The usual reality check . . .
To respond to your original question, o' doof one, yes - AS, especially test, can cause an enlarged prostate.
How do you monitor it? Exactly as BE_STRONG suggested, although he was joking. So I'll say it seriously - go to your doctor, and bend over.
(Oh, alright, I'll laugh, too. Bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha! There. I'm done. Now let's get back to reality.)
There is a technical name for this - Digital Rectal Exam. And if any of you - even you, o doof one - goes to a doctor for a physical exam and he or she doesn't give you the finger up the butt, find another doctor. Because that is the standard test for prostate enlargement.
There is also a blood test called the Prostate Specific Antigen, recommend for all men over 40 or 50 (depending on the guidelines you use) once a year - younger men if you have a family history of prostate cancer.
And quite frankly, if you've got the balls to see a doctor for lab work prior to, during, and after a cycle (all of which I recommend, regardless of age), you should include a PSA as well. But when getting checked out, it's not either/or, it's both - you should want both the finger and the PSA, especially since prostate cancer is the most common type of cancer in guys.
Now, as far as the supplements you have discussed in this thread, I've never said this before. But because I've come to care about you D00fy (some of us have come to think of you as kinda like the A.R. mascot), I'll say it now: fuck 'em all.
Doesn't matter whether you're talking about saw palmeto, milk thistle, ALA, cranberry hoopla, or beta-ad infinitum, ad nauseam, the notion that supplements will do anything is anecdotal - that means that it's not supported by clinical research recognized by any branch of established medicine.
That doesn't mean that some of these things cannot do any good - some probably can. But they can also do a lot of harm. And when the rubber meets the road, if I'm going to take something that's "good" for my kidneys, liver, prostate, or anything else, I want it to be something that has been supported by some very tight-assed research. Understand? I'm not saying, "Don't use them," I'm saying that you should do some credible research to learn the pros and cons of supps.
So what is good for your kidneys, liver, and prostate? Exercise and a healthy diet, period, unless you have a legitimate medical reason to be taking something else to help them along. And if you're going to do any kind of steroid cycle, structuring that cycle to make a positive (rather than negative) contribution to your overall body condition.
But the best recommendation I can give you is to get checked out thoroughly before doing a cycle, and to include lab work before the cycle (to get a baseline), once at the mid-cycle point (to make sure your readings have not gone out of whack), and post-cycle (to see how the big picture wraps itself up). Most people won't do this - some because they don't want to confess their intention to use AS to a doctor - but the more you know, the better you will be. Because even more than anabolics, bro, knowledge is power.
Re: The usual reality check . . .
Quote:
Originally posted by TNT
There is a technical name for this - Digital Rectal Exam. And if any of you - even you, o doof one - goes to a doctor for a physical exam and he or she doesn't give you the finger up the butt, find another doctor. Because that is the standard test for prostate enlargement.
There is also a blood test called the Prostate Specific Antigen, recommend for all men over 40 or 50 (depending on the guidelines you use) once a year - younger men if you have a family history of prostate cancer.
And quite frankly, if you've got the balls to see a doctor for lab work prior to, during, and after a cycle (all of which I recommend, regardless of age), you should include a PSA as well. But when getting checked out, it's not either/or, it's both - you should want both the finger and the PSA, especially since prostate cancer is the most common type of cancer in guys.
Now, as far as the supplements you have discussed in this thread, I've never said this before. But because I've come to care about you D00fy (some of us have come to think of you as kinda like the A.R. mascot), I'll say it now: fuck 'em all.
Doesn't matter whether you're talking about saw palmeto, milk thistle, ALA, cranberry hoopla, or beta-ad infinitum, ad nauseam, the notion that supplements will do anything is anecdotal - that means that it's not supported by clinical research recognized by any branch of established medicine.
That doesn't mean that some of these things cannot do any good - some probably can. But they can also do a lot of harm. And when the rubber meets the road, if I'm going to take something that's "good" for my kidneys, liver, prostate, or anything else, I want it to be something that has been supported by some very tight-assed research. Understand? I'm not saying, "Don't use them," I'm saying that you should do some credible research to learn the pros and cons of supps.
So what is good for your kidneys, liver, and prostate? Exercise and a healthy diet, period, unless you have a legitimate medical reason to be taking something else to help them along. And if you're going to do any kind of steroid cycle, structuring that cycle to make a positive (rather than negative) contribution to your overall body condition.
But the best recommendation I can give you is to get checked out thoroughly before doing a cycle, and to include lab work before the cycle (to get a baseline), once at the mid-cycle point (to make sure your readings have not gone out of whack), and post-cycle (to see how the big picture wraps itself up). Most people won't do this - some because they don't want to confess their intention to use AS to a doctor - but the more you know, the better you will be. Because even more than anabolics, bro, knowledge is power. [/B]
Amen brother. Bump and read it again.
My prostate is swollen - it started up about 5 weeks into deca-d-bol/sus. I piss every 20 minutes sometimes. I'm going to try proscar next time. I'll post the results.