New insights on liver injury in men taking body building supplements

In a study reported in Alimentary Pharmacology & Therapeutics, 44 men with liver injury, attributed to over-the-counter bodybuilding supplements, experienced a uniform and distinctive pattern of signs and symptoms that were often prolonged, difficult to treat, and accompanied by disability and weight loss.

All participants in the study, who were enrolled in the National Institute of Health-supported Drug-Induced Liver Injury Network, had jaundice (a yellowing of the eyes and skin) and most had generalized itching leading to hospitalization in 71 percent of patients, although none died or needed a liver transplant.

Investigators commonly found that the ingested products often contained illicit anabolic steroids not accurately listed on the label.

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