2009 Studies & Research Blog

Growth hormone is one of the most talked about supplements among those who are really looking to pack on quality mass and are against going on steroids.  Many are curious as to whether using growth hormone might be their ticket to more muscle mass – muscle mass that they’re really struggling to put on naturally.

Because of the interest in this hormone, many researchers have set out to study the effects upon its body in a variety of different situations.

The objective of this particular study was to look at the effects of growth hormone on the metabolism, body composition, muscle mass, and strength levels of adults.

After looking at the treatment groups the researchers findings were that it appeared as though daily GH and IGF-1 treatments did slightly increase the nitrogen retention in the body in normal adults, but only for a short period of time of approximately one month.

After prolonged GH administration however, the body started showing resistance to the anabolic actions of GH, therefore making it less effective over time.    In comparing groups of individuals taking growth hormone against those that weren’t using it, it was doubtful that the nitrogen retention associated with daily GH treatment resulted in an increase in contractile protein, improved muscle function, strength and athletic performance, says the study author, K.E. Yarasheski.

He goes on to state that even in catabolic or GH-deficient populations, Growth Hormone treatment provides only modest increments in nitrogen retention, muscle size, strength, and exercise capacity.

So, to summarize the findings of this study, next time you’re tempted to start using growth hormone in hopes it’s going to completely transform your physique, you may want to think again.  

Growth hormone is going to have much larger effects on the body during the early ages when large amounts of physical growth are still taking place, but after that it’s not going to do a great deal in the way of muscle mass promotion.

Yarasheki, KE. (1994) Growth Hormone effects on metabolism, body composition, muscle mass, and strength. Exercise Sport Science Review. 22:285-312.