Methandrostenolone

Metandienone, also known as methandienone or methandrostenolone and sold under the brand name Dianabol among others, is an androgen and anabolic steroid (AAS) medication which is mostly no longer used. It is also used non-medically for physique- and performance-enhancing purposes. It is taken by mouth. Metandienone, also known as methandienone or methandrostenolone and sold under the brand name Dianabol among others, is an androgen and anabolic steroid (AAS) medication which is mostly no longer used. It is also used non-medically for physique- and performance-enhancing purposes. It is taken by mouth. Side effects of metandienone include symptoms of masculinization like acne, increased hair growth, voice changes, and increased sexual desire, estrogenic effects like fluid retention and breast enlargement, and liver damage. The drug is an agonist of the androgen receptor (AR), the biological target of androgens like testosterone and dihydrotestosterone (DHT), and has strong anabolic effects and moderate androgenic effects. It also has moderate estrogenic effects. Metandienone was originally developed in 1955 by CIBA and marketed in Germany and the United States. As the CIBA product Dianabol, metandienone quickly became the first widely used AAS among professional and amateur athletes, and remains the most common orally active AAS for non-medical use. It is currently a controlled substance in the United States and United Kingdom and remains popular among bodybuilders. Metandienone is readily available without a prescription in certain countries such as Mexico, and is also manufactured in some Asian countries. Metandienone was formerly approved and marketed for the treatment of hypogonadism, but has since been discontinued and withdrawn in most countries, including in the United States. Metandienone is used for physique- and performance-enhancing purposes by competitive athletes, bodybuilders, and powerlifters. It is said to be the most widely used AAS for such purposes both today and historically. Androgenic side effects such as oily skin, acne, seborrhea, increased facial/body hair growth, scalp hair loss, and virilization may occur. Estrogenic side effects such as gynecomastia and fluid retention can also occur. As with other 17α-alkylated steroids, metandienone poses a risk of hepatotoxicity and use over extended periods of time can result in liver damage without appropriate precautions. Metandienone binds to and activates the androgen receptor (AR) in order to exert its effects. These include dramatic increases in protein synthesis, glycogenolysis, and muscle strength over a short space of time. While it can be metabolized by 5α-reductase into methyl-1-testosterone (17α-methyl-δ1-DHT), a more potent AAS, the drug has extremely low affinity for this enzyme and methyl-1-testosterone is thus produced in only trace amounts. As such, 5α-reductase inhibitors like finasteride and dutasteride do not reduce the androgenic effects of metandienone. Nonetheless, while the ratio of anabolic to androgenic activity of metandienone is improved relative to that of testosterone, the drug does still possess moderate androgenic activity and is capable of producing severe virilization in women and children. As such, it is only really commonly used in men. Metandienone is a substrate for aromatase and can be metabolized into the estrogen methylestradiol (17α-methylestradiol). While the rate of aromatization is reduced relative to that for testosterone or methyltestosterone, the estrogen produced is metabolism-resistant and hence metandienone retains moderate estrogenic activity. As such, it can cause side effects such as gynecomastia and fluid retention. The co-administration of an antiestrogen such as an aromatase inhibitor like anastrozole or a selective estrogen receptor modulator like tamoxifen can reduce or prevent such estrogenic side effects. Metandienone has no progestogenic activity. As with other 17α-alkylated AAS, metandienone is hepatotoxic.