How to Reduce the Side Effects of Testosterone

Silliness ranging from hair loss, impotence, a smaller penis, gynecomastia (breast enlargement), liver cancer, depression, psychosis to roid rage!

The extremeness of it all may cause you to either run in horror, or not believe anything.

I'm sure you remember being told lies about alcohol, marijuana, and masturbation as a teenager.

"You're going to get brain damage, develop hairy palms, drop out of school, become a crack head..." Blah, blah, blah.

You probably didn't listen to them then and may not even be listening to them now. Are the side effects of testosterone any different?

Like most people, you know moderation and abuse are different sides of a coin. Yes, there are some side effects to testosterone therapy... but if you’re smart about it, you can reap all the benefits and miss the negatives when administering testosterone to high normal or beyond dosages.

Here's a shortlist of the most common side effects of testosterone.

Most Common Testosterone Therapy Side Effects

The majority of the side effects you don't get from the testosterone itself. It's from the metabolites (what it turns in to); estrogen and DHT (dihydrotestosterone). If you minimize the conversions to these two compounds, you will severely restrict their development.

Acne is generally caused by high DHT and/or high cortisol.

Best Acne Supplements

Vitamin A and B5 (pantothenic acid) dry your skin from the inside out, at the source, unlike the outside like many topical preparations (i.e. ProActive). For the most part using topical treatments is a waste of time. If you can stop the oil from forming in the first place, you've won the battle.

The blockbuster acne drug Accutane (Isotretinoin) works similar to vitamin A and B5 but with much harsher side effects! If you find high dose vitamin A and B5 isn't doing the job a few month trial, then Accutane will definitely knock it out. However due to Accutane's side effect profile I strongly encourage you to go the natural route first.

Benign Prostatic Hypertrophy (BPH), bloating, erectile dysfunction, and gynecomastia are all mainly caused from high estrogen.

If you keep estrogen in check, you will control the majority of all testosterone side effects. The drug Arimidex (Anastrozole) taken at 0.25mg every other day (EOD), under testosterone replacement therapy purposes, can control excess estrogen dead in it's tracks.

Arimidex is in the class of drugs call Aromatase Inhibitors. They prevent the conversion of testosterone to estrogen. Aromasin (Exemestane) 6 mg per day, is another AI similar to Arimidex that is very effective for estrogen control.

Great Anti-Estrogen Supplements

DHT Induced Side Effects of Testosterone

To prevent hair loss, your best bet is to lower DHT with the popular drug Propecia (Finasteride). It effectively blocks the conversion of testosterone to DHT. 1mg per day is generally sufficient.

You can also use the topical shampoo Nizoral (Ketoconazole), which blocks the effects of DHT at your scalp, thus preventing hair loss. Supplement wise... the best thing you can take to prevent the conversion of testosterone to DHT is pregnenolone.

Pregnenolone aka the mother hormone is responsible for creating all the major steroid hormones in your body. By increasing progesterone slightly (at healthy levels) it can help prevent DHT creation. 25-50mg of pregnenolone per day should suffice in helping control DHT to a more hair friendly zone.