Pharmapro.net

We have been receiving several phone calls and emails from customers telling us they bought what they believed to be a  legal version of a steroid from some company in the back of a magazine and when they got their package, they opened the box only to find product that was just a bunch of under dosed herbs spiked with caffeine.  They then tried the product and of course it didn't work. In other emails they go on to ask us what makes us different as we advertise in the same place and make some similar claims.   We are also asked why we don't have counterfeit-proof holograms for our products.

  Well, let's clear the air.  The problem with the dietary supplement industry is that there are a lot of companies out their that just don't care about whether or not you get results. All they care about is lining their pockets - at your expense.  All you want is a product that will work and give you the gains you are looking for at a fair price. There is a lot of slick marketing going on out there and unfortunately the consumer gets so confused with what is BS and what is the truth they sometimes give up.

We addressed this issue in the past regarding supplements that are supposedly legal versions of steroids.  Legal versions of anabolic steroids DO NOT EXIST.  A company can name a product after the common nickname of a steroid - but at the end of the day,  it is a supplement. We in fact get slammed on some internet forums as a result of these companies that market their products this way because we advertise in the same magazines they do.  We admit to some aggressive advertising, but we never will tell the consumer we sell a legal version of a steroid.  Regardless of what a company names a product , at the end of the day, they are all legally classified as dietary supplements. 

Now I know there is some dude out there yelling "What are you talking about man, I bought  some legal Dianobal online the other day."  Yup, you did.  Check out the ingredients.  Do the ingredients look anything like a steroid?  Nope.  When you bought the product, they never mentioned anything about it being a supplement did they? Did they disclose the ingredients in the product on their website? Nope.  Why should they?  It's understood it's a legal steroid right? You may have even believed you were buying a prohormone (which are no longer available).  Just because a product has adopted the name of a common street drug (in this case a steroid) it doesn't mean it works like one at all.  This is because at the end of the day it is a supplement.  And if you were duped into believing you bought a legal version of a steroid, you will see very plainly on the front of their label, the words "Dietary Supplement".  This is a mandatory requirement of all dietary supplements.  Remember, it is your right as a consumer  to know the ingredients of the products you are taking. 

I know there is another guy out there saying, "Wait a minute, I just bought some legal Winstrol the other day. I know it is real because there is a hologram on it so it can't be counterfeited."  A hologram on a dietary supplement?  LMAO, You've got to be kidding me!!! This is a freakin' joke.  Unfortunately the joke is on the consumer.  Back in the good old days, steroids were knocked off by underground labs. So what the drug manufacturers did to counteract this was to create holograms for their products so pharmacies and consumers knew they were getting legitimate prescription drugs.   I ask you, is some underground Mexican laboratory going to knock off a dietary supplement named after a steroid?  No way! This is just another way to scam you.  Any company touting their products as legit because they have holograms should be avoided.

There is a new scam out there where some companies claim to have the most powerful legal steroids from Canada.  Well, knowing a little about Canadian law, I can tell you that Canada, whose drugs and supplements are regulated by the CDA (Canadian Drug Administration) is far stricter about what is manufactured and distributed in their country than the U.S.  So if you think you are going to get powerful legal steroids from Canada that actually work, guess again.

As you can see, the scammers are everywhere.  Some of these companies are fairly large and have elaborate websites with even more elaborate marketing schemes. For instance,  some websites lure you in by promising vast knowledge about real steroids, a steroid guide or something similar. Then before you know it, they try to pimp their "legal" versions of these steroids on you.

So what do you do? There is only one answer.  Educate, educate , educate.  Knowledge is power.  Go out there and read up on supplement ingredients. Yeah I know, who has time right?  If you do this, you are guaranteed to learn the true sports nutrition ingredients and supplements that  work and the ones that are definitely worth trying.  You will also learn about the ones to stay away from.  Also, ask friends about supplements they've tried and get their feedback.  There are also plenty of online forums with tons of information.  

Whatever you do, if you come across one of these companies whose products have names  confusingly simliar to well-known steroids,  run for the hills, you're about to get screwed.         

                                                                                                                                       - Anabolic Blogger

Well, we all knew it would happen, but no one knew just when.  Prohormones are pretty much off the market now.  Many may wonder what happened? Why were they banned?  Why no grace period?   Regardless the reason, they are gone.  There will be a silver lining in all of this though.  Don’t forget the old saying:

                                       “Necessity is The Mother of Invention”.

Where there is a need, there will be someone that will fill that need. We All Need To Get Bigger, Stronger And Faster (at least in the world of sports nutrition we do).    However, the need gets filled now without the help of steroidal precursors.  I believe that the sports nutrition world will see more innovation come about in the next few years than at any other time in its’ short but illustrious history.  This will hold true as long as the government does not dismantle DSHEA (Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994).  You see my fellow Iron Warriors, DSHEA is the reason why there are so many different dietary supplement categories that exist today.  The DSHEA dilemma will be discussed at great length in a future Anabolic Blog.

I had known for a long time that prohormones would not be around forever.  At the beginning of 2007, we began to R & D viable alternatives to replace the prohormones that were on the market.  Our initial research seemed to lead us to a dead-end.  It seemed there were no legal compounds to replace the well-proven prohormones.  However, as we dug deeper, we found that there are indeed a select few phytosteroidal compounds that have anecdotal research proving their ability to increase anabolic/androgenic hormones- LEGALLY.   There were two limiting factors though:

The first is that the proper compound or botanical has to be used.  You see, what many supplement companies out there will do is they will cite a study on a given compound and then, when they launch their product, they will use a form of that compound that does nothing. Why do they do this you ask?  Typically the products that work well are extremely expensive. So to keep the manufacturing costs down, they will pull the old bait and switch on you and sell you the inferior product still citing the studies on the compounds that work.

For instance, we get calls every day from customers who tell us they tried this company or that company’s products and they didn’t feel anything.  When they tell us the list of ingredients on the label, we find most of the time the company is using an inferior form of the compound that works.

The second limiting factor is that if the proper compounds for anabolic growth are used, enough of it has to be used to evoke the desired effect in the body.  Here too the consumer has to be careful.  A lot of unscrupulous companies out there will go ahead and use the proper compound that supports anabolic activity, then they turn around and use a microscopic amount of it in their formula.

As mentioned before, some of the reasons why things like this happen has a lot to do with a company’s bottom line.  What happens to some companies is that they start off on the up and up, then as things get tough; they ultimately have to cut corners to enhance their bottom line.  This will finally trickle down to you.  For instance, did you ever try a product from a company and take it for a while and get great results, and when you buy it again a few months later, you’re don’t  feel the same results as before?  More than likely that company decided to alter their formula to make it cheaper to enhance their bottom line.

The good news is that most companies are legitimate.  However, there are some out there that can give a rat’s ass about whether or not you gain a single ounce of muscle. Here are some tips on how to protect yourself.

1) Do a little research on the ingredients.  With Google, Bing and a host of other search engines and websites at your finger tips, it should not be difficult to find information on just about any compound or botanical.  It may be a little time consuming, but in the end, it will be well worth it.

2) Stick with companies that reference studies about their products or ingredients. If you have access to these studies, reading them will help you understand how and why a particular product works.

3) Don’t be fooled into believing that there are products with actual steroidal compounds out there.  Some companies purposely name their products using the street names of well-known steroids to fool you into thinking you are taking the real thing.  It amazes me how many people get sucked in by this ploy. Steroids and steroidal precursors are GONE. There are No Exceptions.  Don’t get taken for a sucker.

4) Only buy a product that has a Money Back Guarantee.  If a manufacturer knows their products work, they should have no problem backing it with a guarantee by allowing you to use the entire bottle of product.  Know up front what the guarantee is.  Sometimes, once you open the bottle, you’re screwed (which really isn’t a guarantee if you think about it-you were never able to try it).  Be sure to check the terms of the guarantee before you buy.

Like I said before, the prohormones are gone, but there are plenty of legit supplement brands that will give you excellent gains that are 100% legal. Expect more new and innovative products than ever before.  Use the tips above to make an informed choice and you will forget the prohormones ever existed.

                                                                                                                                   - Anabolic Blogger