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Prescription medication — not a dietary supplement
Oxandrolone (Anavar)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
Most Oxandrolone (Anavar) studies are mechanism or observational rather than RCTs that measure a clinical effect — keep findings provisional.
Most evidence is from medium-quality meta-analyses and randomised trials published 1984–2019 with a typical study size of 133 participants.
Based on 8 studies · 1 meta-analysis · 5 RCTs · 856 total participants
Confidence
ModerateBy outcome
Oxandrolone (Anavar) has an evidence score of 4.7/10 — emerging evidence based on 8 indexed studies, including 1 meta-analysis. A prescription oral anabolic-androgenic steroid (AAS) — brand Anavar/Oxandrin — and a DEA Schedule III CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE. It has genuine randomized-trial evidence in FDA-approved, 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 illegal without a prescription and carries real liver, lipid, and endocrine harm. Informational, harm-reduction entry only — not a recommendation. Representative study: PMID 26454425.
Last reviewed June 2026 · evidence from 8 studies · how we score
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.
Oxandrolone (Anavar, Oxandrin) — oral 17α-alkylated anabolic-androgenic steroid; DEA Schedule III controlled substance
A prescription oral anabolic-androgenic steroid (AAS) — brand Anavar/Oxandrin — and a DEA Schedule III CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE. It has genuine randomized-trial evidence in FDA-approved, 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 illegal without a prescription and carries real liver, lipid, and endocrine harm. Informational, harm-reduction entry only — not a recommendation.
Oxandrolone has genuine randomized-trial evidence in its FDA-approved, supervised muscle-wasting indications — a multicenter burns RCT and a 15-RCT meta-analysis show shorter hospital stay, faster wound healing and added lean body mass; RCTs show weight gain in HIV wasting and modest adult-height gain in Turner syndrome. But it is a 17α-alkylated, hepatotoxic, DEA Schedule III controlled substance: dose-related transaminitis (42% in one burn-unit series), cholestasis/peliosis/liver-tumour risk for AAS as a class, an adverse HDL/LDL shift, HPTA suppression and virilization. It is a prescription drug, not a dietary supplement or a longevity drug, and non-medical bodybuilding use is illegal without an Rx — so it sits in the low-mid range, weighted up by real approved-indication RCTs and down hard by the harms and legal status.
Oxandrolone (brand names Anavar and Oxandrin) is an oral 17α-alkylated anabolic-androgenic steroid (AAS) — a synthetic derivative of testosterone, structurally modified at the 17-alpha position so it survives first-pass metabolism and can be taken by mouth.
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 is FDA-approved as adjunctive therapy to promote weight gain after surgery, chronic infection, severe trauma, and certain cases of weight loss, and to offset the protein catabolism of prolonged corticosteroids — narrow, supervised, muscle-wasting indications, not body composition or athletics.
Unusually for the compounds in this collection, oxandrolone has real randomized-controlled-trial evidence in its approved settings.
In severe burns it is the best-studied: a multicenter, double-blind RCT in adults (Wolf 2006) found oxandrolone 10 mg twice daily shortened length of hospital stay versus placebo — the trial was stopped early at interim analysis for benefit — while a randomized trial in severely burned children (Przkora/Herndon 2007) showed gains in lean body mass and strength, and a systematic review and meta-analysis of 15 RCTs in 806 burn patients (Li 2016) found oxandrolone shortened length of stay and donor-site healing time, reduced weight and nitrogen loss in the catabolic phase, and added roughly 4% lean body mass at 6 months and ~11% at 12 months.
In HIV-associated weight loss, a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial in 262 men (Grunfeld 2006) showed dose-dependent gains in body weight and body cell mass.
In Turner syndrome, a randomized, double-blind trial (Menke 2010) found that adding low-dose oxandrolone to growth hormone modestly increased adult height — though the conventional dose was discouraged because of accelerated bone maturation and virilization.
There is also a historic alcoholic-hepatitis RCT (Mendenhall, NEJM 1984) in which oxandrolone did not improve short-term survival but was associated with improved long-term survival in moderate disease. So the anabolic and catabolism-sparing signal in approved, supervised indications is real.
The honest counterweight defines the compound.
Because it is 17α-alkylated, oxandrolone is hepatotoxic: dose-related rises in hepatic transaminases are its most common adverse effect (the Wolf burns trial concluded it should be used 'while hepatic transaminases are monitored'; a retrospective burn-unit analysis (Kiracofe 2019) found transaminitis in 42% of treated patients), and anabolic-androgenic steroids as a class are associated with cholestasis, peliosis hepatis, hepatic adenoma, and hepatocellular carcinoma (Solimini 2017).
It worsens the lipid profile — the HIV trial documented significant rises in LDL and falls in HDL cholesterol on treatment — and it suppresses the hypothalamic-pituitary-testicular axis (suppressed LH, FSH, SHBG, and total and free testosterone) and causes virilization (deepened voice, hirsutism, menstrual changes) that can be irreversible in women.
The score reflects genuine, randomized evidence in approved muscle-wasting indications set against documented hepatotoxicity, an adverse lipid shift, HPTA suppression and virilization, plus the reality that this is a controlled substance, not a supplement, and that non-medical use for body composition is both illegal without a prescription and carries those same harms without medical monitoring.
Oxandrolone is a synthetic testosterone derivative that binds and activates the androgen receptor in skeletal muscle and other tissues, driving the anabolic, protein-sparing signalling that underlies its weight-gain and muscle-wasting indications.
Androgen-receptor activation increases net protein balance and lean body mass and reduces catabolic nitrogen loss — the mechanism behind the lean-mass gain, faster donor-site/wound healing and shorter hospital stay measured in burn trials.
The 17α-alkyl group that makes oxandrolone orally active also makes it hepatotoxic (transaminitis, cholestasis, and — for AAS broadly — peliosis and liver tumours). The same androgenic activity lowers HDL and raises LDL cholesterol, suppresses the hypothalamic-pituitary-testicular axis, and virilizes.
How Oxandrolone (Anavar) 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.
Tap node to isolate • Pinch to zoom • Tap edge for research
There is no legitimate non-medical dose. Oxandrolone is a prescription-only, DEA Schedule III controlled substance; this library does NOT provide a body-composition dosing protocol. For context only: the FDA-approved adult dose for muscle wasting is 2.5–20 mg/day in divided doses under a physician, and trials used 10 mg twice daily in adult burns, 0.1 mg/kg/day in burned children, 20–80 mg/day in HIV wasting, and 0.03–0.06 mg/kg/day with growth hormone in Turner syndrome — all clinician-supervised with liver and lipid monitoring. That is not an endorsement of self-administration.
Can be taken without food
| Form | Type |
|---|---|
| 💊Prescription oral tablet (Anavar / Oxandrin) — clinician-directed, approved muscle-wasting indications only | Recommended |
There is no legitimate over-the-counter or supplement form. It is a Schedule III controlled substance; non-prescription material is illegal to possess without an Rx and frequently counterfeit.
Minimum: 2 weeks
Optimal: 12 weeks
Cycling: Not required
Note: No non-medical timing is endorsed. It is a controlled-substance prescription drug with documented hepatotoxicity, an adverse lipid shift and HPTA suppression; approved use is physician-directed with monitoring. This library does not schedule its use.
Dose-response data unavailable. The current published research for Oxandrolone (Anavar) does not provide sufficient dose-specific outcome data to generate reliable dose-response curves.
Refer to the Dosage & Timing section above for recommended dose ranges based on available evidence.
The strongest evidence point: in severe burns, RCTs and a 15-trial meta-analysis show oxandrolone adds lean body mass, speeds donor-site/wound healing, reduces weight and nitrogen loss and shortens hospital stay — its approved, supervised use.
A randomized trial in HIV-associated weight loss showed dose-dependent gains in body weight and body cell mass; an alcoholic-hepatitis RCT linked it to improved long-term (not short-term) survival in moderate disease. Real benefit in catabolic, clinically supervised settings.
Its most common adverse effect: dose-related rises in liver enzymes (transaminitis in 42% of patients in one burn-unit series) requiring monitoring; anabolic steroids as a class are tied to cholestasis, peliosis hepatis, hepatic adenoma and hepatocellular carcinoma.
Oxandrolone lowers HDL ('good') cholesterol and raises LDL ('bad') cholesterol — an adverse cardiovascular-risk signal documented even within trial use, with no offsetting proven cardiovascular benefit.
Suppresses the hypothalamic-pituitary-testicular axis (LH, FSH, SHBG, total and free testosterone) and virilizes — deepened voice, hirsutism, menstrual disruption, clitoral enlargement — changes that can be irreversible in women.
Avoid — a controlled-substance prescription drug, not a supplement; documented hepatotoxicity, adverse lipids, HPTA suppression and virilization, and illegal to use without a prescription.
High caution even when prescribed — virilizing effects (voice deepening, hirsutism, clitoral enlargement) can be permanent; discontinue at the first androgenic sign.
Major interaction — requires clinician-managed anticoagulant dose reduction and frequent INR checks.
Avoid entirely — androgenic; causes fetal virilization.
Oxandrolone markedly potentiates warfarin, raising INR and bleeding risk; anticoagulant doses often need substantial reduction with close INR monitoring under a clinician.
Oxandrolone is itself hepatotoxic; combining it with other hepatotoxic agents or alcohol compounds the risk of transaminitis and cholestatic injury.
Tip: Its most common adverse effect — dose-related liver-enzyme rises (42% in one burn-unit series). Approved use requires periodic transaminase monitoring; stop and seek care for jaundice, dark urine or right-upper-quadrant pain.
Tip: Anabolic-androgenic steroids as a class are linked to peliosis hepatis, hepatic adenoma and hepatocellular carcinoma; risk rises with prolonged or high-dose use. There is no safe self-monitoring framework for non-medical use.
Tip: Lowered HDL and raised LDL cholesterol are consistent on treatment and work against cardiovascular health; reversibility depends on discontinuation.
Tip: Suppresses LH, FSH, SHBG and endogenous testosterone, and virilizes — deepened voice, hirsutism, menstrual disruption and clitoral enlargement in women may be irreversible. Stop at the first sign of voice change in women.
The commonly studied dose of Oxandrolone (Anavar) is There is no legitimate non-medical dose. Oxandrolone is a prescription-only, DEA Schedule III controlled substance; this library does NOT provide a body-composition dosing protocol. For context only: the FDA-approved adult dose for muscle wasting is 2.5–20 mg/day in divided doses under a physician, and trials used 10 mg twice daily in adult burns, 0.1 mg/kg/day in burned children, 20–80 mg/day in HIV wasting, and 0.03–0.06 mg/kg/day with growth hormone in Turner syndrome — all clinician-supervised with liver and lipid monitoring. That is not an endorsement of self-administration.. Individual needs vary — start at the lower end of the range and adjust based on how you respond.
Timing is flexible for Oxandrolone (Anavar) — consistent daily use matters more than the time of day. Approved use is divided doses through the day under medical supervision with liver-enzyme and lipid monitoring.
Oxandrolone (Anavar) should be used with caution — talk to a healthcare provider before taking it. The most commonly reported side effects are hepatic transaminitis / cholestatic liver injury, peliosis hepatis / hepatic tumour (AAS class), adverse lipid shift (low HDL, high LDL). Use caution if any of these apply to you: Anyone seeking it for body composition or athletic performance without a prescription — a DEA Schedule III controlled substance; possession/use without an Rx is illegal, and it is not a dietary supplement; Pre-existing liver disease or elevated liver enzymes — 17α-alkylated and hepatotoxic (transaminitis, cholestasis, peliosis); Known or suspected prostate or male breast carcinoma; hypercalcemia.
Anabolic steroids can improve insulin sensitivity and lower glucose, potentially requiring antidiabetic-dose adjustment.
Stacking androgenic agents compounds hepatic burden, HPTA suppression and the adverse lipid shift; the combined risk is additive and uncharacterised in non-medical use.