People making use of anabolic steroids for muscle building could be destroying their brain cells in a big way without even being aware of it, as per researchers from the Yale School of Medicine.

The researchers found that steroids may lead to elevated testosterone levels that could lead to nerve cell damage.

From Medicalnewstoday.com:

Hyperexcitability, a condition not uncommon among bodybuilders who become aggressive and even suicidal, may occur as a result of steroid use, suggest the researchers.

Professor Barbara Ehrlich, head of the research team, said “Next time a muscle-bound guy in a sports car cuts you off on the highway, don’t get mad, just take a deep breath and realise that it might not be his fault.”

The researchers found that apoptosis was triggered when cultured nerve cells were exposed to testosterone. Apoptosis is a form of “cell suicide” in which damaged cells eliminate themselves with less harm to their neighbors - in other words ‘programmed cell death’. This process has been linked to such diseases as Alzheimer’s and Hutington’s disease.

Results of this study appeared in an issue of the Journal of Biological Chemistry.