Insulin is an anabolic hormone that is used in professional bodybuilding along with other hormones (steroids and growth hormone) for even greater stimulation of muscle growth.
Any hormonal changes in the human body carry the risk of serious harm to health.
Below we will discuss the side effects of insulin and the particular danger of its overdose.
Main thoughts:
Side effects of insulin: development of diabetes, obesity, coma, and death.
Ways to counteract insulin overdose: eat something sweet, inject glucagon, call an ambulance.
The Danger of Insulin in Sports and Bodybuilding
Insulin is a natural hormone produced by the pancreas that regulates blood sugar levels.
Both a deficiency and an excess of insulin are equally dangerous for health.
In cases of deficiency, which is typical for diabetics, it must be administered externally to prevent an increase in blood glucose levels. If insulin levels are too high, blood sugar can drop to dangerously low levels, which can ultimately result in coma or death.
Insulin is almost the perfect substance for gaining muscle mass in athletes. It is easily accessible, cheap, hard to detect, and truly effective.
Insulin in sports is one of the most dangerous substances. To some extent, the risk of harm from its use is even greater than from anabolic steroids. The price of its use can be death.
Doctors especially began to speak about the serious consequences of insulin use after a tragic incident in the early 2000s, when a young 31-year-old bodybuilder was hospitalized in a coma due to insulin use.
Shortly after, a 35-year-old holder of eight powerlifting titles from Scotland also ended up in a coma for two months after an insulin overdose.
Considering that according to statistics, about 10% of athletes in bodybuilding use this hormone, the scale of danger is evident.
Look at what one of the gurus of pharmacology, Mick Hart, author of the well-known book “A Guide for Non-Professionals on Steroids,” says about this:
Mick Hart:“The harm of insulin for bodybuilders is undeniable… I would never use it. Insulin is the deadliest thing that has ever entered sports…”
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The reason for the harm of insulin lies in its mechanism of action
The main function of insulin in the body is far from stimulating muscle growth.
One of its tasks is to control blood sugar levels (at 80-100 mg/dl), another is to deliver nutrients into the cells: glucose for energy, amino acids for building and maintaining muscle mass.
When we eat something sweet, the blood sugar (glucose) level rises, insulin is released by the pancreas, and it transports glucose from the blood into the cells for use as energy; if there is too much glucose, the excess is stored in energy reserves: muscle glycogen, liver glycogen, and fat.
– What happens if a healthy person is injected with insulin?
The result of the experiment depends on the dose of insulin and the person’s condition, more specifically, the blood sugar level.
If the glucose level is high (the person has just eaten something sweet), insulin neutralizes the excess and sends it to the cells and storage.
If the glucose level is low (the person is hungry or on a diet) or if the dose of insulin is very large, the result of the experiment can end very sadly: in a coma or death.
The danger of side effects of insulin when used in sports by healthy individuals is explained by the fact that the precise calculation of the dose is critical.
For accurate calculation, it is necessary to know the exact value of the current blood glucose level, which can be determined through a blood test. Obviously, none of the athletes do this.
To avoid the side effects of insulin, athletes simply take a large portion of carbohydrates when they make the injection.
– What is the lethal dose of insulin in sports?
The answer to this question follows from the above: the lethal dose of insulin is individual and is determined by the concentration of sugar in the blood.
In the case of insulin, precise dosing is crucial to avoid side effects. This is its fundamental difference from other pharmacological agents in bodybuilding. If calculated incorrectly, a severe drop in blood sugar levels can result in coma or even death.
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Side effects of insulin
Most athletes use insulin without understanding how to properly adjust the dose. It is a cruel game of trial and error, where the cost of a mistake is death.
“One shot can be accurate, another even more so, and the third not bad,” says Mick Hart. But at the same time, he notes that he has seen his fellow bodybuilders end up in the hospital after overdosing on insulin, believing that the larger the dose, the better.
The side effects of insulin in sports are as follows:
1 Diabetes
Some experts also warn that in the long term, insulin can turn bodybuilders into diabetics, as it disrupts the body’s own ability to produce this hormone.
2 Obesity
Insulin stimulates the growth of not only muscle mass but also fat. We discussed this in the article on the mechanism of insulin action in bodybuilding. If used incorrectly, there is a high likelihood of gaining weight.
3 Coma or death
A state of coma or death occurs in the case of insulin overdose. In diabetic terms, it is referred to as “hypoglycemic shock.”
The danger of side effects may also be related to the quality of the insulin itself.
Bodybuilders most often buy insulin from diabetics who obtain it by prescription; however, sometimes private doctors resort to deception and prescribe insulin to athletes as if they were diabetics. Although this route is illegal, it is at least safe in terms of the quality of the drugs themselves.
According to Mick Hart, a significant danger arises when athletes use insulin from the black market, which is imported from third-world countries by criminal groups. Its quality is highly questionable.
Side effects of insulin: development of diabetes, obesity, coma, and death
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Insulin overdose: symptoms
Insulin overdose leads to what is known as “hypoglycemic shock” – a term familiar to every diabetic.
In bodybuilding, it means that too much insulin has been administered relative to the amount of glucose in the blood; this causes its level to drop to critically low, which can result in a state of coma or death.
Symptoms of insulin overdose:
- instant pain;
- hunger;
- sweating;
- cold, clammy feeling;
- pallor;
- tremors, anxiety;
- rapid heartbeat;
- feeling weak;
- irritability and mood changes;
- loss of consciousness.
Insulin overdose occurs when too large a dose of insulin is administered (relative to the current blood sugar level)
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What to do in case of insulin overdose in bodybuilding?
In the case of insulin overdose, if the person is conscious, give them something sweet (sugar, chocolate, fruit juice, honey, carbonated sweet drink), but not fructose, as it does not work to raise blood sugar levels.
If the person is unconscious, carefully place honey, granulated sugar, or a special capsule (for example, D-glucose) containing concentrated sugar under their tongue, which diabetics carry with them. Although this may not be easy to do.
There is another way to save from insulin overdose that every diabetic knows: glucagon.
Injectable glucagon is a hormone produced in the pancreas that has the opposite effect of insulin: it raises blood glucose levels and is usually used to treat hypoglycemia symptoms.
In the case of insulin overdose, an emergency injection of glucagon will restore blood sugar. If you use insulin, it is highly recommended to always carry a glucagon pen with you.
After providing first aid – call an ambulance. Overdose can be fatal. Do not be afraid that the fact of insulin use will be detected by medical personnel. Insulin is legal.
All they will likely do is give you a lecture that only an idiot, not being a diabetic, would inject themselves with insulin.
It is important, if you use insulin, that someone close to you is aware of this. This person should know the signs of insulin overdose and how to provide assistance in this case.
The risk of overdose is higher during cutting or restricting food composition and caloric intake for other reasons than during the bulking phase for bodybuilders, when they have to eat a lot.
In any case, if you experience any of the symptoms listed above, just eat something sweet. But not fructose, as it does not work to raise blood sugar levels.
Ways to counteract insulin overdose: eat something sweet, inject glucagon, call an ambulance
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Conclusion
Insulin in sports and bodybuilding is used as a powerful anabolic hormone to accelerate muscle growth.
However, doctors are wondering: how many more athletes must die or end up in a coma before the level of danger is recognized by others?
Unlike other sports pharmacology drugs, among the side effects of insulin is rapid death, which can easily result from miscalculating the dose or overdosing.
