Banning muscle building prohormones

On October 22, 2004, President George Bush used his legislative power to sign into law the Anabolic Steroid Control Act of 2004. The acts was ratified by the U.S. Congress earlier in the month, and expanded upon the original Anabolic Steroid Control Act of 1990. At the center of the law was the addition of 26 new steroid compounds to the previous list of substances that are legally defined as "anabolic steroids" and placed under Schedule III of the list of controlled substances.

While some of the new muscle building compounds are true anabolic steroids that were missed in the original legislation of 1990, many are actually pro-hormones that were developed to cash in on the banning of anabolic steroids over a decade before. The new addictions include:

androstanediol
androstanedione
androstenediol
androstenedione
bolasterone
calusterone
*1-dihydrotestosterone (a.k.a. "1-testosterone")
furazabol
13b-ethyl-17a-hydroxygon-4-en-3-one
4-hydroxytestosterone
4-hydroxy-19-nortestosterone
mestanolone
17a-methyl-3b,17b-dihydroxy-5a-androstane
17a-methyl-3a,17b-dihydroxy-5a-androstane
17a-methyl-3b,17b-dihydroxyandrost-4-ene
17a-methyl-4-hydroxynandrolone
methyldienolone
methyltrienolone
17a-methyl-*1-dihydrotestosterone (a.k.a. "17-a-methyl-1-testosterone")
norandrostenediol
norandrostenedione
norbolethone
norclostebol
normethandrolone
stenbolone
tetrahydrogestrinone

Where the old law of 1990 required the use of the phrase promotes muscle growth, the new act dispenses with this. No longer would the Attorney General have to prove that a compound had anabolic properties. The revised criteria states that the compound only needs to be chemically and pharmacologically-related to the male hormone testosterone. Such creative language effectively places most of the newly-developed prohormones in the banned category.

Alternatives to Steroids - Prohormones and related compounds

Its not surprising that with arrival of the Anabolic Steroid Control Act of 1990, many law-abiding bodybuilders would look for legal, over-the-counter muscle-building alternatives. And recognizing the billions of dollars to be made, it wasnt long before supplement manufacturers responded with prohormones and other closely-related products.

If Ben Johnsons positive drug test in 1988 was the coming out party for muscle building steroids, prohormones got their biggest boost from former baseball slugger, Mark McGuire. During the 1998 baseball season, both McGuire and Sammy Sosa put on a tremendous exhibition of slugging power as they both chased Roger Maris single-season home run record of 61. McGuire smashed the record with 70 and seemed to be the perfect role model for kids, but his idol status was short-lived as a roving sports reporter spotted the supplement, androstenedione, one of the powerful new prohormones, in his locker.