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Nandrolone decanoate (Deca-Durabolin) — injectable 19-nortestosterone anabolic-androgenic steroid; DEA Schedule III controlled substance
An injectable anabolic-androgenic steroid (AAS) — brand Deca-Durabolin, the long-acting decanoate ester of 19-nortestosterone — and a DEA Schedule III CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE. It has genuine randomized-trial evidence in supervised, catabolic-illness settings: it adds lean body mass and weight in HIV-associated wasting, adds muscle mass and physical function in dialysis patients, and raises hemoglobin in dialysis anemia (a historic FDA-approved indication, since largely replaced by erythropoietin). But it suppresses the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis — and because it is a long-ester 19-nortestosterone with progestogenic activity, that suppression and the resulting sexual dysfunction ('deca dick') can be prolonged. It worsens the lipid profile (lowers HDL), is associated with cardiac remodelling/cardiomyopathy and premature atherosclerosis in long-term high-dose users, and virilizes. It is NOT a dietary supplement and NOT a longevity drug; non-medical bodybuilding/performance use is unsupervised and carries real cardiovascular, endocrine and sexual harm. Described for harm-reduction information only — not a recommendation.
Prescription medication — not a dietary supplement
Nandrolone (Deca-Durabolin) is a prescription (or investigational) drug, not a supplement. It is included here for reference because people research and discuss it (often used off-label) — not as a recommendation. Take it only under a qualified clinician's supervision and only as prescribed; do not source it from grey-market vendors, where identity, purity, and dosing are unverified. The evidence below reflects its clinical trials.
What the evidence says
Nandrolone (Deca-Durabolin) doesn't have enough studies with structured effect-size data yet to pool a verdict. Browse the studies below for individual findings.
Most evidence is from high-quality meta-analyses and randomised trials published 1976–2026 with a typical study size of 30 participants.
Based on 30 studies · 3 meta-analyses · 12 RCTs · 468 total participants
Confidence
High confidenceBy outcome
Nandrolone has genuine randomized-trial evidence in supervised, catabolic-illness settings — RCTs show it adds lean body mass and weight in HIV-associated wasting (Storer/Bhasin 2005, Gold 2006), adds muscle mass and physical function in dialysis patients (Johansen 1999/2006), and raises hemoglobin comparably to erythropoietin in dialysis anemia (Navarro 2002), its historic FDA-approved indication. But it is a DEA Schedule III controlled substance and a long-ester 19-nortestosterone: it suppresses the HPG axis with characteristically PROLONGED sexual dysfunction ('deca dick'), lowers HDL, and is tied to cardiac remodelling/premature atherosclerosis in long-term high-dose users (HAARLEM cohort). It is a prescription drug, not a dietary supplement or a longevity drug, and non-medical use is unsupervised — so it sits in the low-mid range, weighted up by real supervised-indication RCTs and down hard by the harms and legal status.
88 randomised trials
76% were about Nandrolone (Deca-Durabolin) in an audit of 50 of them
Every randomised or controlled trial of Nandrolone (Deca-Durabolin) indexed in PubMed, not a hand-picked subset. Meta-analyses and systematic reviews are deliberately excluded from this count: most of them cover many compounds at once, so counting them would inflate it.
PubMed · as of Sep 2026
1 trial ongoing or recruiting · 1 completed on ClinicalTrials.gov
Registered trials show research momentum for Nandrolone (Deca-Durabolin), not proof of effect — a registration is a plan, and posted results are sponsor-reported, not peer-reviewed. They are never counted toward the evidence rating above.
Browse these trials on ClinicalTrials.govClinicalTrials.gov · as of Nov 2026
Nandrolone (brand name Deca-Durabolin, most commonly the long-acting decanoate ester) is an injectable anabolic-androgenic steroid (AAS) — 19-nortestosterone, a testosterone derivative lacking the 19-methyl group, which lowers its androgenic-to-anabolic ratio and its aromatization to estrogen while adding progestogenic activity.
It is a prescription drug in the United States and a Schedule III controlled substance under the Controlled Substances Act; possession or distribution without a valid prescription is a federal crime.
It was FDA-approved for the anemia of chronic kidney disease and has been used historically for osteoporosis, severe weight loss and other catabolic/wasting states — narrow, supervised indications, not body composition or athletics, and the anemia indication has been largely superseded by erythropoiesis-stimulating agents.
Unusually for the compounds in this collection, nandrolone has real randomized-controlled-trial evidence in catabolic-illness settings.
In HIV-associated wasting it is the best-studied: a placebo-controlled RCT in HIV-infected men (Storer/Bhasin 2005) found nandrolone increased lean body mass significantly more than placebo and not significantly differently from FDA-approved recombinant growth hormone; a multicentre RCT in 303 men (Gold 2006) found nandrolone increased fat-free mass and weight versus placebo and increased weight more than testosterone; an open-label randomized study (Sattler 1999) showed lean-mass, muscle-size and strength gains that were augmented by progressive resistance training.
In maintenance dialysis — a sarcopenic, catabolic population — two randomized trials from the same group (Johansen 1999, JAMA; Johansen 2006, JASN) showed nandrolone increased lean body mass and quadriceps cross-sectional area and improved walking/stair-climbing function, with resistance exercise adding to the muscle-size and strength effect.
And in dialysis anemia a randomized prospective trial (Navarro 2002) found nandrolone raised hemoglobin and hematocrit comparably to recombinant erythropoietin while also improving nutritional anthropometrics — consistent with its erythropoietic, historically-approved anemia indication.
So the anabolic, muscle-function and erythropoietic signal in supervised, catabolic-illness settings is real. The honest counterweight defines the compound.
Like all exogenous androgens, nandrolone suppresses the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis — but because it is a long-acting (decanoate-ester) 19-nortestosterone with progestogenic activity, that suppression and the resulting sexual dysfunction can be unusually prolonged; the bodybuilding term 'deca dick' describes the libido loss and erectile dysfunction users report, and a 2025 framework (van Os 2025) describes prolonged post-androgen-abuse hypogonadism persisting months to years after stopping.
The prospective HAARLEM cohort of amateur AAS users (reviewed by Smit 2022) documents the class harms cleanly: a distinct but limited impact on liver and kidney function, disrupted gonadal function (usually recovering after cessation), and an adverse impact on blood pressure, hematocrit and lipid metabolism (lowered HDL) plus cardiac structural/functional change — the mechanism for premature atherosclerosis and cardiomyopathy in long-term users.
Nandrolone is injected and not 17α-alkylated, but hepatic effects are still possible, and it virilizes (deepened voice, hirsutism, menstrual change) in women, sometimes irreversibly.
The score reflects genuine, randomized evidence in approved/historical and supervised catabolic-illness indications (lean mass and function in HIV and dialysis wasting; hemoglobin in dialysis anemia) set against documented HPGA suppression with characteristically prolonged sexual dysfunction, an adverse lipid shift, cardiac remodelling/atherosclerosis risk at supraphysiologic doses, and virilization — plus the reality that this is a controlled substance, not a supplement or a longevity drug, and that non-medical use for body composition or performance carries those same harms without medical monitoring.
Nandrolone is 19-nortestosterone, a synthetic testosterone derivative that binds and activates the androgen receptor in skeletal muscle and other tissues, driving the anabolic, protein-building signalling that underlies its lean-mass and muscle-function effects. Its lower androgenic-to-anabolic ratio and reduced aromatization distinguish it from testosterone.
Androgen-receptor activation increases net protein balance, lean body mass and muscle cross-sectional area — the mechanism behind the muscle gains measured in HIV and dialysis trials — and stimulates erythropoiesis, raising hemoglobin (the basis of its historic anemia-of-CKD indication, where trials found it comparable to erythropoietin).
Exogenous nandrolone suppresses the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis (LH, FSH, endogenous testosterone). Because it is a long-acting decanoate ester of 19-nortestosterone with progestogenic activity, that suppression and the resulting sexual dysfunction ('deca dick') can be unusually prolonged. The same androgenic activity lowers HDL cholesterol and, at supraphysiologic doses, drives cardiac remodelling and premature atherosclerosis; it also virilizes.
How Nandrolone (Deca-Durabolin) works — from molecular targets to health outcomes. Click an edge to see supporting research.This visualization is in beta — pathways are being refined and expanded.
Avoid — a controlled-substance prescription drug, not a supplement; HPG suppression with characteristically prolonged sexual dysfunction, adverse lipids and cardiac risk, and not for self-experimentation.
Avoid — nandrolone suppresses the HPG axis and spermatogenesis, and with the long decanoate ester recovery can be especially slow. Men who want current or future fertility should discuss alternatives with a fertility specialist before any use.
High caution even when prescribed — virilizing effects (voice deepening, hirsutism, clitoral enlargement) can be permanent; discontinue at the first androgenic sign.
Avoid entirely — androgenic; causes fetal virilization.
Anabolic steroids including nandrolone can potentiate warfarin, raising INR and bleeding risk; anticoagulant doses may need reduction with close INR monitoring under a clinician.
Anabolic steroids can improve insulin sensitivity and lower glucose, potentially requiring antidiabetic-dose adjustment.
Stacking androgenic agents compounds HPG suppression, the adverse lipid shift and cardiac risk; the combined harm is additive and uncharacterised in non-medical use.
Hepatic effects remain possible; combining it with other hepatotoxic agents or heavy alcohol adds avoidable liver risk.
Tip: Suppresses LH, FSH and endogenous testosterone; as a long-ester 19-nortestosterone with progestogenic activity, the loss of libido and erectile dysfunction can persist for months or longer after stopping. Recovery is variable; seek endocrine care for persistent post-use hypogonadism.
Tip: Lowered HDL cholesterol works against cardiovascular health; reversibility depends on discontinuation. No offsetting cardiovascular benefit is proven.
Tip: Long-term high-dose AAS use raises blood pressure and hematocrit and is associated with cardiac structural/functional change, cardiomyopathy and premature atherosclerosis. There is no safe self-monitoring framework for non-medical use; report breathlessness, chest pain or palpitations.
Tip: Deepened voice, hirsutism, menstrual disruption and clitoral enlargement in women may be irreversible. Stop at the first sign of voice change in women.
Tip: Injected and not 17α-alkylated, but liver effects remain possible, especially when stacked with hepatotoxic agents. Seek care for jaundice or dark urine.
Nandrolone (Deca-Durabolin) has an evidence score of 4.5/10 — emerging evidence based on 30 indexed studies. An injectable anabolic-androgenic steroid (AAS) — brand Deca-Durabolin, the long-acting decanoate ester of 19-nortestosterone — and a DEA Schedule III CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE. It has genuine randomized-trial evidence in supervised, catabolic-illness settings: it adds lean body mass and weight in HIV-associated wasting, adds muscle mass and physical function in dialysis patients, and raises hemoglobin in dialysis anemia (a historic FDA-approved indication, since largely replaced by erythropoietin). But it suppresses the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis — and because it is a long-ester 19-nortestosterone with progestogenic activity, that suppression and the resulting sexual dysfunction ('deca dick') can be prolonged. It worsens the lipid profile (lowers HDL), is associated with cardiac remodelling/cardiomyopathy and premature atherosclerosis in long-term high-dose users, and virilizes. It is NOT a dietary supplement and NOT a longevity drug; non-medical bodybuilding/performance use is unsupervised and carries real cardiovascular, endocrine and sexual harm. Described for harm-reduction information only — not a recommendation. Representative study: PMID 15914526.
Dosing for Nandrolone (Deca-Durabolin): No self-directed dose is recommended by SupStack. Nandrolone is a prescription-only, DEA Schedule III controlled substance; this library does NOT provide a body-composition or performance dosing protocol. For context only: historic FDA-labeled use for the anemia of CKD was clinician-directed intramuscular nandrolone decanoate, and the cited supervised trials used 100 mg intramuscularly once a week for 6 months in dialysis patients and 150 mg every 2 weeks for 12 weeks in HIV-positive men with wasting, both clinician-supervised with monitoring. That is not an endorsement of self-administration, and the renal-anemia indication has largely been replaced by erythropoietin.
Timing is flexible for Nandrolone (Deca-Durabolin) — consistent daily use matters more than the time of day. Nandrolone decanoate is a long-acting intramuscular ester given weekly to every two weeks under medical supervision with hormonal, lipid and hematocrit monitoring.
No consumer dose of Nandrolone (Deca-Durabolin) is endorsed, so there is no dose at which it can be called safe. Talk to a healthcare provider before taking it. Reported side effects include cardiac remodelling / cardiomyopathy / premature atherosclerosis, HPG suppression & prolonged sexual dysfunction ('deca dick'), adverse lipid shift (low HDL). How often they occur is not established for all of them. Use caution if any of these apply to you: Anyone seeking it for body composition, performance or anti-aging without a prescription — a DEA Schedule III controlled substance; it is not a dietary supplement, and laws on supply, possession, import and use depend on the country and circumstances; Known or suspected prostate or male breast carcinoma; hypercalcemia; Pregnancy and breastfeeding — androgenic, causes fetal virilization (former FDA pregnancy category X).
What side effects does Nandrolone (Deca-Durabolin) have?Don't take this if…
Epicatechin
Mixed evidenceDark chocolate flavanol with consistent human evidence for improved endothelial function and modest blood pressure reduction. Muscle-building claims are not supported in humans.
Oxandrolone (Anavar)
Too few graded studiesA prescription oral anabolic-androgenic steroid (AAS) — brand Anavar/Oxandrin — and a DEA Schedule III CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE. It has genuine randomized-trial evidence in formerly FDA-approved (withdrawn June 2023), supervised muscle-wasting settings: it adds lean body mass, speeds wound healing and shortens hospital stay in severe burns, raises body weight in HIV-associated wasting, and modestly increases adult height in Turner syndrome. But it is 17α-alkylated and hepatotoxic (dose-related transaminase rises, cholestasis, and — with anabolic steroids generally — peliosis and liver tumours), it sharply lowers HDL and raises LDL cholesterol, and it suppresses the hypothalamic-pituitary-testicular axis and virilizes. It is NOT a dietary supplement and NOT a longevity drug; non-medical bodybuilding use is unsupervised and carries real liver, lipid, and endocrine harm. Described for harm-reduction information only — not a recommendation.
Oxymetholone (Anadrol)
Too few graded studiesA potent prescription ORAL anabolic-androgenic steroid (AAS) — brand Anadrol/Anapolon — and a DEA Schedule III CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE. Oxymetholone has a US FDA approval record for ANADROL-50 under NDA 016848. The 2026 Orange Book lists this product as discontinued. This record does not establish current availability or authorisation of another product or use. It has real randomized-trial evidence in supervised muscle-wasting settings: it adds body weight and lean/body cell mass in HIV-associated wasting, raises lean mass and strength in older men, and increases haemoglobin and muscle mass in dialysis patients; a Cochrane review found limited evidence, from one 24-person study, that it raises haemoglobin in the anaemia of chronic kidney disease, and judged the evidence insufficient. But it is 17α-alkylated and markedly HEPATOTOXIC — anabolic steroids as a class have been associated with cholestasis, peliosis hepatis with life-threatening liver failure or bleeding into the abdomen, and liver tumours, including reported fatal malignancies (historical Anadrol-50 US boxed warning, 2004). It also sharply lowers HDL and raises LDL cholesterol, suppresses the hypothalamic-pituitary-testicular axis, and virilizes. It is NOT a dietary supplement and NOT a longevity drug; non-medical bodybuilding use is unsupervised and carries those liver, lipid, and endocrine harms unmonitored. Described for harm-reduction information only — not a recommendation.
Stanozolol (Winstrol)
Too few graded studiesA prescription oral anabolic-androgenic steroid (AAS) — brand Winstrol — and a DEA Schedule III CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE. Its one approved indication is prophylaxis of hereditary angioedema (HAE), where decades of cohort and systematic-review evidence confirm it reduces attack frequency. But it is 17α-alkylated and hepatotoxic (cholestasis, and — for AAS as a class — peliosis and liver tumours), and it causes one of the most DRAMATIC HDL crashes of any drug studied — a classic crossover trial measured a 33% fall in HDL, a 71% fall in HDL2, and a 29% rise in LDL. It also suppresses the HPTA and virilizes. It is NOT a dietary supplement and NOT a longevity drug; non-medical bodybuilding ('cutting') use is unmonitored. Described for harm-reduction information only — not a recommendation.
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Reviewed by Dr. Baher Al Hakim · Last reviewed June 2026 · evidence from 30 studies · how we score · editorial policy
This information is for educational purposes only. It is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before starting, stopping, or changing any supplement or medication.
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