Oxymesterone
Oranabol, Theranabol, 4-hydroxy-17α-methyltestosterone, 4-hydroxymethyltestosterone
Oral steroidsControlled substanceWADA S1.1 · prohibitedEvidence: limited human data
A historic oral anabolic steroid (Oranabol): methyltestosterone with an added 4-hydroxy group. 17α-methylated, with the class liver and hormone risks and very little human data.
Legal status: Controlled anabolic steroid in many countries (US Schedule III); not an approved medicine in most places; status varies by country.
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
Used for strength and muscle gain. It still turns up occasionally in doping tests (one finding each in WADA's 2016 and 2019 figures). Its medical use is historical and poorly documented.
What people seek and what studies show
Its effects in people are poorly documented. A 1963 rat study compared its anabolic-to-androgenic ratio with fluoxymesterone and mestanolone, and a 1970 Italian study followed cholesterol during long treatment. There are no controlled studies in athletes; effects at sport doses are known only from user reports.
Effects
Evidence: Limited human data — some human studies, small or short
Sought effects by goal (as reported)
Mass
Sought for: muscle growth, strength
Recomposition
Sought for: muscle growth
Strength
Sought for: strength, muscle growth
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.
12 possible side effects
level · how often it is reportedElevated
Worse cholesterol (HDL↓ LDL↑)
commonNo modern data; 17α-methylated orals typically lower HDL more than injectable testosterone. Only a lipid panel shows it.
How to notice: No symptoms — only visible on a lipid panel.
Elevated
Suppression of natural testosterone & fertility
commonSuppresses natural testosterone and sperm production, like all AAS; recovery after stopping takes time.
How to notice: Lower libido and energy, smaller testicles; low natural testosterone on tests after stopping.
In women: Menstrual changes or missed periods, lower libido and energy; reduced fertility.
Elevated
Liver strain
possible17α-methylated like methyltestosterone; this class is linked to cholestasis, peliosis and liver tumours. Dark urine, itching or yellow eyes need prompt liver tests.
How to notice: Usually silent early; later tiredness, nausea, itch, dark urine.
Moderate
Black-market quality risk (fakes, contamination)
commonNo pharmacy supply is known today; tablets sold under this name have uncertain origin and content.
How to notice: Unexpected effects, pain or infection, a stronger or weaker effect than expected.
Moderate
Heart strain / heart-muscle thickening
possibleIt was found in the urine of two young footballers who died of cardiac arrest at training; a causal link is unproven, and one heart was enlarged.
How to notice: Shortness of breath on effort, lower endurance, palpitations.
Moderate
Higher blood pressure
possibleIn lab tests it moderately blocked 11β-HSD2, the enzyme that keeps cortisol from retaining salt; whether this raises blood pressure in people is unknown.
How to notice: Often silent; sometimes headaches, flushing, nosebleeds — a home monitor shows it.
Moderate
Thick blood (hematocrit) / clot risk
possibleAAS raise hematocrit and clotting tendency, a route to thrombosis and stroke; a blood count tracks it.
How to notice: Often silent; sometimes headaches, flushed face, itch after a hot shower.
Moderate
Irritability, aggression, mood swings
possibleIrritability, recklessness and aggression are known AAS effects; changes others notice are a warning sign.
How to notice: Short temper, irritability, conflicts with others.
Moderate
Unknown long-term safety (little human data)
possibleLong-term human safety was never studied; known risks are borrowed from methyltestosterone and other 17α-methylated orals.
How to notice: Nothing to notice — the risk is what is not yet known.
Moderate
Kidney strain
rareRare: severe cholestatic jaundice from 17α-alkylated steroids can spill over to the kidneys (bile cast nephropathy) and lead to kidney failure.
How to notice: Usually silent; foamy urine or swelling in later stages.
MenLow
WomenHigh
Virilization in women (often irreversible)
commonAn androgen: in women voice deepening, facial hair, clitoral enlargement and menstrual changes are expected and may be permanent.
How to notice: Hoarse or deeper voice, new facial or body hair, menstrual changes, clitoral enlargement.
Low
Acne, oily skin
possibleOily skin and acne can occur, as with other testosterone derivatives.
How to notice: Oily skin, spots on back, shoulders and face.
What the levels mean
Lowbackground — just be aware
Moderatewatch for signs
Elevatedneeds regular control
Highcritical — can be life-threatening or permanent
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 10 of 12 possible side effects there are specific ways to lower the chance: everyday measures, supplements and options a doctor may consider. For the rest — general advice. No measure removes a risk completely. Prescription medicines are listed only for a doctor to decide on, after tests — they have side effects of their own.
ElevatedWorse cholesterol (HDL↓ LDL↑)
Avoid combining several oral steroids; regular cardio, soluble fiber (psyllium), less saturated fat and alcohol; if LDL/ApoB stay high, a doctor may consider a statin. Omega-3 only lowers triglycerides.
Measure
Supplement or OTC product
Only if a doctor prescribes
How each option helps (12)
- Regular blood tests — A lipid panel with ApoB shows how far HDL has dropped and LDL risen — changes you cannot feel.
- Working with a doctor — Interprets lipids and ApoB and decides whether a statin or other therapy is warranted.
- Avoiding alcohol and other liver stressors — Alcohol raises triglycerides; its small HDL bump does not lower heart risk.
- Regular cardio training — Raises HDL a little and lowers triglycerides; it cannot offset a steroid-driven fall in HDL on its own.
- Berberine — Placebo-controlled meta-analysis: LDL about 0.5 and triglycerides about 0.4 mmol/L lower; HDL unchanged. Trials are mostly small; no statin substitute.
- Citrus bergamot — Pooled small trials show lower LDL and triglycerides, but certainty is low to very low; it is no replacement for statins.
- Omega-3 (fish oil, EPA/DHA) — Clearly lowers triglycerides but does not fix the steroid HDL drop, the main lipid harm; DHA-containing oils may even raise LDL slightly.
- Psyllium husk fiber — Lowers LDL by about 0.2–0.3 mmol/L (roughly 5–10%), also on top of doctor-prescribed statins; no effect on HDL.
- Atorvastatin — A doctor may consider it when LDL or ApoB stay high; it strongly lowers them but barely lifts steroid-lowered HDL. Risks: muscle aches, drug interactions, rarely muscle or liver injury. Has side effects of its own.
- Rosuvastatin — A doctor may consider it when LDL or ApoB stay high; it strongly lowers them but barely lifts steroid-lowered HDL. Risks: muscle aches, rarely muscle or liver injury, slightly higher diabetes risk. Has side effects of its own.
- Ezetimibe — A doctor may consider it when LDL stays high on a statin or a statin isn't tolerated; it lowers LDL moderately but does not raise HDL. Risks: rare liver-enzyme rises. Has side effects of its own.
- Pravastatin / pitavastatin (low-interaction statins) — A doctor may consider them when LDL is high and other statins aren't tolerated; they lower LDL moderately and barely lift HDL. Risks: muscle aches, slightly higher diabetes risk. Has side effects of its own.
ElevatedSuppression of natural testosterone & fertility
Check hormones before and after; if they stay low, see an endocrinologist.
Measure
Only if a doctor prescribes
How each option helps (7)
- Regular blood tests — LH, FSH and testosterone show how deep suppression is and whether natural production has recovered afterwards.
- Working with a doctor — Assesses how deep suppression is and guides recovery afterwards, including fertility testing.
- Clomiphene — A doctor may consider it after stopping, guided by hormone tests; recovery after long use can still take months. Risks: vision changes, mood swings, rare clots. Has side effects of its own.
- Human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) — A doctor may consider it to preserve fertility (in men it keeps the testes working); it does not restart the pituitary, so natural LH still has to recover. Risks: higher estradiol, gynecomastia. Has side effects of its own.
- Tamoxifen — A doctor may consider it after steroids are stopped, guided by hormone tests; it has not been tested for this after steroid use. Risks: blood clots, vision changes. Has side effects of its own. Not offered to women: in the women’s view it adds to a risk this substance already carries.
- Follicle-stimulating hormone (follitropins, menotropins) — A fertility doctor may consider adding it to hCG when semen tests and FSH stay low; it does not restart the pituitary. Risks: gynecomastia, acne. Has side effects of its own.
- Toremifene — A doctor may consider it after steroids are stopped, guided by hormone tests; it raised testosterone in subfertile men but was never tested after steroids. Risks: QT prolongation, clots. Has side effects of its own. Not offered to women: in the women’s view it adds to a risk this substance already carries.
ElevatedLiver strain
No alcohol, no other liver stressors, limit oral steroids and their combinations, check liver enzymes.
Measure
Supplement or OTC product
Only if a doctor prescribes
How each option helps (6)
- Avoiding alcohol and other liver stressors — Removes a major extra liver stressor during oral steroids and other hepatotoxic drugs.
- Regular blood tests — ALT, AST, GGT and bilirubin show liver strain before symptoms; heavy lifting alone raises AST/ALT for days, and GGT helps tell muscle from liver.
- Ademetionine (SAMe) — Used for intrahepatic cholestasis in some countries, but trials are small and of low quality; untested in steroid users. Stopping the oral steroid matters most.
- N-acetylcysteine (NAC) — Restores glutathione; proven in paracetamol poisoning and helped in early acute liver failure of other causes, but untested in steroid users.
- TUDCA (tauroursodeoxycholic acid) — Improves bile flow in cholestatic disease; in steroid cholestasis only case reports, with failures in severe cases. Stopping the oral steroid matters most.
- Ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) — A doctor may consider it to improve bile flow; in steroid cholestasis benefit is unproven and severe cases often did not respond. Stopping the oral steroid comes first. Has side effects of its own.
ModerateBlack-market quality risk (fakes, contamination)
Products obtained without a prescription are often fake, mislabeled or non-sterile, and there is no way to check at home. For legal supplements, look for third-party testing (Informed Sport, NSF).
ModerateHeart strain / heart-muscle thickening
Regular cardio, blood pressure control, an echo as a baseline and then yearly.
Measure
How each option helps (4)
- Heart screening: ECG and echocardiogram — Echocardiography shows wall thickening and reduced pumping early, while stopping AAS and treating BP can still help.
- Working with a doctor — Orders ECG and echocardiography and treats early heart changes.
- Home blood-pressure monitoring — Keeping BP controlled is one of the main ways to limit heart-wall thickening.
- Regular cardio training — Supports heart and vessel function, but does not reverse steroid-related heart thickening or weakening.
ModerateHigher blood pressure
Less salt, regular cardio, good sleep; home readings; a doctor if it stays high.
Measure
Supplement or OTC product
How each option helps (8)
- Home blood-pressure monitoring — Seated, rested readings on several days show your true BP; persistently high values are a signal to see a doctor.
- Regular cardio training — Regular aerobic training lowers resting BP by a few mmHg, more in people with high BP.
- Working with a doctor — Diagnoses persistent hypertension and prescribes treatment when needed.
- Avoiding alcohol and other liver stressors — Regular drinking raises blood pressure; cutting it out lowers it.
- Coenzyme Q10 — Inconsistent: some analyses show a small systolic drop in cardiometabolic disease, but a Cochrane review found no clinically meaningful effect.
- Magnesium — Meta-analysis of trials: about 2 mmHg lower systolic pressure on average.
- Omega-3 (fish oil, EPA/DHA) — Small drop of a few mmHg, mainly in people with untreated high blood pressure.
- Taurine — Meta-analysis of 20 small trials: about 4 mmHg lower systolic pressure on average.
ModerateThick blood (hematocrit) / clot risk
Check the blood count regularly; if hematocrit stays high, a doctor decides — usually stopping or reducing the cause, sometimes therapeutic phlebotomy, never blood-bank donation. Avoid dehydration: it thickens the blood further.
Measure
How each option helps (3)
- Regular blood tests — A blood count shows hematocrit and hemoglobin climbing toward the range where clot and stroke risk rises.
- Therapeutic phlebotomy prescribed by a doctor — Only on a doctor's decision, never at a blood bank. Lowers hematocrit quickly but temporarily; repeated sessions drain iron, and a lower clot risk is unproven.
- Working with a doctor — Manages thick blood by changing what you use or, if justified, by therapeutic phlebotomy.
ModerateIrritability, aggression, mood swings
Good sleep, fewer stressors, tell someone close to you what to watch for.
Measure
How each option helps (2)
- Avoiding alcohol and other liver stressors — Alcohol and other drugs on top of steroids explain much of the link between steroid use and violence.
- Sleep hygiene — Enough sleep lowers irritability and improves impulse control.
ModerateUnknown long-term safety (little human data)
What is unknown cannot be lowered, only avoided; tell your doctor what you have taken.
ModerateKidney strain
Drink enough water, control blood pressure, avoid regular painkillers (NSAIDs).
Measure
How each option helps (3)
- Fluid & electrolyte management — Good hydration eases kidney stress from heavy training and heat; dehydration plus NSAIDs is a classic cause of acute kidney injury.
- Regular blood tests — Creatinine reads high in muscular people and with creatine; cystatin C and a urine test give a truer picture of the kidneys.
- Working with a doctor — Investigates protein in the urine or falling kidney function and can start treatment that slows kidney damage.
MenLow
WomenHigh
Stop at the first voice change and see a doctor — early stopping matters.
Measure
How each option helps (1)
- Working with a doctor — Steroid labels say to stop at the first mild signs (hoarse voice, facial hair, clitoral growth) to prevent permanent change; checks catch them early but do not make use safe.
Low-level side effects
Acne
Gentle skin care, cleansing after training, a dermatologist if it spreads.
Supplement or OTC product
How each option helps (3)
- Adapalene — Reduces spots in many users. Redness, scaling, dryness and stinging are common early and usually ease; acne may look worse at first. Rarely, allergic swelling.
- Benzoyl peroxide — A first-line acne option. Dryness, redness and peeling are common at first; it bleaches hair and fabric; rarely, serious allergic reactions. Severe steroid acne needs a dermatologist.
- Zinc — Trials show a modest drop in inflamed spots, weaker than antibiotics; steroid acne is driven by androgens.
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.
Baseline tests
your own starting values — every later result is compared with them
Lipid panel (HDL, LDL, triglycerides, ApoB)cholesterol, low estrogen
Liver panel (ALT, AST, GGT, bilirubin)liver
Complete blood count (hematocrit, hemoglobin)hematocrit
Kidney panel (creatinine, eGFR, cystatin C)blood pressure, kidneys
Testosterone (total, free), LH, FSH, SHBGnatural testosterone
Estradiol (sensitive assay)low estrogen
Home blood-pressure logblood pressure, heart, kidneys
ECGheart
Echocardiogram (heart ultrasound)heart
Urinalysiskidneys
While taking
about 4–6 weeks in, then every 6–8 weeks — agree the exact schedule with your doctor
Lipid panel (HDL, LDL, triglycerides, ApoB)cholesterol, low estrogen
Liver panel (ALT, AST, GGT, bilirubin)liver
Complete blood count (hematocrit, hemoglobin)hematocrit
Kidney panel (creatinine, eGFR, cystatin C)blood pressure, kidneys
Estradiol (sensitive assay)low estrogen
Home blood-pressure logblood pressure, heart, kidneys
Urinalysiskidneys
After stopping
4–8 weeks after stopping (later after long-acting injections), then until values return to baseline
Lipid panel (HDL, LDL, triglycerides, ApoB)cholesterol, low estrogen
Liver panel (ALT, AST, GGT, bilirubin)liver
Complete blood count (hematocrit, hemoglobin)hematocrit
Kidney panel (creatinine, eGFR, cystatin C)blood pressure, kidneys
Testosterone (total, free), LH, FSH, SHBGnatural testosterone
Semen analysisnot earlier than 3 months after stopping, then every 3 months until normalnatural testosterone
Every year
with regular or repeated use
ECGheart
Echocardiogram (heart ultrasound)heart
Which doctors can help
Sports physiciancoordinates everything
Cardiologistcholesterol, blood pressure, hematocrit, heart
Endocrinologistnatural testosterone, low estrogen
Gastroenterologist / hepatologistliver
Nephrologistkidneys
Psychotherapist / psychiatristmood
Gynecologistvirilization, natural testosterone (women)
At home
- Home blood pressure: 2–3 times a week in the morning, keep a log
Get medical help at once if
- Yellow skin or eyes, dark urine, pale stools, intense itching, pain under the right ribs — see a doctor now; sudden severe abdominal pain with dizziness or fainting — call emergency services.
- Sudden severe headache, vision changes, numbness or weakness on one side, trouble speaking — call emergency services.
- Swelling, pain or redness in one leg; sudden shortness of breath or chest pain; sudden one-sided weakness or numbness, trouble speaking or seeing — seek urgent care.
- Chest pain or pressure, breathlessness on light effort, swollen ankles, fainting — seek urgent care.
- Much less urine than usual, cola-colored urine, new swelling, flank pain — see a doctor now.
- Losing control of anger, thoughts of harming yourself or others — stop and get help today.
- Deepening voice, new facial hair, clitoral enlargement — stop and see a doctor: changes can become permanent. (women)
In an emergency, call your local emergency number.
For women
There are no data in women. As an androgen it is expected to cause voice deepening, facial hair, clitoral enlargement and menstrual changes, which may be permanent; the liver risk is the same as for men.
Myth & fact
Myth
“Old, forgotten steroids are milder than the popular ones.”
Fact
Rare means less studied, not safer: oxymesterone is 17α-methylated like methyltestosterone and was found in two young athletes who died of cardiac arrest.
Combinations
No specific combination notes for this substance yet. The stack check still adds up side effects that several substances share.
Sources
Kennedy MC, Lawrence C. Anabolic steroid abuse and cardiac death. Med J Aust 1993 (opens in a new tab)Fürstenberger C et al. The anabolic androgenic steroid fluoxymesterone inhibits 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase 2-dependent glucocorticoid inactivation (oxymesterone: medium inhibition). Toxicol Sci 2012 (opens in a new tab)Nieschlag E, Vorona E. Doping with anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS): adverse effects on non-reproductive organs and functions. Rev Endocr Metab Disord 2015 (opens in a new tab)
Check how Oxymesterone combines with your stack
Possible side effects by body system, combinations, how to lower the risks and which tests to do — free.
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