Podcast episode 154 (in German)
Nandrolone – a steroid, a toothpaste and sixty years of data
December 1, 2026
An Olympic champion, 2 positive tests and a manipulated toothpaste: nandrolone has a criminal history, but above all more than 60 years of data. It is one of the few substances for which the effect is not the open question, but rather what remains of it.
What it is about
Nandrolone is a testosterone missing 1 carbon atom: more anabolic effect, less masculinization, but not none. First produced in 1950 and used as a depot injection since 1962, it was given mainly for anemia in diseased kidneys until erythropoietin arrived at the end of the 1980s. The episode shows what controlled studies demonstrate, namely more lean mass, and what does not reliably follow, namely strength. A lot of space goes to the people who take steroids without a prescription: 100 men in Haarlem who were followed for 1 year and spoke openly about the good as well as the bad, plus the forum conviction that nandrolone is good for the joints. These are reports, not evidence of efficacy, but they fit what was measured. The conclusion: the effect is real, and most of it is gone again 3 months after stopping.
Key points
- In 29 people on dialysis, nandrolone brought 4.5 kilos more fat-free mass in 6 months, compared with just under 2 kilos on placebo; grip strength remained the same in both groups.
- A 2026 summary of 20 placebo-controlled studies found on average just over 1.5 kilos more lean mass, no change in fat and no established difference in grip strength.
- In Haarlem, all 100 men followed, who took steroids in general, reported something positive, above all more strength, and every one of them at least one side effect; after stopping, 58 percent had less desire for sex.
- A follow-up paper by the same group found in 2026 an average of 4.4 kilos more fat-free mass in 79 men during the cycle; 3 months after stopping, 1.2 kilos of it remained.
- On the forum conviction that nandrolone helps the joints there is a pilot study from Houston: of 48 men, 18 responded, and 13 of them reported clear improvement, though without placebo.
- In Haarlem, only 47 percent of 272 samples brought in contained the substance stated on the label; at a testing center in Zurich, more than half of 71 samples were counterfeit.
- The Cologne doping laboratory found undeclared steroids in 94 of 634 dietary supplements from 13 countries, mostly precursors of testosterone and nandrolone; even traces caused a positive test in the experiment.
Where the data stop
Nandrolone builds lean mass, but strength does not reliably follow the mass, and muscle building in healthy people is not an approved indication. In Germany, as of September 2026, no product is on the market; in Austria, the Netherlands and Switzerland it is approved, for example for severe osteoporosis after menopause. The Haarlem figures apply to steroids in general and to volunteers, and the joint study has no comparison group.
The side effects have been known for decades. The body’s own hormone axis starts up again in most people, in some only after months or years, with consequences for fertility. Strength athletes with at least 2 years of steroid use had a cardiac pumping function of 52 instead of 63 percent. In women, a deeper voice can remain. The longer telomeres in 10 of 13 people with a rare hereditary disease say nothing about healthy people; a placebo-controlled study in age-related muscle wasting is running in Poland, and as of September 2026 results are pending.
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Published on December 1, 2026.
The topic in the database
- Nandrolone decanoate is an anabolic-androgenic steroid, first synthesized in 1950 and used in medicine as the decanoate since 1962. The effect has been known for 60 years …Nandrolone decanoate
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Information only, not medical advice and not a usage or dosage recommendation. Prescription-only and unapproved substances belong in the hands of a physician. Content as of: 2026-09-25.