---

Anabolic steroids are a common class of steroid hormones that can influence a person's physical and sexual development. Widely used in sports and body building to increase strength and stamina, this substance is frequently abused to gain an upper hand during competitions.

Besides its ability to boosts physical performance, this type of steroids can also be a main contributing factor to genetic hair loss in both women and men so if you are a regular user of this class of drugs, it's best for you to know what you are dealing with.

---

Steroids Basics

Steroids actually represent a large group of chemical substances derived from naturally occurring or synthetic fat-soluble compounds. Many types of body's hormones, reactive compounds and other constituents like cholesterol are steroids.

Women and men contain sex hormones of both sexes. For men, the dominant sex hormones are androgens mainly consisting of testosterone, Dihydrotestosterone (DHT) and others. Estrogens and progestagens are the female sex hormones that are highly abundant in women. All of these steroid hormones play a crucial role in your sexual development and proper structural growth.

Steroidal drugs are compounds manufactured and synthesized from these natural hormones in order to influence or stimulate a reaction from your body. The 3 main classes of these steroids are

• Sex steroids
  This type of steroids usually includes androgens, estrogens and progestagens that are usually prescribed for Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) and to treat hormone related conditions.
• Corticosteroids
  Mainly used medically, this class of steroids is used to mimic the activity of cortisone. Cortisone is produced naturally in the body to regulate inflammation, control auto-immune disorders and many other types of diseases. Many types of auto-immune related hair loss like Scarring Alopecia and Alopecia Areata utilize this treatment.
• Anabolic Steroids
  The most well known among the 3, this class of steroids are responsible for stimulating muscle development and other male related characteristics.

While both sex steroids and corticosteroids are mainly used medically, anabolic steroids are the prime fuel for many sportsmen, body builders and athletes alike. Banned and considered a health risk in the US and many countries, these steroids class are still very popular throughout the world and can be easily obtained through many sources.

---

Anabolic-Androgenic Steroids

The real term for this class of steroids is Anabolic-Androgenic Steroids (AAS) because of its androgenic properties. Anabolic, which means 'to build' in Greek is represented by the steroid’s ability to help improve protein synthesis and cuts recovery time. Androgens on the other hand are a group of male sex hormones that control the development of masculinity and male sexual characteristic.

As most anabolic steroids are derived from androgens like testosterone and DHT, you are likely to face side effects from high levels of androgens in your body like

• Acne, oily face and scalp
• Low sperm count
• Deepening of the voice
• Liver damage
• Impaired sperm production
• Aggression (Roid Rage)
• Cardiovascular disease

Many other health conditions are also reported from unsupervised use of steroids so you have to be very careful.

---

---

The Hair Loss Link

First things first, not everyone that uses anabolic steroids will face hair loss. It seems that only people who are genetically predisposed to Male Pattern Baldness will notice an increased level of hair loss. If you are not genetically predestined to lose your hair, you are likely safe from this ordeal.

The cause of accelerated pattern baldness is due to the increased of the male hormones DHT and Testosterone in your body. Your body's enzyme converts testosterone into DihydroTestosterone (DHT) a highly potent form of testosterone. In some males, a large portion of the hair in the front and top are very sensitive to this hormone and once the hormones bind with androgen receptors at the hair follicles, it causes the follicles to cease growing and eventually die.

Women are not spared too, high levels of testosterone in their bodies will also trigger diffuse thinning all over the scalp because most of the women's hair follicles are much more sensitive to the male hormone. The situation can be much worse if they are using potent anabolic steroids with harsher androgenic effects.

More on DHT and hair loss here.

---

Not All Steroids are Made Equal

As mentioned earlier, the effects of genetic hair loss from increased levels of male sex hormones heavily profoundly related to

• Type of steroids taken
• The person's response to the steroid
• Genetic predisposition
• Amount taken

There are over a 100 kinds of anabolic steroids on the market and each one has different androgenic properties. Besides that, lack of manufacturing control standards allows companies to come out with different standards for each product.

Therefore, it's almost impossible to tell which anabolic steroids can cause more side effects than others. If you are interested in finding out more information about the types of steroids and its side effects, sites like anabolicfacts.com offers you with more in depth reviews.

Still, let's look at the anabolic-androgenic ratios of some popular steroids.

*Information obtained from anabolicfacts.com. Please refer to them for more steroid types and detailed information.

---

Steroidal Supplements

Steroidal supplements are another type of steroids based on another type of androgens known as Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and Androstenedione (commonly known as 'andro'). Recently classified as controlled substances in the US, these kinds of steroids are perceived to be the milder counterparts of testosterone and DHT based steroids.

However, if taken in large quantities, these drugs can trigger the same potency as testosterones based steroids. Companies that manufacture them have yet proven that these 'supplements' are safe for long term consumption due to a lack of research data and safety tests.

---

View on Anabolic Steroids

There are many other alternatives to anabolic steroids. For body builders, there are legal and much more harmless choices like whey protein and Creatine formulas. Although the results are less effective that anabolic steroids, you can catch up by observing a good diet and following a good fitness plan. The best of all, they won't be the cause of your hair loss.

Many steroid users use Propecia, Minoxidil and other hair loss regimens to counter the effects from the steroids. If you are thinking of doing so, you might want to think twice. Using potent drugs (like Propecia) to counter the effects of another drug is never recommended unless really necessary and it makes hair loss twice as hard to treat.

Further to that, it may trigger more side effects and health problems in the later future. The best way to prevent steroid related hair loss is not to use them in the first place.

Return to Top of Anabolic Steroids
Back to Male Pattern Baldness
Return to Surviving-Hairloss.com

---