Managing cholesterol with AAS

[AverageMan]

When I look at the sides of almost all AAS (Var, Decca, test, etc.) they ALL raise your cholesterol – specifically they raise your bad cholesterol and lower good cholesterol; basically the worst possible scenario.

I’m very serious about my heath and have no intentions of dying an early death due to clogged up arteries. My grandfather had triple bypass at age 65 and I too struggle with cholesterol issues. I’ve managed to keep things under control via diet and exercise. I’m a high-ish TRT dose I’m noticing my cholesterol has started creeping up. At last test, I was at the higher end of normal.

193 total
56 hdl
123 ldl
73 – tri

Again due to family history my goal is less than 200 total with balance HDL / LDL ratios.

When on cycle most folks here fixate on estrogen / progesterone – thing cause more acute issues.
Does any fixate cholesterol numbers? It seems most AAS user die of heart disease than any other issue. I have no intention of taking a dirt nap with known long term AAS users – ultimate warrior, Randy Savage, etc. As I start to hit middle age, taking care of myself is top priority.

 

[Megatron28]

You should lower your TRT dose if this is a great concern to you and not blast supraphysiological levels of AAS. High doses of AAS will most likely impact your lipids profile.

 

[Southernfish]

Although there are risks involved with AAS use most of the risks can be mitigated or controlled completely. Just because a few people died who used them doesnt mean they were the cause. No one knows of these unfortunate peoples lifestyles ie; drugs and alcohol, eating habbits, pre existing conditions and so on.

As for the impact of AAS and some ancillaries on cholesterol, its going to happen. To what degree? Who knows. It will vary from person to person. Mine get affected slightly when on high doses. My HDL drops a bit but my LDL stays the same.

A healthy diet that includes good health fats will help. There are medications to help with cholesterol although that wouldnt be my first recomendation. A TRT dose shouldnt actually have much effect on it at least from Ive seen with myself its only once you really start pumping the gear does it get affected.

Best thing to do if you are worried and have a family history of this issue is to get regular bloodwork to monitor the situation and make changes if neccessary based on that.

 

[AverageMan]

Although there are risks involved with AAS use most of the risks can be mitigated or controlled completely. Just because a few people died who used them doesnt mean they were the cause. No one knows of these unfortunate peoples lifestyles ie; drugs and alcohol, eating habbits, pre existing conditions and so on.

As for the impact of AAS and some ancillaries on cholesterol, its going to happen. To what degree? Who knows. It will vary from person to person. Mine get affected slightly when on high doses. My HDL drops a bit but my LDL stays the same.

A healthy diet that includes good health fats will help. There are medications to help with cholesterol although that wouldnt be my first recomendation. A TRT dose shouldnt actually have much effect on it at least from Ive seen with myself its only once you really start pumping the gear does it get affected.

Best thing to do if you are worried and have a family history of this issue is to get regular bloodwork to monitor the situation and make changes if neccessary based on that.

I've never cycled but since starting TRT and understanding more about AAS, I'm considering a blast. I will do bloods but am looking into what can be done to control cholesterol should it become a problem. Worst case, I have a statin on hand, but not sure if this is counter productive to AAS.

 

[Megatron28]

A statin. Maybe Niacin. Diet. Exercise. Avoiding really lipid-harsh compounds like Tren.

 

[AverageMan]

A statin. Maybe Niacin. Diet. Exercise. Avoiding really lipid-harsh compounds like Tren.

No Tren at this point - considering small amounts of Decca and Test blast (Have T400 on hand). I was able to get off statins with diet and exercise, which is why I have them on hand.

I'm doing my homework around "what if" so I'm knowledgeable and have the proper items on hand.

 

[halfwit]

When I look at the sides of almost all AAS (Var, Decca, test, etc.) they ALL raise your cholesterol ***8211; specifically they raise your bad cholesterol and lower good cholesterol; basically the worst possible scenario.

I***8217;m very serious about my heath and have no intentions of dying an early death due to clogged up arteries. My grandfather had triple bypass at age 65 and I too struggle with cholesterol issues. I***8217;ve managed to keep things under control via diet and exercise. I***8217;m a high-ish TRT dose I***8217;m noticing my cholesterol has started creeping up. At last test, I was at the higher end of normal.

193 total
56 hdl
123 ldl
73 ***8211; tri

Again due to family history my goal is less than 200 total with balance HDL / LDL ratios.

When on cycle most folks here fixate on estrogen / progesterone ***8211; thing cause more acute issues.
Does any fixate cholesterol numbers? It seems most AAS user die of heart disease than any other issue. I have no intention of taking a dirt nap with known long term AAS users ***8211; ultimate warrior, Randy Savage, etc. As I start to hit middle age, taking care of myself is top priority.

Testosterone has a POSITIVE impact on lipids for starters. There are many studies out there showing such; even at supraphysiological doses, testosterone had a mild/neglible impact in the negative direction. Diet is going to be the largest contributor, as there needs to be a balance of good fats and fiber intake. I do want to state one thing that many doctors neglect to mention: While cholesterol is linked to plaque, plaque itself is NOT correlated directly to heart disease. This was proven by the Mayo Clinic just a few years ago, and it really bothers me when pharmaceutical companies sell HORRIBLE medicines like statins off this old assumption.

Niacin has been proven by Harvard to be just as effective as any statin in lowering cholesterol by the way.

I also want to clarify that heart disease is the number one killer in the world. It's statistically impossible (improbable) to differentiate between a genetic disposition for heart disease in a "normal" person versus those that are on AAS for extended periods of time. The only factor that can be absolutely linked to AAS use is cardiac hypertrophy (enlarged heart), which does increase the odds of heart failure over time. Note: This is regarding supraphysiological doses, NOT TRT.

It honestly all comes down to your willingness to accept these risks for using AAS. We have several different risks for using hormones, most of which are manageable (as Schredder stated) with little issue. It's just a matter of taking a long hard look in the mirror and deciding if they're worth it to you.

My .02c

 

[Megatron28]

Testosterone has a POSITIVE impact on lipids for starters. There are many studies out there showing such; even at supraphysiological doses, testosterone had a mild/neglible impact in the negative direction. Diet is going to be the largest contributor, as there needs to be a balance of good fats and fiber intake. I do want to state one thing that many doctors neglect to mention: While cholesterol is linked to plaque, plaque itself is NOT correlated directly to heart disease. This was proven by the Mayo Clinic just a few years ago, and it really bothers me when pharmaceutical companies sell HORRIBLE medicines like statins off this old assumption.

Niacin has been proven by Harvard to be just as effective as any statin in lowering cholesterol by the way.

I also want to clarify that heart disease is the number one killer in the world. It's statistically impossible (improbable) to differentiate between a genetic disposition for heart disease in a "normal" person versus those that are on AAS for extended periods of time. The only factor that can be absolutely linked to AAS use is cardiac hypertrophy (enlarged heart), which does increase the odds of heart failure over time. Note: This is regarding supraphysiological doses, NOT TRT.

It honestly all comes down to your willingness to accept these risks for using AAS. We have several different risks for using hormones, most of which are manageable (as Schredder stated) with little issue. It's just a matter of taking a long hard look in the mirror and deciding if they're worth it to you.

My .02c

Half: I thought exogenous testosterone typically resulted in decreased HDL levels. Even at TRT doses. Is there newer information out there that I should be taking into account to update my knowledge?

 

[halfwit]

Half: I thought exogenous testosterone typically resulted in decreased HDL levels. Even at TRT doses. Is there newer information out there that I should be taking into account to update my knowledge?

This study is from 2011, so I don't know how new it is compared to what you have learned in the past. Notice that while HDL may have a slight decrease/small increase, it is far greater in proportion to the LDL values.

Effects on lipids (mmol/l) (38-41,43-47, 55)
Total cholesterol -0.4 to -0.23
Triglycerides -0.98 to 0.1
HDL cholesterol -0.05 to 0.692
LDL cholesterol -0.39 to -0.05

Source

It's more of a matter of the balance between the two than just a simple reduction/addition in levels for each from everything I have ever read or been told. There's another study out there that illustrates this better, but as I'm in the middle of writing another god-awful paper for class - I'll have to get back to you on it.

 

[Megatron28]

This study is from 2011, so I don't know how new it is compared to what you have learned in the past. Notice that while HDL may have a slight decrease/small increase, it is far greater in proportion to the LDL values.



http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3188848/]Source

It's more of a matter of the balance between the two than just a simple reduction/addition in levels for each from everything I have ever read or been told. There's another study out there that illustrates this better, but as I'm in the middle of writing another god-awful paper for class - I'll have to get back to you on it.

Thanks! Here is a chart they had in that study you linked to. Overall it looks like TRT is beneficial to one's lipids. This matches my own personal experience. I have seen LDL and Triglycerides improve a lot since starting TRT. HDL has been tougher to budge in the right direction though for me.

 

[halfwit]

Thanks! Here is a chart they had in that study you linked to. Overall it looks like TRT is beneficial to one's lipids. This matches my own personal experience. I have seen LDL and Triglycerides improve a lot since starting TRT. HDL has been tougher to budge in the right direction though for me.

Yeah, noticing my blood work improving instead of going the other direction as I had been lead to believe was why I started looking into it. The funny thing is that cholesterol actually should be on the high end for healthy individuals (there's another study showing that high cholesterol has a better impact on longevity than lower blood pressure), not being some scary beast that we should all rush to get on statins for. Yeah, I'm a little invested in this topic as my endo wants to battle me on cholesterol when I have done far more homework than she on such topic. I'm waiting for the day where she starts paying ME for visits as I'm always bringing her knowledge up a notch or two, which helps her to be a better doctor. Sadly, this is one where she won't budge - and has even gotten my GP involved (I'm *barely* over range for triglycerides) in which he and I both have a hearty laugh as he knows what the score is.

But yeah, TRT helps us in so many ways it's not even funny. Of course, stuff like tren or certain orals aren't so nice to the body...