the guys in this study will need to go on TRT at some point in their later years.
The study also shows that steroids are used to REDUCE height growth during puberty, this means that you can forget about getting any taller if you start cycling

The results are not conclusive, but do provide strong evidence for what most of the vets here already know -cycling too young increases the risk of needing TRT in the future because your interfering with your endocrine system before its finished developing.
It also shows that your growth plates will shut the minute you introduce endogenous hormones into your body - so if your still 5'7...
smile.gif


via mrripzilla
 
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nice write up, and i didnt start until i was in mid 20's, and i was done growing at 6'3 , at least i think i was done lol,
 
I probably started earlier then I should have mostly because I felt I needed to do so in order to compete in the training room. Wish I'd of waited a little longer but oh well. I also feel as if anyone who cycles steroids on a regular basis knows that they risk having to go on TRT one day regardless of when they start ?
 
Very good info. I wish more young guys would join forums and read stuff like this before making the decision to use AAS.
 
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