A SHORT HISTORY OF ANABOLIC STEROIDS

History of Anabolic Steroids
There are indeed lots of people who have heard of anabolic androgenic steroids. Some people actually know accurately what they are, while most people only have a vague idea. Although very few people actually know the true history of where anabolic androgenic steroids came from and why they were created. The history of the hormone testosterone and its subsequent human synthetic manipulations is entirely fascinating.
For many centuries it has been known that the testicles were crucial for the male body to properly develop. Although it is not really until modern times that a proper understanding of testosterone has began to form.
There have been many reports providing evidence that testosterone was discovered and reported by at least one scientist over 100 years ago. There is some anecdotal evidence which suggests that some research was carried out which involved the removal and/or implantation of testicular material from/in a subject, that led to early discoveries regarding testosterone and its replication. It is suggested that even then, it was actually discovered and known that this primarily male hormone is in fact the cause of masculine features in males. Unfortunately at this time, this fact has still never proven to be correct. There is just some evidence supporting the possibility.
So we do know that in actuality - the discovery and research into testosterone is actually a relatively recent thing, in comparison to some other discoveries. It was in the early years of the 20th century that testosterone was reproduced in the first experimental androgen injections, often actualized by filtering very large quantities of urine (for active hormones), or by extracting testosterone from animal testicles.
Now, it was only in the 1930's when researchers began testing anabolic steroids on dogs, did they discover a significant increase in muscle mass. Even back in the 30's, scientists realised that altering the androgenic, estrogenic and anabolic properties of the hormone testosterone was a matter simply of changing its molecular structure slightly. There is evidence to suggest that in the 40's, during the second world war, anabolic steroids were administered to Prisoners of War who were suffering from malnutrition. Could this have been the very first usage of anabolic steroids to build the human body bigger and stronger? To help our wounded soldiers recover faster from the result and effect of war? Very possibly. So we know that early experimentation on animals was successful enough to prove that this hormone was responsible for the faster anabolism of dietary proteins into the reconstruction and construction of new body cells.
As early as the beginning of the 1950's it became very well documented that athletes in Europe and Russia, were regularly using anabolic steroids to increase their strength. It was at this time, while Russian weight lifters totally obliterated lifting records, that the use of anabolic steroids was noticed. These athletes out-performed rival countries like you wouldn't believe. There was only one possible answer, and that was the use of these chemical testosterone drugs. Even now, people still refer to the old Eastern Block Russian training programs. It was around this time in the 50's, that a Doctor Ziegler, was able to prove that testosterone had indeed been the reason behind this increased athletic performance. In 1956, Dr Ziegler and the CIBA laboroatories created a drug named Methandrostenolone. Many know this drug by the trade name of Dianabol, or D-Bol for short. This is still one of the most widely used and effective steroid drugs obtainable and utilised today almost sixty years on. This probably just shows you how big an improvement and advantage the Russians had over their clean natural athlete rivals in the 50's. During this time, well over a thousand various forms of testosterone analogues had been produced, but not one of them was a pure anabolic. It was believed during this time, that a pure anabolic with no estrogenic or androgenic qualities, would be a true 'fountain of youth' drug - providing the benefits of lean muscle mass gain, fat loss, increased energy and recuperation etc.
By 1964, all of the most well known traditional steroids were available on the market. You will probably have heard of them if you have been around steroids or researched them at all. There was of course a lot of development from 56 - 64 of these testosterone analogues. Of course there were many reasons for the application of anabolic steroids in the medical world. Originally of course, anabolic steroids were not out there designed to be used by bodybuilders. They were being developed by medical science to help sick people get better. Indeed for patients, certain conditions could almost be cured by Anabolic Steroids - however, the massive effect that these doses had on people were not known at that time. In terms of sport and athletics, competitors were most often using the upper limits of the highest doses and for extended periods of time. High doses and long cycles. Of course we now know a lot more about the subject of safe application and administration of anabolic steroids, whereas at this time, these high dose long cycles were the only way for competitors to gain an advantage over their rival competitive countries. Most athletes learnt of how to use the steroids from their training partners, a personal trainer, or another group of steroid users. This accounted for the very substantial and almost incredible strength gains, alongside the dramatic and negative side effects that followed.
Today, we find that Anabolic Steroids are in use by millions - both male and female. They are even in use by the non-athletic community. It has become most apparent from research that the majority of users are in fact teenagers. Steroids are being used at ages as young as 13 to increase performance in school sports. It appears that athletes will do almost anything to achieve their goals, no matter how high the risk. And in this day and age, steroids are almost becoming secondary to the harder, more dramatic substances in use. Ranging from growth hormone and insulin, to amphetamines and cocaine.
Considering anabolic steroids were in fact being researched over one hundred years ago - their application in sports is in fact relatively new. As mentioned, testosterone was first synthesised in the 1930's. The drug was first introduced into the sporting arena in small amounts through the 40's and 50's.
When the Russian weight lifting team were able to walk away with a large number of medals, aided and assisted by the use of anabolic steroids, an American physician determined that United States competitors should have the same and equal advantage.
By 1958 a U.S. pharmaceutical firm had developed anabolic steroids. Although the physician soon realized the drug had unwanted side effects, it was too late to halt its spread into the sports world.
Early users were mainly bodybuilders, weight lifters, football players, and discus, shot put, or javelin throwers-competitors who relied heavily on bulk and strength. And then, during the 1970's demand grew as athletes in other sports sought the competitive edge that anabolic steroids seemed to provide.
By the 1980's, as non athletes also discovered the body-enhancing properties of steroids, a black market began to flourish for the illegal production and sale of the drugs for non medical purposes. Thus leaving the average person on the street, an opportunity to partake in the use, or indeed, abuse of anabolic steroids.