| We all know that professional bodybuilders are some | | | | muscles that grow. Bone endings grow once again |
| of the most muscular, lean, and powerful people on the | | | | when using GH. You will not meet a top professional |
| planet. They eat, train, sleep, and use drugs to become | | | | bodybuilder with small hands. They grow. As do the |
| the best in the world. This is a fact. When they are | | | | elbows, knees, and even skulls. It's an accepted part of |
| competing, only one thing matters - being the biggest | | | | the sport that isn't a huge deal when competing. |
| and best onstage. However, once they leave the | | | | However, when they lose muscle size, the lengthened |
| stage, a new set of challenges arises. | | | | bones will remain. |
| Loss of size | | | | Organ growth |
| We all know they shrink. They're eating less food. | | | | Human growth hormone has effects on internal organs |
| They're training with less intensity. And they cut back | | | | as well. Just as skin, muscle, and bone grow - the |
| on the drugs. It's to be expected that they shed a lot | | | | organs grow as well. Scientists do not yet have |
| of size. This can lead to mental anguish in some, | | | | conclusive findings as to the effects of enlarged heart, |
| although not in all cases. | | | | digestive, respiratory and circulatory systems on long |
| Long term testosterone supplementation | | | | term health. This generation of top bodybuilders, both |
| After retirement, most professional bodybuilders | | | | amateur and professional, will be those test cases in |
| remain on testosterone supplementation for the rest of | | | | the future. |
| their lives, as their body's own natural testosterone | | | | Most of the men who competed from the 1960s to |
| production shuts down from the years of not | | | | the 1980s are healthy men in their 50s, 60s, and 70s |
| operating due to the presence of synthetic hormones. | | | | today. There are a few notable exceptions. However, |
| This is a cost, both financially, and due to the side | | | | many people are beginning to question the long term |
| effects of artificial testosterone on the body. | | | | viability of TODAY'S professional bodybuilders, who |
| Long term drug use | | | | use testosterone, human growth hormone, insulin, and |
| Aside from testosterone supplementation, many | | | | other compounds that athletes of yesteryear had |
| bodybuilders find themselves addicted to painkillers or | | | | never heard of. Time will only tell if they end up happy |
| over-the-counter pain relievers to eliminate daily joint | | | | and gray as their contemporaries of the past, or if the |
| and muscle pain that comes with years of heavy lifting. | | | | higher use will result in greater medical issues in the |
| Bone growth / acromegaly | | | | future. |
| When using growth hormone (GH), it's not just the | | | | |