To build bone and muscle and to regulate metabolism, the body creates human growth hormone. Unfortunately, the creation of human growth hormone declines with age. There is now a synthetic growth hormone that is available for children with growth abnormalities, people who are wasting away with AIDS, and adults that have deficiencies of the hormone. It is also possible that it can help to speed the healing process in grafts on severely burned patients. The use of this synthetic hormone is helpful for those who need it. For those who do not need it – healthy individuals – there are actually more risks than there are benefits.
By now we all know that New England Patriots safety Rodney Harrison has admitted to using synthetic human growth hormones that he obtained without a prescription to help heal his football injuries. And it is becoming apparent that he was not alone in the world of professional sports in thinking that the human growth hormone is something of a wonder drug. Other professional athletes have been using the synthetic hormone as well. But is it actually doing them any good?
Synthetic growth hormone that is prescribed to an adult that is deficient in the human growth hormone can increase bone density, improve cholesterol levels, increase the thickness of the skin, increase energy and reduce fat. It would seem that the use of the human growth hormone in a healthy individual would also help in these areas, but research is showing that this is not true. There is some evidence that it might help with healing sin fractures, but so far there is no evidence that it actually helps to heal anything else. There can be a small increase in lean body mass, but that is partly due to retained fluid. There can be a small decrease in body fat from the use of synthetic grown hormone, but there is no evidence that it will produce an increase in muscle strength or other physical performance.
What can the synthetic growth hormone do to a healthy adult? It can cause joint pain, fluid retention, and carpal tunnel syndrome. It can also increase the risk of diabetes, cause high blood pressure, cause heart abnormalities, and can shorten the lifespan. And – for those of you macho men who are thinking about trying this particular illegal drug to pump yourself up – it can also cause breast development in men.
All in all, if you are a healthy adult the result of using synthetic growth hormone is all pain and no real gain.
