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23.09.2009

Higher testosterone doses: more effect on muscle mass and few side effects

Young men who do strength training build up more muscle the more testosterone enanthate [structural formula shown below] they inject. The higher the dose, the more effect on muscle mass and power that a course of testosterone has. American researchers reported this eight years ago in the American Journal of Physiology - Endocrinology and Metabolism. The side-effects of higher doses of testosterone are not too bad. At least, as long as you're not too concerned about HDL.

The researchers used the GnRH-agonist Decapeptyl to deactivate testosterone production in sixty healthy men aged between 18 and 35 with prior weight-lifting experience. Then they gave the men a twenty-week course of testosterone enanthate injections. The men got a weekly dose of 25, 50, 125, 300 or 600 mg testosterone. A 25 mg dose is just enough to keep men's sexual functioning intact. The highest dose of testosterone that men can inject weekly without incurring acute medical problems is 600 mg, at least according to published studies. Not everyone in the steroids world agrees with this figure.

The men kept a diary of their sexual activities, but there was no sign of any effects. It made no difference whether the men injected 25 or 600 mg. The graph below shows the relative changes.

The higher the testosterone dose, the more fat-free mass the men developed. And the number of kilograms they could shift with the leg-press increased, the more testosterone they injected. You wonder what would have happened if the men had had a 1200 mg shot of testosterone enanthate.

The fat free mass consists only partly of muscle mass. But the muscle mass also increased with higher testosterone doses.

Researchers are most concerned about the relationship between anabolic hormones and cancer. When it comes to androgen hormones, researchers are particularly worried about the effects on the prostate. A marker of prostate condition is the 'prostate cancer protein' PSA. The more of this there is in the blood, the worse the state of the prostate is. But the men who injected more testosterone did not have a higher PSA level.

The higher doses of testosterone made the blood a little thicker, but nothing for the men to be concerned about. [The effect is more serious in older men - Ed.]

More of a problem is the effect of higher doses of testosterone on the 'good' HDL cholesterol.

The researchers conclude that testosterone isn't a hundred percent safe. That's why they argue for the development of SARMs in their conclusion. "Selective androgen receptor modulators that preferentially augment muscle mass and strength, but only minimally affect prostate and cardiovascular risk factors, are desirable."

Source:
Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab. 2001 Dec;281(6):E1172-81.

More:
Higher doses of testosterone, less fat 17.08.2009
Six weeks of testosterone-enanthate: more weight on the bench, faster sprint, often not detectable 12.05.2009
'Right' gene lets you inject testosterone without getting caught by doping test 25.04.2009