After a cycle of anabolic steroids, your body requires post cycle therapy (PCT). This will help to counteract all the negative effects of the drugs and to fight rising estrogen levels. Without a PCT, not only will you experience liver toxicity, but you’ll lose all of your gains and only have low Testosterone to show for it.
Nolvadex is one substance which is popular with bodybuilders as part of their post cycle therapy treatment. It might help to reduce the damage caused by steroids, but what you might not realize is that Nolvadex has a whole host of side effects all its own. Read on to find out more.
What is Nolvadex? Nolvadex began as a breast cancer medication known as ‘Tamoxifen’. It helps stop the spread of the cancer to other parts of the body. But how did a drug for breast cancer wind up in the hands of steroid users?
Well, Nolvadex has two primary characteristic that caught the attention of the bodybuilding community. As a Selective Estrogen Receptor Modulator (SERM), Nolvadex has been shown to prevent estrogen binding. Couple that with the benefit of increasing your natural testosterone levels and it soon becomes clear why muscle-bound men and women use it.
How to use Nolvadex Due to its anti-estrogenic and pro-testosterone effects, bodybuilders tend to take Nolva both during and immediately following a cycle. As mentioned above, this ensures that estrogen isn’t able to bind and testosterone levels stay high.
Natural levels of Testosterone are going to be incredibly low after a cycle of steroids. It can take up to 12 months for them to be fully restored, assuming they’re not suppressed long-term by estrogen. Nolvadex can help to fight off estrogen while promoting an increase in Testosterone production.
A typical Nolvadex dosage is between 10 and 40 mg, depending on size, goals and the length of the cycle. Since it’s a medication, you won’t find Nolvadex sitting on your store shelf; however, it’s possible to buy Nolva online. When trying to buy this popular PCT, many users find Nolvadex marketed as ‘Nolva’.
5 Nolvadex side effects Sure, it’s a popular PCT and users claim it’s a necessity after a steroid cycle, but what you may not realize is Nolvadex can cause a whole host of other issues, making it just as problematic as the steroid cycle itself. Let’s review the 5 most troubling Nolvadex side effects.
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Gains… What gains?
One of the main reasons bodybuilders take steroids is to increase a hormone called Insulin-like Growth Factor (IGF-1). IGF-1 is one of the best ways to stimulate growth hormone production inside the body; promoting a seriously anabolic playground for your muscles to enjoy.
If you’re going to put yourself and your organs through all the side effects that come with steroids, you better make it worthwhile. But if you’re taking Nolva, you’re going to be sadly disappointed.
Studies show that subjects taking a 20 mg dose (10 mg twice a day) of Nolvadex experienced a significant drop in IGF-1 levels.
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Non-existent libido
Guys, this one is for you: Despite claims that Nolvadex can jumpstart your Testosterone levels, it can also kill your sex drive.
Subjects in numerous studies, not to mention plenty of forum users, complained about having a severely low libido when taking Novaldex. For some guys, their non-existent libido was enough to make them drop from the study. Yikes!
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You’ll lose your hair
Hair loss is a sore point for both men and women. In the quest to build muscle, when you take Nolvadex, you could be trading your thick head of hair for a set of bigger biceps. Is that a swap you want?
Several studies have demonstrated the common occurrence of hair thinning and hair loss when subjects have taken Nolva. To make matters worse, anabolic steroids are also notorious for prompting hair loss, much more so than Nolvadex, so just imagine what’s going to happen when you take the two together. Hope you have a nice hat at home.
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It can make you dumb
One of the ways that researchers test to see if a patient will tolerate Nolvadex well is by measuring their cognitive ability before and during treatment. For most, Nolvadex is well-tolerated, but for some, well, it can drop you down a few IQ points.
Studies show that subjects who did not tolerate Nolvadex well performed worse on basic verbal memory and cognitive tests. First, no muscle, and now no memory.
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It can cause cancer (seriously!)
Ladies, listen up: Your body takes a beating from your steroid cycle, then you think you’re doing yourself a favor by taking Nolvadex. Turns out, Not so much.
Studies show that women who take Nolvadex have an increased risk of endometrial cancer. In one study published in the South Asian Journal of Cancer, a patient was successfully cured of breast cancer after Nolvadex therapy only to discover that she had developed endometrial cancer. The cause? Nolvadex.
Admittedly, researchers point out the benefits of Nolvadex in treating breast cancer outweigh this risk. But chances are if you’re using Nolva for muscle building, you don’t have breast cancer – so don’t risk it.
A natural alternative to Nolvadex After reading about all these side effects, do you really want to risk it, especially when there’s a natural alternative waiting for you? Forget about Nolvadex. You can get the same benefits from natural supplements that won’t give you these issues.
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Have you ever tried Nolvadex? What adverse effects did you suffer from? Tell us about it in the comments below.
