a study from Greece tested the effects of a nutritional supplement they called Compound N for how well it protected liver function in bodybuilders who were on self-prescribed high-dose steroid regimes that includ-ed extensive use of 17-ankylated oral drugs, such as Winstrol and Dianabol. Three hundred and twenty healthy athletes, aged 20 to 45—116 women and 204 men—were divided into three groups:

1) 44 self-administered steroid users who took Compound N, two capsules, three times daily

2) 116 self-administered steroid users who didn’t take Compound N

3) 160 athletes who didn’t use any drugs

All subjects had their liver enzymes tested before, at 10-day intervals and at the end of the eight-week study. They all used the same training program and ate the same diet. At baseline all groups showed normal liver enzymes, with one exception. The amount of creatine kinase, an enzyme linked to exercise-induced muscle damage, was elevated in all groups, but it was considered normal. At the end of the study all groups had elevated liver enzymes, but the amount in both the drug-free control group and the Compound N group were still in the normal range. Those who took steroids but not Compound N had liver enzymes significantly above the normal range as well as liver damage, but those who used the nutrient combination did not.

By this time you’re probably wondering what was in Compound N. The supplement consisted of the following:

1) 300 milligrams of natural phospholipids, mainly phosphatidylcholine, a.k.a. lecithin.

2) 6 milligrams of thiamine, a.k.a. vitamin B1

3) 6 milligrams of riboflavin, a.k.a. vitamin B2

4) 6 milligrams of pyridoxine, a.k.a. vitamin B6

5) 6 micrograms of vitamin B12

6) 30 milligrams of nicotinamide

7) 6 milligrams of vitamin E

The rationale for those particular ingredients was that lecithin provides both of the unsaturated fatty acids needed to protect cellular membranes and methyl groups, which helps the liver break down fat. Increased fat in the liver is an early sign of impending liver failure. Lecithin has reversed the damage of liver cirrhosis in baboons. Lecithin helps keep liver-cell mitochondria stable and healthy, while the B-complex vitamins in the formula provide an added antioxidant effect that aids the liver detox process.

Because the experiment seems to prove the effectiveness of the supplement, it’s curious that no glutathione-related nutrient was included. That more than likely would have increased the effectiveness of the formula, because glutathione is a big-time liver protector and detoxifier. Nonetheless, the study demonstrates that a degree of liver protection is available to those who use oral anabolic steroid drugs.

-source .. Iron man magazine