Folate (folic acid, vitamin B9)
Folacin, L-methylfolate, Methylfolate, Levomefolate, 5-MTHF, Vitamin B-9, Levomefolic acid
Forms: Folic acid (synthetic form in supplements and fortified foods), L-methylfolate (active form) and natural food folate.
B vitamin needed for red blood cells and, together with B12, for keeping homocysteine low. Deficiency causes megaloblastic anaemia.
Legal status: Sold freely as a supplement and as a licensed medicine for deficiency and pregnancy; not prohibited in sport.
What it gives
What people use it for and what the sources report. Strength is a general category from the literature: mild, clear or strong.
Purpose
Steroid users take it because AAS can raise homocysteine, a marker linked to clots. A doctor may check homocysteine, folate and B12 and correct a deficiency. It does not prevent steroid-related clots or stroke and is not a performance supplement.
What people seek and what studies show
Folic acid lowers raised homocysteine by about a quarter. Bodybuilders on AAS had higher homocysteine than non-users, and an AAS user with folate and B12 deficiency and an MTHFR variant had a stroke with multiple clots. In large trials, homocysteine-lowering B vitamins did not reduce heart attacks or deaths and cut strokes only slightly.
Effects
Evidence: Approved medicine — studied in people for its medical use
Sought effects by goal (as reported)
Possible side effects
Possible does not mean certain: whether they appear depends on dose, duration, individual response and monitoring. Below — what to watch for and how to notice it early.
1 possible side effect
level · how often it is reportedWhat the levels mean
Level: general category from the literature, not your personal risk
How often
- common
- reported often
- possible
- reported in some people
- rare
- reported occasionally
How to lower the risks
For 1 of 1 possible side effect there are specific ways to lower the chance: everyday measures, supplements and options a doctor may consider. No measure removes a risk completely.
Low-level side effects
How each option helps (1)
- Working with a doctor — Finds treatable causes of numbness early: low vitamin B12 on metformin, copper deficiency from excess zinc, nerve compression from GH-driven swelling.
Check-ups and blood tests
Which tests and check-ups to do and when. This is a guide — agree the exact schedule with your doctor.
For women
Folic acid lowers the risk of neural tube defects such as spina bifida in the baby; WHO and many national guidelines recommend it for women planning or able to become pregnant.
Myth & fact
“Folate prevents clots and stroke on steroids.”
It lowers homocysteine, only one of several clot factors. Trials of B vitamins showed no fewer heart attacks and only a small drop in strokes, and folate does not address high haematocrit, blood pressure or lipids.
Combinations
No specific combination notes for this substance yet. The stack check still adds up side effects that several substances share.
Sources
Possible side effects by body system, combinations, how to lower the risks and which tests to do — free.
Open the stack check