DHB (1-Testosterone, Dihydroboldenone)

What DHB is and how it works

DHB is 17β-hydroxy-5α-androst-1-en-3-one. Chemically it is dihydrotestosterone with an additional double bond between carbon 1 and 2 – hence 1-testosterone. It can equally be read as boldenone missing one of its two double bonds, hence dihydroboldenone. In both cases the same substance is meant. It was never marketed as a medicine (Tauchen 2021).

Friedel and colleagues examined 1-testosterone more closely in 2006. It binds highly selectively to the androgen receptor and activates it strongly, even without first being converted in the body. In rats, at the same molar dose, it stimulated the prostate, seminal vesicles and the levator ani muscle, a muscle that serves as a measure of anabolic effect, as strongly as testosterone propionate. Unlike testosterone propionate, it additionally increased liver weight. The authors conclude that 1-testosterone is a typical anabolic steroid and that the typical side effects of this group are to be expected (Friedel 2006).

Besides DHB itself, precursors were sold, such as 3β-hydroxy-5α-androst-1-en-17-one, often called “1-Andro”. After ingestion by a volunteer, 1-testosterone and 1-androstenedione, among others, were found in the urine (Parr 2011). An overview of the whole group of substances can be found under Anabolic steroids (AAS).

What the studies show

Animal experiment: as potent as testosterone

Friedel 2006 compared 1-testosterone in rats with testosterone propionate at the same molar dose. Both substances made the prostate, seminal vesicles and the levator ani muscle grow equally strongly. Only under 1-testosterone did liver weight rise significantly. In cell experiments it showed highly selective binding to the androgen receptor.

Randomized study with a precursor

Granados 2014 randomly assigned 17 strength-trained men around 23 years of age to the prohormone 3β-hydroxy-5α-androst-1-en-17-one or sugar; both groups trained for 4 weeks on the same plan. Under the prohormone, fat-free mass rose by 6.3 percent, fat mass fell by 24.6 percent, and maximum squat strength rose by 14.3 percent. Under placebo the figures were +0.5, −9.5 and +5.7 percent. At the same time, under the prohormone HDL cholesterol fell by 38.7 percent, LDL rose by 32.8 percent, creatinine by 19.6 percent and the liver value AST by 113.8 percent; the estimated filtration rate of the kidney fell by 18 percent. In the placebo group, none of these values changed. The authors conclude that the harm outweighs the possible benefit.

Important for the assessment: what was studied was not DHB, but a precursor that is converted in the body to, among other things, 1-testosterone (Parr 2011). How much of it actually acted as 1-testosterone was not measured.

Where the data stop

For DHB itself there is not a single study in humans: none on efficacy, none on safety, none on metabolism and duration of action. Experts on designer steroids name exactly this as the basic problem of these substances – little is known about the effects and metabolism of unapproved steroids because clinical studies are lacking (Joseph and Parr 2015).

The precursor study is small, short and was done in young men. Whether the results can be transferred to injected DHB is open. On the heart, the hormonal axis, the psyche and long-term consequences, substance-specific data are missing entirely.

Status, approval and legal

1-testosterone is not approved as a medicine in Germany, the EU or the US and was never marketed for medical use (Tauchen 2021). In the US it is explicitly included in the statutory list of anabolic steroids, as “1-dihydrotestosterone, a.k.a. 1-testosterone” (21 U.S.C. § 802(41)).

In Germany, 1-testosterone is listed by name in the annex of the Anti-Doping Act: manufacturing, trafficking and placing on the market for doping are prohibited, as are acquisition, possession and bringing into the country in non-small quantities for doping in sport (§ 2, punishable under § 4). On the WADA Prohibited List 2026 it is listed under S1.1 and is prohibited at all times.

Safety

The only controlled safety data come from the precursor study: within 4 weeks, HDL cholesterol fell by 38.7 percent, LDL rose by 32.8 percent, and the LDL-to-HDL ratio by 120 percent. Creatinine rose by 19.6 percent, the estimated filtration rate of the kidney fell by 18 percent, and the liver value AST more than doubled (Granados 2014). In animal experiments, liver weight rose under 1-testosterone (Friedel 2006).

For the group of substances as a whole, the Endocrine Society describes suppression of the body’s own hormonal axis with reduced fertility, strain on the heart and blood vessels, and psychological effects (Pope 2014); more on this under Anabolic steroids (AAS). Because there is no approved product, the content and purity of any product traded as DHB are not controlled.

Sources

• Friedel A et al., Toxicol Lett 2006 – 1-testosterone is a potent androgen with anabolic effects (cell and animal experiments)
• Granados J et al., J Appl Physiol 2014 – RCT: prohormone 3β-hydroxy-5α-androst-1-en-17-one, strength training, blood lipids, liver and kidney values, 17 men
• Parr MK et al., Steroids 2011 – seized “1-Androsterone”: metabolized in the body to, among other things, 1-testosterone
• Joseph JF, Parr MK, Curr Neuropharmacol 2015 – synthetic androgens as designer supplements
• Tauchen J et al., Molecules 2021 – medical use of testosterone and related steroids, review including designer steroids
• Pope HG et al., Endocr Rev 2014 – Endocrine Society: health consequences of performance-enhancing drugs
• 21 U.S.C. § 802(41) – statutory list of anabolic steroids in the US, including 1-testosterone
• German Anti-Doping Act (AntiDopG), § 2, § 4 and annex
• NADA – Prohibited List 2026, informational German translation (S1.1 anabolic androgenic steroids)