Androstenedione has been much in the news lately. Is it a steroid? Is it performance-enhancing? What's fact and what's fiction?
Due to the large amount of dollars now spent on "sports" supplements, many supplement companies have seized on the huge gray area of hormones, steroids, enzymes and other chemicals in food, that might trigger an anabolic explosion of testosterone in athletes.
The article focuses on market and distribute products containing androstenedione. Because androstenedione acts like a steroid once it is metabolized by the body it can, therefore, pose similar ki...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has announced a crackdown on products containing androstenedione. The product, which is commonly known as "andro," are marketed over the counter as dietary s...
Weighing the benefits and risk
Over the past few years, several hormones have become available over the counter, including pregnenolone (preg), DHEA, and androstenedione (andro). These hormones are made mostly in the adrenal glands, ovaries or testicles, brain, skin, and other organs. These hormones are also very close relatives. For instance, pregnenolone is the parent of DHEA, which, in turn, is the parent of androstenedione.
Androstenedione, a precursor to testosterone, is normally produced by the adrenal gland and testes and is converted to testosterone through the action of 17 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase, which is found in most body tissues.( 1) Androstenedione is also produced by some plants and has recently been marketed as a "natural anabolic," a product which increases blood testosterone concentrations.
