If you needed another reason not to use anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS), here it is: a small study carried out by a pair of researchers from the University of Glamorgan has established that anabolic androgenic steroids users have significantly higher blood concentrations of a protein which is known to predispose to circulatory disorders.

The researchers set out to compare levels of C reactive protein (CRP) in the following age-matched groups:

• 10 anabolic androgenic steroids-using bodybuilders;
• 10 bodybuilders who denied using anabolic androgenic steroids;
• 8 sedentary controls.

Blood tests taken in the morning, after an overnight fast and 30 minutes of supine rest, revealed the following differences between the groups:

• Testosterone was significantly higher in the anabolic androgenic steroids-using group than in both control groups, consistent with the use of steroids and thus providing indirect confirmation that the controls weren’t using them;
• Sex hormone binding globulin was significantly lower in the anabolic androgenic steroids users than the other groups – also consistent with steroid use;
• CRP was significantly higher in the anabolic androgenic steroids-using bodybuilders than the controls.

CRP is secreted by liver cells in response to inflammation, but the mechanism for anabolic androgenic steroids-induced CRP alterations is not known. However, recent work has shown raised levels of CRP to be a strong predictor of cardiovascular events, and this study adds to the list of potentially prothrombotic (clot-creating) consequences of non-therapeutic anabolic androgenic steroids use.

Br J Sports Med 2004;38:97-98