A Basic guide to Human Growth Hormone (HGH)

Human Growth Hormone (somatotropin – also referred to as rHGH, HGH, or GH) is created by the pituitary gland, the primary form consisting of a 191 amino acid chain. When we are young, HGH is in big part responsible for the proper growth of bones, muscle, and other tissues. Too little of this hormone and we remain dwarfs too much and we become giants and/or suffer from abnormal growth deformities. As we become adults, HGH is responsible for keeping muscles from wasting away, supports healthy immune system response, regulates aspects of our metabolic function dealing with increased fat metabolism and healthy body composition in later life, and maintains and repairs our skin and other tissues.

Our levels of HGH peak while we are adolescents and then begin to drop off sharply beginning in our 30’s. By our 60’s, our daily HGH secretion can be as little as 10% of what it was during our youth. Many of the markers of aging are affected by this decrease in HGH. Some of the results of this are:

• Increase in fat.
• Decrease in muscle and lean body structures.
• Decreased skin texture resulting in a less youthful appearance.
• Decreased bone density, onset of osteoporosis.
• Decreased brain function, loss of intellect with aging.
• Decreased sex drive.
• Decrease in overall physical and mental well being.
• Increase in sleep disorders, lower quality of sleep.
• Depression and fatigue.

The addition of supplemental HGH beginning in the latter 30’s can reverse or improve these symptoms in the majority of people attempting therapy. This is why you will often hear references with respect to HGH as “the fountain of youth” and other similar terms. It can present a better quality of life for those aging.

HGH is secreted from the pituitary in a pulsatile fashion, generally following a circadian rhythm. A number of stimuli can initiate an HGH secretion, the most powerful being short duration, high intensity exercise and sleep. During the first few hours of sleep (deep sleep stages – about 2 hours after you fall asleep), Somatostatin is turned off and GHRH is turned on, resulting in HGH pulses.

Growth Hormone Releasing Hormone (GHRH) produced by the hypothalamus stimulates HGH secretion. HGH, and IGF-1 create a negative feedback loop, meaning when their levels are high; it blunts release of GHRH, which in turn blunts the release of more HGH.

Somatostatin (SS), secreted by the hypothalamus as well as other tissues inhibits the secretion of HGH Somatostatin in response to GHRH and to other stimulatory factors such as low blood glucose concentration. High levels of IGF-1 also stimulate Somatostatin secretion.

Ghrelin is a peptide hormone secreted from the stomach. Ghrelin binds to receptors on somatotrophs and potently stimulates secretion of growth hormone. Ghrelin, as the stimulator for the growth hormone secretagogue receptor, potently stimulates secretion of growth hormone. The ghrelin signal is integrated with that of growth hormone releasing hormone and somatostatin to control the timing and magnitude of growth hormone secretion.

Once HGH is released, it is very short lived. It is generally metabolized and gone within a half-hour. During this half-hour, it travels to the liver and other tissues and induces them to secrete a polypeptide hormone called Insulin-like Growth Factor One (IGF-1).

As mentioned above, HGH is short lived, but during its short half-hour or so activity per burst from the pituitary, it exerts itself through direct and indirect effects.

Its direct effects are the result of the HGH binding its receptor on target cells. Fat cells (adipocytes) as well as myocytes (muscle cells) have HGH receptors. On fat cells, HGH stimulates them to break down triglyceride and suppresses the fat cells ability to uptake circulating lipids.

Its indirect effects are in the process we described in the section above. When HGH travels to the liver, one of the results of its pass through the liver is the livers secretion of IGF-1. When this IGF-1 is secreted, it stimulates proliferation of chondrocytes (cartilage cells), which result in bone growth. It also plays a part in stimulating both the proliferation and differentiation of myoblasts (the precursor to skeletal muscle fibers). IGF-1 also stimulates amino acid uptake and protein synthesis in muscle and other tissues. Other tissues (muscle, etc.) are acted on by the presence of HGH, also inducing their release of IGF-1.

HGH stimulates protein anabolism in many tissues. This reflects increased protein synthesis, decreased oxidation of proteins, and increased amino acid uptake. As mentioned above, HGH enhances fat utilization by stimulating triglyceride breakdown and oxidation in fat cells (adipocytes).

HGH can affect the function of other hormones. HGH can suppress the abilities of insulin to stimulate the uptake of glucose in tissues and enhance glucose synthesis in the liver, though administering HGH actually stimulates insulin secretion and can create a state of hyperinsulinemia. This combination can lead to decreased insulin sensitivity, which in turn can lead to hyperglycemia. HGH can in the right circumstances also have a slight inhibitory effect on the function of our thyroid hormones (and actually vice versa as well), though this varies greatly from individual to individual. The vast majority of users have no need to worry about this at all. Others wishing to increase their metabolism or enhance certain of HGH’s functions may wish to consider low dose thyroid to their HGH cycle. We’ll offer some strategies later in this guide.

So, we are looking at a hormone that can assist with maintenance and healing of most of the body’s systems, can create new cartilage, bone, and muscle cells, can assist with protein uptake, decrease the oxidation of proteins, and can accelerate the rate at which fat is utilized. This paints the picture of the excitement that follows HGH. How then do we utilize this to our advantage? Let’s take a look at some strategies.

There are a few strategies for increasing your own endogenous production of HGH. For the most part these aren’t going to give us a significant enough increase that would be necessary to promote all of the benefits mentioned above in their full measure, but for some (those still young) they will prove to be sufficient.

By adding several grams of Arginine and Glutamine to our daily supplement program, we can increase our levels of HGH. If we are very young or we are only in need of a modest jump in production, this may well do the trick. Short duration, high-intensity exercise (think heavy leg day – puking and all), will trigger our bodies to secrete a significant amount of HGH

Another possibility is to inject various related hormones or peptides. There are many available, such as GHRH, GHRP (and all of its analogs), and the like. These peptides are available from research companies and when injected at doses of 100mcgs per day, sub-q it does seem to show promise in increasing levels of HGH. At this stage the game, there isn’t a significant cost advantage to this over rHGH, but if we are trying to promote some of the other forms of HGH in addition to the primary form, or have no hope of securing a prescription for HGH (or other means of access) there may be an advantage to this course of action. Aside from these strategies, what are we left with? To state it simply, we need to inject exogenous rHGH.

True HGH only comes in the form of a lyophilized powder. Any other form that you see advertised or run across is NOT the real deal. The only way to administer true HGH is by sub-q or intramuscular injection. You will see studies that use IV as their method of administration, but that is certainly NOT recommended (in fact it is just outright crazy), nor necessary in any way for getting all of the benefits HGH has to offer.

HGH is somewhat fragile by nature, and it needs to be protected from light and heat. HGH should be stored between 36 and 46 degrees Fahrenheit at all times both before and after its reconstitution.

There are a couple of American brands of HGH that can survive in normal room temperature for a reasonable amount of time BEFORE reconstitution  but for the most part it is better to err on the side of safe rather than sorry. All brands of HGH should be refrigerated after being reconstituted, and all brands should be protected from light at all times.

How Is Testosterone Deficiency “low T” Diagnosed?

Testosterone deficiency, popularly known as “low Testosterone”, has entered the center stage in both the lay and medical communities. However, how is Testosterone deficiency (a.k.a. hypogonadism) diagnosed? What is the testosterone level threshold below which you can say you have low Testosterone? What are the references ranges for healthy men?

The Endocrine Society clinical practice guideline recommends making a diagnosis of Testosterone deficiency only in men with consistent symptoms and signs, who also have unequivocally low blood Testosterone levels. They recommend Testosterone therapy for men with symptomatic androgen deficiency, with the goal to improve their sexual function, sense of well-being, muscle mass and strength, and bone mineral density.

The Endocrine Society clinical practice guideline is against starting testosterone therapy in patients with:

• Prostate cancer or prostate-specific antigen (PSA) greater than 4 ng/ml or greater than 3 ng/ml in men at high risk for prostate cancer (such as African-Americans or men with first-degree relatives with prostate cancer without further urological evaluation).
• Hematocrit greater than 50%.
• Severe lower urinary tract symptoms with International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) above 19.
• Uncontrolled heart failure.

When Testosterone therapy is instituted, we suggest aiming at achieving Testosterone levels during treatment in the mid-normal range with any of the approved formulations, chosen on the basis of the patient’s preference, consideration of pharmacokinetics, treatment burden, and cost. Men receiving Testosterone therapy should be monitored.

The normative reference ranges for total and free Testosterone levels in healthy young men vary among assays and laboratories. While variation between laboratories for the same Testosterone assay (analytical method) is negligible, it should be noted that reference intervals for Testosterone (as well as LH and FSH) differ widely and significantly between assays.

In some laboratories, the lower limit of the normal range for total Testosterone level in healthy young men is 280–300 ng/dl (9.8–10.4 nmol/liter), and the lower limit of the normal range for free Testosterone level (measured by the equilibrium dialysis method) is 5–9 pg/ml (0.17–0.31 nmol/liter).

According to the medical guidelines, clinicians should use the lower limit of the normal range for healthy young men established in the specific assay that is used.

However, it should be noticed that many assays have established Testosterone reference ranges that were compiled from small convenience samples of subjects, and frequently used unreliable laboratory analytics based on the immunoassay technique, whose accuracy, particularly in the low range, has been questioned. Importantly, the immunoassay technique, which is the most widely used method for measuring total Testosterone levels, overestimates true levels and has very limited accuracy at levels below 300 ng/dl. Another study found that over 60% of the samples tested (with Testosterone levels within the adult male range) measured by most commercial assays had a spread of up to +/- 20% of those reported by LC-MS (liquid chromatography mass spectrometry), which is the gold standard Testosterone analytical method.

Table 1 shows reference ranges for total and free Testosterone levels, established in a large population of healthy young men aged 19-40 years and older men aged 70-89 years, using the gold standard LC-MS analytical method.

The first thing to note when comparing the reference ranges between young and older men is the dramatic decline Testosterone levels. Total Testosterone levels in older men are about 40-50% lower than that of younger men. Free Testosterone levels drop even more with age. This data confirms findings from previous studies which have shown that as men get older, levels of free (or bio-available) Testosterone decline at a faster rate than total Testosterone levels.

According to the approach used for defining reference limits for biological parameters, total and free Testosterone values below the 2.5th percentile (approximately 2 SD [standard deviations] below the mean) are deemed low. For total and free Testosterone in young men, this corresponds to 348 ng/dL and 70 pg/mL, respectively. The same applies to defining the high end of the reference limit (approximately 2 SD above the mean). For total and free Testosterone, this corresponds to 1197 ng/dL and 230 pg/mL, respectively.

As table 1 shows, the normal range for both total and free Testosterone is large, going all the way up to 1322 ng/dL in young men. This means that there is a lot of room for expression of different health outcomes when contrasting the low end with the high end of the normal range. In other words, it is very likely that being in the low end will have very different health consequences vs. being in the high end.

Symptoms

As stated by the US Endocrine Society, and also by European medical organizations, the diagnosis of Testosterone deficiency requires the presence of symptoms and signs suggestive of Testosterone. Table 2 lists symptoms and signs suggestive of androgen deficiency in men, according to the Endocrine Society.

TABLE 2. Symptoms and signs suggestive of androgen deficiency in men.

More specific symptoms and signs of low-Testosterone

• Reduced sexual desire (libido) and activity
• Decreased spontaneous erections
• Loss of body (axillary and pubic) hair, reduced shaving
• Very small or shrinking testes
• Inability to father children, low or zero sperm count
• Low bone mineral density
• Hot flushes, sweats

Other less specific symptoms and signs of low-Testosterone

• Decreased energy, motivation, initiative, and self-confidence
• Feeling sad or blue, depressed mood, dysthymia
• Poor concentration and memory
• Sleep disturbance, increased sleepiness
• Mild anemia (normochromic, normocytic, in the female range)
• Reduced muscle bulk and strength
• Increased body fat, body mass index
• Diminished physical or work performance

Questionnaires

Several questionnaires are available to help doctors make a diagnosis of Testosterone deficiency according to the current medical clinical guidelines. The Androgen Deficiency in Aging Men (ADAM) and the Aging Male Survey (AMS) questionnaires are two examples. Table 3 shows what you will get asked in the ADAM questionnaire.

Table 3: The Androgen Deficiency in Aging Males (ADAM) questionnaire.

1. Do you have a decrease in libido (sex drive)?
2. Do you have a lack of energy?
3. Do you have a decrease in strength and ⁄ or endurance?
4. Have you lost height?
5. Have you noticed a decreased enjoyment of life?
6. Are you sad and ⁄ or grumpy?
7. Are your erections less strong?
8. Have you noticed a recent deterioration in your ability to play sports?
9. Are you falling asleep after dinner?
10. Has there been a recent deterioration in your work performance?

If the answer is ‘yes’ to question 1 or 7, or at least 3 of the other questions, you might have a low Testosterone level.

While the ADAM and AMS questionnaires may be useful rough screening tools to screen for hypogonadism across the adult male lifespan, it should be noted that they (like all other questionnaires) are non-specific, i.e. lack diagnostic accuracy. In other words, a man who doesn’t fulfill the criteria can still have low Testosterone levels, and vice versa, a man who does fulfill the criteria can have Testosterone levels in the normal range. Therefore, the symptoms and signs related to lowTestosterone levels are only suggestive, not diagnostic of hypogonadism.

Stretch and anabolic steroid combination produces muscle growth

Imagine: an injury means you can’t train for a while, but you can use anabolic steroids. In this hypothetical situation you can maintain more muscle mass by doing stretch exercises. You may even be able to build up a little bit of muscle mass, according to an new animal study.

The researchers, who work at Kagoshima University in Japan, gave rats Methenolone  in a dose of 20 mg/kg bodyweight. The human equivalent of this dose is about 200-300 mg. The researchers injected the steroid directly into the small intestine. A control group was given no methenolone.

The rats were sedated, which meant that the researchers could stretch the animals’ right-hand gastrocnemius muscle. They did this 15 times a minute for 15 consecutive minutes. The researchers did nothing with the left-hand gastrocnemius.

Twenty-four hours later the Japanese observed that the combination of stretches and the anabolic steroid had boosted the synthesis of Mechano Growth Factor.  Mechano Growth Factor is a stripped down version of IGF-1. Fundamental research has shown that the anabolic effect of MGF is so strong that the researchers are convinced that the combination brings about muscle growth.

The researchers also looked at the synthesis of the anabolic signal proteins Myo-D and myogenin, but found no effect.

“Mechanical stimulation of skeletal muscle in conjunction with the administration of an anabolic steroid induced mRNA expression of Mechano Growth Factor.”, the researchers conclude. “This finding suggests that the combination of anabolic steroids with muscle stretching exercise could promote muscle strengthening in patients with muscle weakness.”

The reason that the researchers don’t attach so much importance to the absence of an effect of the stretch-methenolone combination on Myo-D and myogenin is probably to be found in an animal study. In that study the researchers used no steroids. In one group of experimental animals the researchers kept the right gastrocnemius muscle stretched for 15 minutes and did nothing with the left gastrocnemius.

In another group of rats the researchers stretched the right gastrocnemius 15 times a minute for a period of 15 minutes and did nothing with the left gastrocnemius. This is also the protocol that the researchers used in the experiments when they gave the rats methenolone.

At the end of the week the researchers observed an increased synthesis of Myo-Dand myogenin in the  group. Apparently muscle cells subjected to stretching need longer than a day to boost the production of Myo-D and myogenin.

“In conclusion, passive stretching for a short duration once daily at several days within a 1-week period is effective in the growth of the skeletal muscle”, the researchers conclude in the older study. “Repetitive stretching is suggested to have greater effects than continuous stretching. These findings suggest that passive stretching is useful in the prevention and maintenance of skeletal muscle tone in patients who are unconscious or paralyzed.”

How to use Sustanon 250

• Cycle length – 6 weeks 
• Normally you have to inject once a week. But if you are dissatisfied with the results, try to split it on two shots, if possible.
• Start anti-estrogen from week 2, 10mg/ED and stop 4 weeks after it.
• Start using natural testosterone boosters - 3 weeks after the cycle.
• For maximum efficiency use proteins and special diet
• For better results try to stack it.

Sustanon is a mixture of different testosterone esters. First developed and introduced by Organon as a means of hormone replacement therapy when there is insufficient secretion of endogenous testosterone. Currently, almost all of the mixture of testosterone esters equated to Sustanon, a large number of drugs manufactured clandestinely .

Sustanon contains 4 forms of testosterone :

30mg Testosterone Propionate

60mg Testosterone Phenylpropionate

60mg Testosterone Isocaproate

100mg Testosterone Decanoate

Each form of testosterone, which is part of Sustanon has a different rate of absorption, which allows to maintain constant high level of anabolic hormones in the blood during the month. There is no need to perform frequent injections, for medical purposes Sustanon is injected only 1 time in three weeks. Some believe that Sustanon is a combined course in one bottle, but it is not true, because every component of the drug converted in the body only in testosterone.

Sustanon works just like any other form of testosterone. This means that the main effects of sustanon are:

• Increased muscle mass ( an average of 6 kg per month)
• Anti catabolic effect
• Increased appetite
• Increased blood – increasing the number of red blood cells provides a better oxygen transport , due to which increases endurance
• Increased libido (at the time of taking sustanon)
• Doping control: Time of detection of the drug is up to 3 months.

Sustanon – side effects

Like any other form of testosterone, Sustanon is converted into estrogens. For this reason, Sustanon cause side effects such as gynecomastia, edema, deposition of fat on the female type and the oppression of its own testosterone production. These side effects can be prevented, if applied antiestrogen – Tamoxifen (Nolvadex) or Clomiphene citrate (Clomid).

As a result of reduced production of endogenous testosterone may develop a serious adverse effect of Sustanon is testicular atrophy. This side effect can be prevented if you do not do a course of Sustanon longer than 8 weeks and take antiestrogen. For longer courses require the use HCG.

In the body, testosterone is converted into dihydrotestosterone, which causes the following side effects: hypertrophy of the prostate, baldness, acne and others. This so-called androgenic side effects of Sustanon .

Also, athletes often report fever and flu-like condition during the course of  Sustanon . Like most steroids, Soest increases the level of harmful cholesterol in the blood.