Anabolic steroids and testosterone boosting supplements are often considered to be the same thing thanks to a common misconception that anything that affects testosterone or other growth related hormones must be an illegal steroid.
In fact, there are several important differences, without even looking into the legalities, between anabolic steroids and natural testosterone boosting supplements such as Sustanon 270.
What is testosterone?
Testosterone is the primary male sex hormone and causes many male characteristics such as growth of body hair, deepening of the voice, and muscular development. It is this latter characteristic which makes testosterone so appealing to athletes, gym users and bodybuilders.
Anabolic Steroids
If an athlete wants to quickly increase the amount of testosterone in their system, the quickest way is simply to inject it. Anabolic steroids are synthetic drugs which mimic the effects of testosterone and their conventional use in medicine is to treat chronic wasting diseases.
Use of anabolic steroids is linked to a number of well documented side effects including acne, high blood pressure, elevated cholesterol and aggressive mood swings. It is also often observed that anabolic steroids cause the male genitalia to shrink and libido to reduce, these effects are linked to the body shutting down its own testosterone production in lieu of testosterone being provided by a needle.
Natural Testosterone Boosters
Rather than simply introducing testosterone from outside, natural testosterone boosters work by increasing the production of luteinizing hormone in the pituitary gland. When this hormone binds to its receptors located in the testes, it signals them to increase its own production of testosterone.
Whereas anabolic steroids introduce high levels of synthetic testosterone, upsetting the body’s hormonal balance, testosterone boosting supplements increase the body’s own testosterone production. This means that, quite apart from the reduction in libido and size of genitalia, natural testosterone boosters can actually increase both.
Who could benefit from natural testosterone boosters?
Levels of testosterone remain constant until the late 30′s when they start to slowly decline, affecting sex drive, confidence, mood and strength & body composition.
It is during this decline in our testosterone levels that supplements such as Sustanon 270 may be most effective, although anyone with low levels of testosterone or athletes seeking increased muscle growth would benefit.
As a result, anabolic steroids may cause a number of side effects that are not found with herbal testosterone boosters.
