From steroid use to early menopause – Dr Jeff answers your health questions
DR JEFF FOSTER is The Sun on Sunday’s new resident doctor and is here to help YOU.
Dr Jeff, 43, splits his time between working as a GP in Leamington Spa, Warks, and running his clinic, H3 Health, which is the first of its kind in the UK to look at hormonal issues for both men and women. See h3health.co.uk.
Q) TWO years ago my partner got into body building. He’s 37 and his muscles have become huge.
I looked in his gym bag and saw vials of liquid and syringes.
I think he is injecting steroids or growth hormones. What can I do to make him stop? I know these drugs have awful side-effects.
Debbie Taylor, Liverpool
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A) When I started going to the gym in the 1990s, steroid use was still rare and remained the domain of professionals.
But in recent years social media combined with easier access to drugs has made the use of anabolic steroids and other banned substances so commonplace that our clinic regularly sees men in their thirties who have permanently damaged their natural production of testosterone through steroid use.
The problem with these drugs is that people feel great and see a series of positive results when they first take them – and the multiple negative side effects are delayed for several years.
Risks include infertility, heart disease, stroke and changes in facial bones.
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Get your partner to speak to a men’s health doctor or sports doctor who will have specific knowledge of what he is doing and advise him on how to reduce and come off them safely when he is ready.
Q) I’M a 42-year-old mother of two and over the last year I’ve started to get hot flushes and become forgetful.
I have regular periods but I’m worried this is the menopause starting. Can I be tested?
Lara Barnes, Stoke
A) Over recent years there have been great efforts made to better understand the impact of menopause and it is vital that we do not trivialise it because, when handled badly, it can devastate women’s lives.
The average age of menopause in the UK is 51 but the onset of symptoms (perimenopause) can occur years before and a change in periods is only one characteristic.
A loss of oestrogen affects almost every aspect of a women’s body, from how they feel and think to metabolism, sex drive, heart health, bone health and many other systems.
Hot flushes and memory problems are signs of menopause but can also be related to other health problems.
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There is a blood test you can do to look for menopause but it is limited in its use and should only be performed after speaking to a doctor.
You should speak to a menopause specialist who can look at your symptoms and decide on the specific tests you might need.