Human Growth Hormone: Not Just For Beefcakes Anymore!

Yeah, Suzanne Somers made it creepy when she called it “sex in a capsule” and it’s banned in sports, but if you can push aside those pesky associations, you might actually give the Human Growth Hormone a second thought! Plus, other celebrity endorsements include Nick Nolte and Slyvester Stallone, who used the drug to beef up for the latest Rocky movie. And yeah, he looked totally beefy.

Okay, so, how does it work? HGH promotes growth while humans are young and diminishes as we get older, but — surprise! — people can still inject the hormone into themselves as they age (and it can be legally prescribed by ones doctor). The benefits are to be expected: more energy, better skin, a “spiced up sex life,” feeling young again, and other health benefits. Plus, the studies don’t lie: The New England Journal of Medicine determined that men who took HGH for 6 months reduced their body fat by 14%, while increasing muscle mass by 8.8%.

But let’s not forget that the HGH hormone is still quite controversial: putting a hormone back into one’s body that hasn’t resided there for years isn’t without risk. These risks include a rise in blood sugar, diabetes, swelling of joints and organs, hypertension, and breathing problems. But no ‘roid rage!