REVEALED: How to spot a steroid user

How can you tell if someone is on steroids? Are there any tell-tell signs from looking at their body or their behaviour. In this article you will be given all the signs and information you need to be able to spot if someone is using steroids or not.

Body

Generally, if someone is very big and looks freaky, the chances are that they have used steroids at some stage or are continuing to use them. This is obviously a generalisation but pretty accurate! Unless someone has freaky genes, most people who look “huge” have taken steroids at some stage.

Let’s look at some body signs that someone has used some form of steroids or Growth Factor:

The distended stomach

This is usually as a result of using a LOT of steroids or more accurately growth factor. When you over do it, your body just goes out of shape and you lose that narrow waist and can never get it back.

Gynecomastia or bitch tits

This is a classic sign of steroid use. Basically, due to over use of steroids, the body’s Testosterone levels star turning to oestrogen, which is the female hormone… and then , yes you guessed it, you end up with female breasts. There may be an exception here or there but generally, bitch tits are a very accurate sign of steroid use in men.

Acne and spots

Excess hormones such as Testosterone from steroid use will cause acne. This is usually more prominent on the back and shoulders. Testosterone has a big effect on sebaceous glands and you cannot do much about this so steroid users do get spots on their backs and sometimes elsewhere.

Stretch marks

When you grow so fast that your body literally can’t keep up, you get stretch marks. This is a relatively accurate way of seeing if someone has used steroids though stretch marks can be genetic too so don’t be too quick to judge!

Sudden increase in size

If you know someone and they have been training for a while and suddenly they get huge, then chances are that they are using steroids. Only steroids will cause that huge explosion in size. Some natural supplements like Norateen Heavyweight II will make a significant contribution to increasing size but nothing will come close to steroids in terms of rapid size.

Huge upper body

Another sign of steroid use is over-developed shoulders, traps and back. They grow fast on steroids and steroid users end up getting disproportionately big muscles.

Hair & skin

Unusually greasy hair and oily skin due to the oil glands working over-time.

Other physical signs of steroid use are:

• Persistent bad breath
  
• Thinning hair though in some people hair increases rapidly in length
  
• Jaundice or yellowing of the skin
  
• Joint pain
  
• More chances of injury in the gym due to rapid increase in strength
  
• Changes in body fluids e.g. extreme bloating
• Blood in urine

Personality and mood

Depending on the predisposition of the person and their own temperament, some people do get affected by the side effects of steroids. The common things to look out for are:

• Mood swings, including manic like symptoms and violence
  
• Impaired judgement, usually as a result of feeling invincible!
  
• Extreme irritability
  
• Nervousness
  
• Depression
  
• Unpredictability
  
• Sleep interruptions or insomnia
  
• Delusions
  
• Hostility and aggression
  
• Extreme appetite shifts
  
• The user can become secretive
  
• Hallucinations and paranoia
  
• Withdrawal from family members
  
• Forgetfulness
  

Social changes

• Missing our on work or studies
  
• Falling asleep more often, taking naps
  
• Taking longer in the bathroom (injecting steroids!)
  
• Closing door to bedroom or office more often
  
• Unmarked packages in the mail
  
• Going out more, not saying where they are going
  
• Private phone conversations
  
• New friends
  
• Detaching from old friends
  
• Needing money
  
• Stealing money
  

Long term effects of steroid use

Long term steroid use does have effects on your body, many of which are irreversible. As with anything to do with the body, everyone is different and no one can predict the outcome. Someone can take a steroid once and have a bad reaction and even die! Another person can take steroids for decades and not see any major side effects - or so they thought. Below are some typical long term effects of steroids:

• Baldness due to excess DHT
  
• Shrinking of Testes (testicles)
  
• Prostate cancer
  
• Reduced sperm count
  
• Infertility
  
• Breasts
  
• Splayed teeth and an overgrown forehead

There you have it. Your comprehensive guide to who is using steroids. Remember, steroids are dangerous and illegal. LA Muscle is 100% against the use of anabolic steroids in your bodybuilding quest.