Be aware !! Plz Check This Link.. 16 April 2009
Anabolic Research Update:
By William Llewellyn
Counterfeit Analysis Report 16 April 2009
This month, I’d like to take another look at the quality of anabolic steroid products and ancillary drugs on the black market. As anyone who studies the illicit anabolic steroid trade knows, high demand and huge profits offer strong incentive for the manufacture of counterfeit drugs. Over the years, this segment of the illegal business has grown exponentially. What was once a problem largely isolated to the United States, counterfeit steroids can now be found in literally every corner of the globe. Counterfeiting is a phenomenon not isolated to anabolic steroids, of course, and is commonly seen when the significant sales of anything valuable are diverted from legitimate to underground sources. Given the nature of drug products, however, the counterfeit steroid phenomenon is an especially important health concern to drug-using bodybuilders. As the number of these products grows, so too does the number of reports of low or no product efficacy, or worse— health consequences including abscess, infection, anaphylaxis and heavy metal contamination.
Whenever analysis studies come along that offer us a small cross-sectional view of what is being actively traded (and consumed) on the black market, I always like to report on them. This month, we have the opportunity to review a particular good report from Germany. It covers the analysis of 70 different anabolic steroids and ancillary drug products at the Center for Preventative Doping Research in Cologne. All of the samples analyzed in this report were obtained during police raids of three illegal dealers of anabolic steroids. While this is not a set of tests from the United States (where most readers of this column reside), I believe the results are still very relevant, especially when you consider that Western Europe is known for less stringent controls and the greater availability of legitimate steroid drugs than the United States. In other words, the results should have been at least as bad had they been conducted in the United States.
The Results
Included in this article are the results of the study separated by drug type. I felt upon review that it allowed a somewhat interesting view of the “relative confidence” one could have for a particular type of steroid or drug, at least according to the numbers in this small report. It is important to emphasize that while a fairly large sample for this type of analysis, 70 drug products taken from three dealers is not sufficient to prove any specific market trend, overall counterfeit prevalence or brand legitimacy. Still, as we find in the results, counterfeiting is still very much alive and well and is an issue Germans have to deal with just as do Americans
Anadrol (oxymetholone):
1. Oxytone 50mg (SB Labs, Thailand) Result: PASS
2. Oxytone 50mg (SB Labs, Thailand) Result: PASS
3. Oxytone 50mg (SB Labs, Thailand) Result: PASS
Deca (nandrolone decanoate):
1. Norma Hellas (100mg/mL) Result: FAIL (testosterone)
2. Norma Hellas (100mg/mL) Result: FAIL (testosterone)
3. Norma Hellas (100mg/mL) Result: FAIL (testosterone)
4. Norma Hellas (100mg/mL) Result: FAIL (testosterone)
5. Decabol 250 (British Dragon, Underground) Result: FAIL (testosterone)
Dianabol (methandrostenolone):
1. Anabol 5mg (British Dispensary, Thailand) Result: FAIL (methyltestosterone)
2. Anabol 5mg (British Dispensary, Thailand) Result: PASS
3. Anabol 5mg (British Dispensary, Thailand) Result: PASS
4. Danabol DS 10mg (March, Thailand) Result: PASS
5. Danabol DS 10mg (March, Thailand) Result: PASS
6. Naposim 5mg (Terapia, Romania) Result: FAIL (methyltestosterone)
Equipoise (boldenone undecylenate):
1. Boldabol 200 (British Dragon, Underground) Result: PASS
Halotestin (fluoxymesterone):
1. Fluoxymesterone (IP, Underground) Result: PASS
Primobolan (methenolone enanthate):
1. Primobol 100 (British Dragon, Underground) Result: FAIL (nandrolone, testosterone)
Proviron (mesterolone):
1. Proviron 25mg Result: PASS
Sustanon 250 (testosterone mix):
1. Sustanon 250 (Karachi, Pakistan) Result: PASS
2. Sustanon 250 (Nile, Egypt) Result: FAIL (different testosterones)
3. Sustanon 250 (Nile, Egypt) Result: FAIL (different testosterones)
4. Sustanon 250 (Karachi, Pakistan) Result: PASS
5. Sustanon 250 (Karachi, Pakistan) Result: PASS
6. Sustanon 250 (Karachi, Pakistan) Result: PASS
7. Sustanon 250 (Karachi, Pakistan) Result: PASS
8. Sustanon 250 (Karachi, Pakistan) Result: PASS
9. Sustanon 250 (Karachi, Pakistan) Result: PASS
Testosterone Cypionate:
1. Testex Prolongatum 125 (Q Pharma, Spain) Result: PASS
2. Testabol 200 (British Dragon, Underground) Result: FAIL (different testosterones)
Testosterone Enanthate:
1. Testofort 250mg/mL (Pliva, Pakistan) Result: PASS
2. Testosterone Depot 250 (Eifelfango, Germany) Result: PASS
3. Testosterone Depot 250 (Eifelfango, Germany) Result: PASS
4. Testoviron Depot 250 (Medipharm, Pakistan) Result: PASS
5. Testoviron Depot 250 (Medipharm, Pakistan) Result: PASS
6. Cidoteston 250 (CID, Egypt) Result: FAIL (includes T. cypionate)
7. Cidoteston 250 (CID, Egypt) Result: PASS
Testosterone Propionate:
1. Testovis 100mg/mL (SIT, Italy) Result: PASS
2. Testovis 100mg/mL (SIT, Italy) Result: PASS
3. Testovis 100mg/mL (SIT, Italy) Result: PASS
4. Testovis 100mg/mL (SIT, Italy) Result: PASS
5. Testovis 100mg/mL (SIT, Italy) Result: PASS
6. Testabol (British Dragon, Underground) Result: FAIL (different testosterones)
Trenbolone (various esters):
1. Trenabol 75 (British Dragon, Underground) Result: FAIL (boldenone, testosterone)
2. Trenabol 100 (British Dragon, Underground) Result: FAIL (boldenone, testosterone)
3. Tri-Trenabol 150 (British Dragon, Underground) Result: FAIL (trenbolone, testosterone)
4. Trenabol 200 (British Dragon, Underground) Result: FAIL (trenbolone, testosterone)
Winstrol (stanozolol):
1. Winstrol Depot 50mg/mL (Zambon, Spain) Result: PASS
2. Winstrol Depot 50mg/mL (Zambon, Spain) Result: PASS
3. Winstrol Depot 50mg/mL (Zambon, Spain) Result: PASS
4. Stanabol 50 (British Dragon, Underground) Result: PASS
Underground Steroid Products
Of the 10 samples of British Dragon (BD) products taken from one dealer, only two were shown to contain the labeled ingredients upon analysis. None of the samples, however, were shown to be devoid of steroid ingredients. Instead, there appeared to be a trend of substituting expensive ingredients for less costly ones. For example, all of the trenbolone products failed the testing, usually because they contained a base of testosterone instead of trenbolone. Since these all originated from one dealer and BD has been the subject of much recent counterfeiting and internal instability, it is impossible to determine if these had originated from the actual manufacturer. IP (international Pharmaceuticals) is the only other company identified as an underground operation during this testing and only their fluoxymesterone steroid was analyzed. It contained the properly labeled ingredient.
Anabolic Research Update:
By William Llewellyn
Counterfeit Analysis Report 16 April 2009
This month, I’d like to take another look at the quality of anabolic steroid products and ancillary drugs on the black market. As anyone who studies the illicit anabolic steroid trade knows, high demand and huge profits offer strong incentive for the manufacture of counterfeit drugs. Over the years, this segment of the illegal business has grown exponentially. What was once a problem largely isolated to the United States, counterfeit steroids can now be found in literally every corner of the globe. Counterfeiting is a phenomenon not isolated to anabolic steroids, of course, and is commonly seen when the significant sales of anything valuable are diverted from legitimate to underground sources. Given the nature of drug products, however, the counterfeit steroid phenomenon is an especially important health concern to drug-using bodybuilders. As the number of these products grows, so too does the number of reports of low or no product efficacy, or worse— health consequences including abscess, infection, anaphylaxis and heavy metal contamination.
Whenever analysis studies come along that offer us a small cross-sectional view of what is being actively traded (and consumed) on the black market, I always like to report on them. This month, we have the opportunity to review a particular good report from Germany. It covers the analysis of 70 different anabolic steroids and ancillary drug products at the Center for Preventative Doping Research in Cologne. All of the samples analyzed in this report were obtained during police raids of three illegal dealers of anabolic steroids. While this is not a set of tests from the United States (where most readers of this column reside), I believe the results are still very relevant, especially when you consider that Western Europe is known for less stringent controls and the greater availability of legitimate steroid drugs than the United States. In other words, the results should have been at least as bad had they been conducted in the United States.
The Results
Included in this article are the results of the study separated by drug type. I felt upon review that it allowed a somewhat interesting view of the “relative confidence” one could have for a particular type of steroid or drug, at least according to the numbers in this small report. It is important to emphasize that while a fairly large sample for this type of analysis, 70 drug products taken from three dealers is not sufficient to prove any specific market trend, overall counterfeit prevalence or brand legitimacy. Still, as we find in the results, counterfeiting is still very much alive and well and is an issue Germans have to deal with just as do Americans
Anadrol (oxymetholone):
1. Oxytone 50mg (SB Labs, Thailand) Result: PASS
2. Oxytone 50mg (SB Labs, Thailand) Result: PASS
3. Oxytone 50mg (SB Labs, Thailand) Result: PASS
Deca (nandrolone decanoate):
1. Norma Hellas (100mg/mL) Result: FAIL (testosterone)
2. Norma Hellas (100mg/mL) Result: FAIL (testosterone)
3. Norma Hellas (100mg/mL) Result: FAIL (testosterone)
4. Norma Hellas (100mg/mL) Result: FAIL (testosterone)
5. Decabol 250 (British Dragon, Underground) Result: FAIL (testosterone)
Dianabol (methandrostenolone):
1. Anabol 5mg (British Dispensary, Thailand) Result: FAIL (methyltestosterone)
2. Anabol 5mg (British Dispensary, Thailand) Result: PASS
3. Anabol 5mg (British Dispensary, Thailand) Result: PASS
4. Danabol DS 10mg (March, Thailand) Result: PASS
5. Danabol DS 10mg (March, Thailand) Result: PASS
6. Naposim 5mg (Terapia, Romania) Result: FAIL (methyltestosterone)
Equipoise (boldenone undecylenate):
1. Boldabol 200 (British Dragon, Underground) Result: PASS
Halotestin (fluoxymesterone):
1. Fluoxymesterone (IP, Underground) Result: PASS
Primobolan (methenolone enanthate):
1. Primobol 100 (British Dragon, Underground) Result: FAIL (nandrolone, testosterone)
Proviron (mesterolone):
1. Proviron 25mg Result: PASS
Sustanon 250 (testosterone mix):
1. Sustanon 250 (Karachi, Pakistan) Result: PASS
2. Sustanon 250 (Nile, Egypt) Result: FAIL (different testosterones)
3. Sustanon 250 (Nile, Egypt) Result: FAIL (different testosterones)
4. Sustanon 250 (Karachi, Pakistan) Result: PASS
5. Sustanon 250 (Karachi, Pakistan) Result: PASS
6. Sustanon 250 (Karachi, Pakistan) Result: PASS
7. Sustanon 250 (Karachi, Pakistan) Result: PASS
8. Sustanon 250 (Karachi, Pakistan) Result: PASS
9. Sustanon 250 (Karachi, Pakistan) Result: PASS
Testosterone Cypionate:
1. Testex Prolongatum 125 (Q Pharma, Spain) Result: PASS
2. Testabol 200 (British Dragon, Underground) Result: FAIL (different testosterones)
Testosterone Enanthate:
1. Testofort 250mg/mL (Pliva, Pakistan) Result: PASS
2. Testosterone Depot 250 (Eifelfango, Germany) Result: PASS
3. Testosterone Depot 250 (Eifelfango, Germany) Result: PASS
4. Testoviron Depot 250 (Medipharm, Pakistan) Result: PASS
5. Testoviron Depot 250 (Medipharm, Pakistan) Result: PASS
6. Cidoteston 250 (CID, Egypt) Result: FAIL (includes T. cypionate)
7. Cidoteston 250 (CID, Egypt) Result: PASS
Testosterone Propionate:
1. Testovis 100mg/mL (SIT, Italy) Result: PASS
2. Testovis 100mg/mL (SIT, Italy) Result: PASS
3. Testovis 100mg/mL (SIT, Italy) Result: PASS
4. Testovis 100mg/mL (SIT, Italy) Result: PASS
5. Testovis 100mg/mL (SIT, Italy) Result: PASS
6. Testabol (British Dragon, Underground) Result: FAIL (different testosterones)
Trenbolone (various esters):
1. Trenabol 75 (British Dragon, Underground) Result: FAIL (boldenone, testosterone)
2. Trenabol 100 (British Dragon, Underground) Result: FAIL (boldenone, testosterone)
3. Tri-Trenabol 150 (British Dragon, Underground) Result: FAIL (trenbolone, testosterone)
4. Trenabol 200 (British Dragon, Underground) Result: FAIL (trenbolone, testosterone)
Winstrol (stanozolol):
1. Winstrol Depot 50mg/mL (Zambon, Spain) Result: PASS
2. Winstrol Depot 50mg/mL (Zambon, Spain) Result: PASS
3. Winstrol Depot 50mg/mL (Zambon, Spain) Result: PASS
4. Stanabol 50 (British Dragon, Underground) Result: PASS
Underground Steroid Products
Of the 10 samples of British Dragon (BD) products taken from one dealer, only two were shown to contain the labeled ingredients upon analysis. None of the samples, however, were shown to be devoid of steroid ingredients. Instead, there appeared to be a trend of substituting expensive ingredients for less costly ones. For example, all of the trenbolone products failed the testing, usually because they contained a base of testosterone instead of trenbolone. Since these all originated from one dealer and BD has been the subject of much recent counterfeiting and internal instability, it is impossible to determine if these had originated from the actual manufacturer. IP (international Pharmaceuticals) is the only other company identified as an underground operation during this testing and only their fluoxymesterone steroid was analyzed. It contained the properly labeled ingredient.
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