Steroids medicine for COVID 19 is none to treat this viral disease but some of them provide relief as a symptomatic treatment. Some bodybuilders, athletes, and laymen have concerns regarding the use of steroids during Coronavirus lockdown. Now, it’s either to stay fit or to take steroids as a part of COVID-19 treatment. Bodybuilding steroids are known to create an effect that might be helpful to COVID-19 patients.
Steroids can be fatal or beneficial for COVID 19 patients which again depends on the condition of an individual. To see the marked effects of steroids on COVID 19 patients we have to see the nature of these steroids and what purpose they are being used for.
What are Steroids?
These are called Anabolic Steroids that are the strongest androgenic compounds. The role of this chemical is to make humans physically powerful by interfering with their hormonal level to different degrees. The purpose of steroids was only to treat various medical conditions (not coronavirus) such as muscle wasting disease, osteoporosis, and arthritis.
Anabolic steroids are available in thousands of forms and most of them mimic the effect of the hormones. This is why the only limited number of steroids is for females and most of them are designed for men due to hormones playing a significant role in their body. The high amount of t-level in your body artificially brought up by steroids would increase muscle mass, performance power, and the body’s vascularity levels that makes it look more masculine. This hormone also aggravates the aggression during the sport which is also the reason why many athletes take them.
NHS Guidelines about COVID-19 and Steroids
NHS states that it is very dangerous to quit steroid use due to the steroid withdrawal symptoms. Every person who uses steroids for any medical reason should have a steroid alert card in his/her pocket in case of any accidents. This will only give detail to the healthcare professional about finding the right dosage for you.
The detail is also given in the NICE guidelines which is another guideline for managing autoimmune diseases, bone disorders, and inflammatory disease during Coronavirus outbreak.
Best Steroid for COVID-19 and During Quarantine Period
The best corticosteroid named Dexamethasone is best for treating joint pain during the COVID-19 outbreak. Dexamethasone is a commons steroid that is used to decrease the pain and inflammation in the joint. Doctors have been prescribing Dexamethasone to those who have gout, lupus disease, and other autoimmune conditions like rheumatoid arthritis.
Is Dexamethasone Effective for Treating COVID 19?
Since the starting of 2020 when the first wave of Coronavirus pandemic stroked, medical experts have been working on different medications to find their role in treating COVID-19 patients. It has been reported several times that Dexamethasone, a corticosteroid drug used to treat arthritis is life-saving for seriously ill covid-19 patients.
Oxford University conducted a Randomized Evaluation of COVID-19 Therapy trial to see the effect of Dexamethasone steroid on COVID 19 patients. Dexamethasone steroid has immune-suppressing property and this attracted many researchers to make it a part of treatment for severe respiratory symptoms. It has been observed that Corticosteroids like Dexamethasone reduced the deaths by 1/3rd in ventilated patients and by 1/5th in other patients who are receiving oxygen only. No effect was observed on patients who weren’t on any respiratory support.
Dexamethasone is not over the counter drug but it can be purchased easily, the first time it has been shown to improve survival rates in coronavirus patients.
Effect of Bodybuilding Steroids on COVID-19 Patients
A 28 years old man was found out to be a severe case of COVID-19 who had taken Anavar (Oxandrolone) 40mg/day for bodybuilding. Before getting admitted to the outpatients’ clinic with Coronavirus symptoms he had been taking Anavar for rapid bodybuilding results for 30 days.
The patient reported his symptoms were quickly worsened over the period of 4 days before visiting the clinic. As a part of experimental therapy of Anti-Androgen treatment for Hyper-Androgenic males suffering from COVID-19, he was given 600mg of new Anti-Androgen Proxalutamide. After 24 hours of Proxalutamide dose, patients experienced a reduction in the symptoms intensity and disease severity. The novel drug was designed to reverse the effects of anabolic steroids and thus point we can conclude bodybuilding steroids are not good during COVID-19.
How do Bodybuilding Steroids work?
Anabolic steroids stimulate the production of muscle mass by mimicking the hormones like effects on the body. The steroidal components put a lot of burden on the liver from where it metabolizes and thus improve endurance, muscle mass density, and strength. Steroids in bodybuilding encourage muscle mass bulk while in sports, it encourages agility, decision-making skills, and athletic performance.
Steroids Side Effects
Every user of anabolic steroids experienced parts of common side effects of steroids which are:
- Hair loss
- Acne
- High blood pressure
- Aggression
- Swearing
- Mood Swings
- Muscle and tendons fatigue
- Liver damage
- Chances of cardiovascular-related conditions i.e. stroke, clot formation
If used for a prolonged period of time, these side effects could turn into life-threatening.
Other Problems Associated with COVID-19 and Bodybuilding Steroids
One of the side effects of steroids is psychological disturbances that sometimes end up making a person delusional about his strength. This can be blinded by the aggression and feeling of fear that somehow strikes at the same time. Individuals who have been taking steroids are at in much higher chance to abuse other drugs like cocaine, alcohol, or heroin. For steroids use majorly, the use of a needle is common ant this can exacerbate risks of HIV that leads to AIDS.
Steroids Addiction and Stacking
Bodybuilders who cycle their steroids mix two or three steroids and take multiple doses over a while. They put a gap in between before starting it up again, stacking is believed to enhance the effect of each drug that has been used in cycling attempts. Stacking supplies the higher dose of anabolic steroids and during the steroid-free period, the body recovers itself from the drugs. Stacking contributes to steroid addiction especially in young bodybuilders who have received amazing bodybuilding results, it’s quite hard for them to stop it. Steroid withdrawal symptoms include loss of appetite, insomnia, mood swings, depression, and tiredness.
Which Steroid is best to Stay Fit during COVID-19?
Many health sites and blogs encourage the use of natural steroids to stay fit in COVID and Quarantine periods. Anabolic steroid’s drawbacks are life-threatening and they are banned in many countries for obvious reasons. The sale and purchase of steroids usually take place in the black market and not from pharmacies that do not sell steroids unless prescribed by a physician.
Legal Steroids- Stronger Alternatives to Steroids
Anabolic steroids are banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency and Medical Associations around the world. To get the competitive advantages, athletes are still taking steroids and the majority of times some of them have been caught that led to destroying their career and whole physiology.
The right choice to make here is to choose Legal Steroids that improve athletic performance, core strength, and bodybuilding effects using natural ingredients. The use of legal steroids is considered best when combined with a dietary regimen and exercise plan that provide extensive results during COVID-19.
Summary
As the globally renowned pandemic is nearly coming to an end, the use of bodybuilding supplements is again getting restored. There are approved statements about only a few steroids that are called beneficial against Coronavirus symptoms only and not effective to treat this viral disease. Corticosteroids like Dexamethasone are ideal for COVID patients who have joint pain due to auto-immune-related inflammation.
There is no advantage of using bodybuilding steroids as a precautionary measure for COVID-19. The patients of Coronavirus disease must get their symptoms checked first and choose the drug of choice accordingly.
Steroids for bodybuilding could worsen the COVID-19 spread progression and because of this natural steroids shall be used that are safe and alternative to the anabolic steroids. The reviews for natural steroids are remarkable and there needs to be a study where they should find the effect of natural steroids on COVID 19 patients. Anabolic steroids like Anavar, Dianabol, Trenbolone are available in the black market at such a pricey rate. Athletes from different countries were banned due to the use of a steroid for the quickest endurance gain and remarkable stamina during physical play.
If you hear any steroid use in COVID-19 patients, other than Dexamethasone or relative corticosteroids, make sure to alert their healthcare professional.
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