Long term use of anabolic-androgenic steroids (synthetic testosterone) is associated with brain ageing and a decline in cognitive processing.
Long term use of anabolic-androgenic steroids (synthetic testosterone) is associated with brain ageing and a decline in cognitive processing.
One study suggests that long-term use of anabolic-androgenic steroids (AAS) may cause accelerated brain ageing in certain regions, which could lead to cognitive abnormalities.
A 2021 study by Bjørnebekk et al. [1] aimed to investigate the effects of long-term anabolic-androgenic steroid (AAS) use on brain ageing. The study included 229 male participants, 130 of whom were long-term AAS users and 99 were non-users. The participants underwent T1-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans to assess brain ageing. The results showed that long-term AAS use is associated with accentuated brain ageing in certain regions, particularly the frontal and cingulate regions. The study highlights the need for further research on the long-term effects of AAS use on brain health and cognition.
REFERENCES
Bjørnebekk, A., Kaufmann, T., Hauger, L. E., Klonteig, S., Hullstein, I. R., & Westlye, L. T. (2021). Long-term anabolic–androgenic steroid use is associated with deviant brain ageing. Biological Psychiatry: Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroimaging, 6(5), 579-589. [Link]