The Side Effects of HGH Therapy

Human growth hormone therapy (known as HGH therapy) is a prescription-only product administered through injection. Although normally prescribed for adults wrestling with the consequences of having growth hormone deficiency (low bone density and muscle mass), it is also used to treat muscle wasting resulting from AIDS or HIV diseases. But in spite of the good it can do, HGH isn't free of side effects.

Human Growth Hormone (HGH) Therapy

• Our bodies generally make enough growth hormones to meet our needs; however, that isn't always the case. In some individuals, the pituitary gland does not prompt proper bone and muscle growth. Body tissue and organs can also suffer when this growth hormone is lacking. Therefore, to counteract the deficit, doctors prescribe a synthetic growth hormone injection. This synthetic hormone, although mostly used to treat adults, is also used to treat youths who suffer from an abnormally short stature.

Side Effects

• HGH is not without side effects. Some of of these side effects are muscle and joint pain, and arm and leg swelling and the enlargement of male breast tissue (gynecomastia). According to the Mayo Clinic, HGH may also be a contributing factor in heart disease and diabetes. Additionally, research indicates that when side effects are experienced, they occur more commonly in older, rather than in younger, adults.

Gynecomastia

• Gynecomastia, the enlargement of male breast tissue, can be a side effect of using HGH. Symptoms include swelling and pain in the breast area. According to the Mayo Clinic, if men experience gynecomastia as a result of using medication (such as HGH), the medication should be ceased and another treatment option pursued instead.

Heart Disease and HGH

• According to an article entitled "Growth Hormone and the Heart," published on the website of the U.S. National Library of Medicine, HGH use can play a role in heart disease. However, that role seems to be limited to youths, whose heart is still developing. If not addressed through reduction of HGH dosage amount (or elimination of any defective HGH), cardiac function can be impaired, resulting in heart failure.

Diabetes and HGH

• Since HGH is itself a hormone, albeit a synthetic one, its introduction into the body can impact other cells besides growth cells. Therefore, as new bone and muscle mass are prompted to grow, the body's other tissues and organs are also prompted into production, stimulating other hormones. This production at the behest of HGH impacts to some degree the release of insulin, which can result in possible diabetes-like complications.