Anabolic steroids are very useful for adding body mass to those suffering from muscle-wasting illnesses. They allow small trainers in the gym to gain a great deal of muscle, when coupled with proper nutrition and training. Moderate and sensible AAS use allows people to come closer to reaching their physical potential without incurring any major risks. However, despite all their useful attributes, steroids can lead to many problems – when used incorrectly. Here are some common pitfalls faced by steroid users. You may note each of these maladies is preventable though common sense tactics, which are listed below.

Needle abscesses

Injections, even for advanced steroid users, can be some very messy business. It’s not easy to push a needle through your skin and then shoot a vial of oil into your body. Beneath the skin, you may be aware of a vast network of veins, arteries, and other nifty things which keep your alive. You may clip a vein, you may damage some nerves, and, if you allow any amount of bacteria into the injection area, you may develop an abscess. These pockets of puss, bacteria, and other ungodly organisms form beneath the skin and can lead to illness, infection, and even death if left untreated for a long enough time. Inject in a clean place with a sterile needle, and visit a doctor immediately upon first sign of an infection in any injection area.

Communicable diseases

Yes, even in this age of incredible AIDS awareness, many bodybuilders still share needles because they either have a limited supply of the anabolic steroids the partners are injecting, or because money is too tight to waste. Or, it may just be that they don’t wish to load two needles, and find it much easier to just inject each other with the same needle. Some users are very careless like this, and the result could be a very serious illness. Remember that there are some people who carry illnesses with them their entire life with no signs. Their blood, when drawn into a needle which will then find its way into your glutes, will deliver this illness to you, in a potentially very active form. Don’t share needles, period.

Oral toxicity

Oral steroids are very hard on the liver and kidneys. This isn’t exactly news to most people. What may be news to some users is that you can have a blood panel, or check up, done to determine your liver enzyme – or liver health – levels before, during, and after your steroid cycles. The results can help you to determine if your liver is in good shape, how much of an effect the steroids are having on it, and how well you’re recovering following the cycle. If you have any pre-existing liver damage (yes, drinking that much in college was a very bad idea) or if you have a family history of liver cancer, don’t use oral steroids.

These potential effects of steroid use aren’t designed to scare away users in the same manner we’ve seen fear tactics used before. Instead, use these maladies as examples of what can happen not when steroids are used, but when they are mis-used.

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