Skip to main content

Nandrolone Decanoate (Nan) Abusers and Concomitant Cannabis Use

  • Living reference work entry
  • First Online:
Handbook of Substance Misuse and Addictions

Abstract

The abuse of polydrugs is a common phenomenon and has risen significantly in the latest years. Particularly, anabolic-androgenic steroid (AAS) abusers commonly abuse other psychoactive drugs that boost fat burning and provide the impression of an “energy burst.” Due to its potent anabolic effects but little androgenic properties, nandrolone decanoate (Nan) is among the most abused AAS. While numerous studies indicate that the co-abuse of AAS and cannabis is ubiquitous around the world, few reports address the risk of concomitant abuse of these drugs. The objective of this chapter is to investigate the incidence and health issues associated with concurrent Nan and cannabis addiction and also the resulting influence on crime, legislation, and economy. Additionally, this chapter explores the role of concurrent Nan and cannabis consumption on public health, particularly among teens who take these substances during a critical phase of biological and psychological development.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Institutional subscriptions

Abbreviations

AAS :

Anabolic-androgenic steroids

AR :

Androgen receptor

CB :

Cannabinoid receptor

CNS :

Central nervous system

DA :

Dopamine

NAc :

Nucleus accumbens

Nan :

Nandrolone decanoate

THC :

Tetrahydrocannabinol

UK :

United Kingdom

USA :

United States of America

References

  • Agrawal A, Neale MC, Prescott CA, Kendler KS (2004) A twin study of early cannabis use and subsequent use and abuse/dependence of other illicit drugs. Psychol Med 34:1227–1237

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Albano GD, Amico F, Cocimano G et al (2021) Adverse effects of anabolic-androgenic steroids: a literature review. Healthcare 9:97

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Ameri A (1999) The effects of cannabinoids on the brain. Prog Neurobiol 58:315–348

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Azofeifa A, Mattson ME, Schauer G et al (2016) National estimates of marijuana use and related indicators – National Survey on Drug Use and Health, United States, 2002–2014. MMWR Surveill Summ 65:1–28

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ballard CL, Wood RI (2005) Intracerebroventricular self-administration of commonly abused anabolic-androgenic steroids in male hamsters (Mesocricetus auratus): nandrolone, drostanolone, oxymetholone, and stanozolol. Behav Neurosci 119:752–758

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bates G, Begley E, Tod D et al (2019) A systematic review investigating the behaviour change strategies in interventions to prevent misuse of anabolic steroids. J Health Psychol 24:1595–1612

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Breijyeh Z, Jubeh B, Bufo SA et al (2021) Cannabis: a toxin-producing plant with potential therapeutic uses. Toxins 13:117

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Brockie TN, Dana-Sacco G, Wallen GR et al (2015) The relationship of adverse childhood experiences to PTSD, depression, poly-drug use and suicide attempt in reservation-based native American adolescents and young adults. Am J Community Psychol 55:411–421

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Brooks-Russell A, Ma M, Levinson AH et al (2019) Adolescent marijuana use, marijuana-related perceptions, and use of other substances before and after initiation of retail marijuana sales in Colorado (2013–2015). Prev Sci 20:185–193

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Busardo F, Frati P, Sanzo M et al (2015) The impact of nandrolone decanoate on the central nervous system. Curr Neuropharmacol 13:122–131

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Célérier E, Ahdepil T, Wikander H et al (2006) Influence of the anabolic-androgenic steroid nandrolone on cannabinoid dependence. Neuropharmacology 50:788–806

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality (2014) Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, results from the 2013 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: summary of national findings, NSDUH series H-48, HHS publication no. (SMA) 14-4863. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Rockville

    Google Scholar 

  • Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality (2015) 2014 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: detailed tables. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Rockville

    Google Scholar 

  • Chan NW, Burkhardt J, Flyr M (2020) The effects of recreational marijuana legalization and dispensing on opioid mortality. Econ Inq 58:589–606

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Christou MA, Christou PA, Markozannes G et al (2017) Effects of anabolic androgenic steroids on the reproductive system of athletes and recreational users: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Sports Med 47:1869–1883

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Clark AS, Lindenfeld RC, Gibbons CH (1996) Anabolic-androgenic steroids and brain reward. Pharmacol Biochem Behav 53:741–745

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Connor JP, Gullo MJ, Chan G et al (2013) Polysubstance use in cannabis users referred for treatment: drug use profiles, psychiatric comorbidity and cannabis-related beliefs. Front Psychiatry 4:79

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Connor JP, Gullo MJ, White A, Kelly AB (2014) Polysubstance use. Curr Opin Psychiatry 27:269–275

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • de Ronde W, Smit DL (2020) Anabolic androgenic steroid abuse in young males. Endocr Connect 9:R102–R111

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Dodge TL, Jaccard JJ (2006) The effect of high school sports participation on the use of performance-enhancing substances in young adulthood. J Adolesc Health 39:367–373

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Duntas LH, Popovic V (2013) Hormones as doping in sports. Endocrine 43:303–313

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • el Scheich T, Weber A-A, Klee D et al (2013) Adolescent ischemic stroke associated with anabolic steroid and cannabis abuse. J Pediatr Endocrinol Metab 26:161–165

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Fergusson DM, John Horwood L, Ridder EM (2005) Show me the child at seven: the consequences of conduct problems in childhood for psychosocial functioning in adulthood. J Child Psychol Psychiatry 46:837–849

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Floresco SB, Tse MTL, Ghods-Sharifi S (2008) Dopaminergic and glutamatergic regulation of effort- and delay-based decision making. Neuropsychopharmacology 33:1966–1979

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gårevik N, Rane A (2010) Dual use of anabolic-androgenic steroids and narcotics in Sweden. Drug Alcohol Depend 109:144–146

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • González S, Bisogno T, Wenger T et al (2000) Sex steroid influence on cannabinoid CB1 receptor mRNA and endocannabinoid levels in the anterior pituitary gland. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 270:260–266

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hakansson A, Mickelsson K, Wallin C, Berglund M (2012) Anabolic androgenic steroids in the general population: user characteristics and associations with substance use. Eur Addict Res 18:83–90

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hallgren M, Pope HG Jr, Kanayama G et al (2015) Anti-social behaviors associated with anabolic-androgenic steroid use among male adolescents. Eur Addict Res 21:321–326

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hammond D, Goodman S, Wadsworth E et al (2020) Evaluating the impacts of cannabis legalization: the International Cannabis Policy Study. Int J Drug Policy 77:102698

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hartgens F, Kuipers H (2004) Effects of androgenic-anabolic steroids in athletes. Sports Med 34:513–554

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Harvey O, Parrish M (2020) Social work implications of anabolic–androgenic steroid use, particularly among young people: a literature review. Practice 32:209–228

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hughes TK, Rady PL, Smith EM (1998) Potential for the effects of anabolic steroid abuse in the immune and neuroendocrine axis. J Neuroimmunol 83:163–167

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jenssen IH, Johannessen KB (2015) Aggression and body image concerns among anabolic androgenic steroid users, contemplators, and controls in Norway. Body Image 12:6–13

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kanayama G, Pope HG (2012) Illicit use of androgens and other hormones. Curr Opin Endocrinol Diabetes Obes 19:211–219

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kindlundh AMS, Isacson DGL, Berglund L, Nyberg F (1999) Factors associated with adolescent use of doping agents: anabolic-androgenic steroids. Addiction 94:543–553

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kindlundh AMS, Lindblom J, Bergström L et al (2001) The anabolic-androgenic steroid nandrolone decanoate affects the density of dopamine receptors in the male rat brain. Eur J Neurosci 13:291–296

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kindlundh AMS, Lindblom J, Nyberg F (2003) Chronic administration with nandrolone decanoate induces alterations in the gene-transcript content of dopamine D1- and D2-receptors in the rat brain. Brain Res 979:37–42

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Leth SV, Bjerrum ML, Niclasen B, v. (2021) Polysubstance abuse among sexually abused in alcohol, drug, and gambling addiction treatment in Greenland: a cross sectional study. Int J Circumpolar Health 80:1849909

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lood Y, Eklund A, Garle M, Ahlner J (2012) Anabolic androgenic steroids in police cases in Sweden 1999–2009. Forensic Sci Int 219:199–204

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lopez-Quintero C, Anthony JC (2015) Drug use disorders in the polydrug context: new epidemiological evidence from a foodborne outbreak approach. Ann N Y Acad Sci 1349:119–126

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Lopez-Quintero C, Granja K, Hawes S et al (2018) Transition to drug co-use among adolescent cannabis users: the role of decision-making and mental health. Addict Behav 85:43–50

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Lundholm L, Frisell T, Lichtenstein P, Långström N (2015) Anabolic androgenic steroids and violent offending: confounding by polysubstance abuse among 10365 general population men. Addiction 110:100–108

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Middleman AB, Faulkner AH, Woods ER et al (1995) High-risk behaviors among high school students in Massachusetts who use anabolic steroids. Pediatrics 96(2 Pt 1):268–272

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Molero Y, Bakshi A-S, Gripenberg J (2017) Illicit drug use among gym-goers: a cross-sectional study of gym-goers in Sweden. Sports Med Open 3:31

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Park S, Shen JJ, Yoo JW, Reed SM (2020) The effect of marijuana legalization on the trajectories of hard drug-related hospitalizations: a growth curve analysis of the county-level state inpatient database in Washington, 2009–2015. J Drug Issues 50:273–285

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Parkinson AB, Evans NA (2006) Anabolic androgenic steroids. Med Sci Sports Exerc 38:644–651

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Patanè FG, Liberto A, Maria Maglitto AN et al (2020) Nandrolone decanoate: use, abuse and side effects. Medicina 56:606

    Article  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Petersson A, Garle M, Holmgren P et al (2006) Toxicological findings and manner of death in autopsied users of anabolic androgenic steroids. Drug Alcohol Depend 81:241–249

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Pope HG, Kanayama G, Hudson JI (2012) Risk factors for illicit anabolic-androgenic steroid use in male weightlifters: a cross-sectional cohort study. Biol Psychiatry 71:254–261

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Preti E, Prunas A, Ravera F, Madeddu F (2011) Polydrug abuse and personality disorders in a sample of substance-abusing inpatients. Ment Health Subst Use 4:256–266

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Richmond-Rakerd LS, Slutske WS, Lynskey MT et al (2016) Age at first use and later substance use disorder: shared genetic and environmental pathways for nicotine, alcohol, and cannabis. J Abnorm Psychol 125:946–959

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Robles-Diaz M, Gonzalez-Jimenez A, Medina-Caliz I et al (2015) Distinct phenotype of hepatotoxicity associated with illicit use of anabolic androgenic steroids. Aliment Pharmacol Ther 41:116–125

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Russell C, Rueda S, Room R et al (2018) Routes of administration for cannabis use – basic prevalence and related health outcomes: a scoping review and synthesis. Int J Drug Policy 52:87–96

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sagoe D, Molde H, Andreassen CS et al (2014) The global epidemiology of anabolic-androgenic steroid use: a meta-analysis and meta-regression analysis. Ann Epidemiol 24:383–398

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Santos JP, Lacerda FB, De Oliveira LA et al (2020) Neurological consequences of abusive use of anabolic-androgenic steroids. Braz J Surg Clin Res 32:52–58

    Google Scholar 

  • Schroeder JP, Packard MG (2000) Role of dopamine receptor subtypes in the acquisition of a testosterone conditioned place preference in rats. Neurosci Lett 282:17–20

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Secades-Villa R, Garcia-Rodríguez O, Jin CJ et al (2015) Probability and predictors of the cannabis gateway effect: a national study. Int J Drug Policy 26:135–142

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Shevlin M, McElroy E, Murphy J et al (2017) Cannabis and psychosis: the impact of polydrug use. Drugs Alcohol Today 17:186–194

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Skårberg K, Nyberg F, Engström I (2008) The development of multiple drug use among anabolic-androgenic steroid users: six subjective case reports. Subst Abuse Treat Prev Policy 3:24

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Skarberg K, Nyberg F, Engstrom I (2009) Multisubstance use as a feature of addiction to anabolic-androgenic steroids. Eur Addict Res 15:99–106

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Smart R, Pacula RL (2019) Early evidence of the impact of cannabis legalization on cannabis use, cannabis use disorder, and the use of other substances: findings from state policy evaluations. Am J Drug Alcohol Abuse 45:644–663

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Struik D, Fadda P, Zara T et al (2017) The anabolic steroid nandrolone alters cannabinoid self-administration and brain CB1 receptor density and function. Pharmacol Res 115:209–217

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • The Misuse of Drugs (Designation) (Amendment) (No. 2) (England, Wales and Scotland) order 2017. https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2017/1118/contents/made. Accessed 29 July 2021

  • Urhausen A (2004) Are the cardiac effects of anabolic steroid abuse in strength athletes reversible? Heart 90:496–501

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Volkow ND, Poznyak V, Saxena S, Gerra G (2017) Drug use disorders: impact of a public health rather than a criminal justice approach. World Psychiatry 16:213–214

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Wagner FA (2002) Into the world of illegal drug use: exposure opportunity and other mechanisms linking the use of alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, and cocaine. Am J Epidemiol 155:918–925

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • World Health Organization. United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. Strengthening the medico-legal response to sexual violence. Geneva: World Health Organization. 2015.

    Google Scholar 

  • World Drug Report (2019) United Nations publication. Sales no. E.19.XI.8

    Google Scholar 

  • Zhu H, Wu L-T (2016) Trends and correlates of cannabis-involved emergency department visits: 2004 to 2011. J Addict Med 10:429–436

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Rabab H. Sayed .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2022 Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this entry

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this entry

Sayed, R.H., Rabie, M.A. (2022). Nandrolone Decanoate (Nan) Abusers and Concomitant Cannabis Use. In: Patel, V.B., Preedy, V.R. (eds) Handbook of Substance Misuse and Addictions. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-67928-6_149-1

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-67928-6_149-1

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-67928-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-67928-6

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference MedicineReference Module Medicine

Publish with us

Policies and ethics