Yes, Anabol is an anabolic steroid. It is a brand name for methandrostenolone (also called metandienone), one of the most well-known oral anabolic androgenic steroids ever produced. You may also recognize it under the more famous brand name Dianabol. Anabol, Dianabol, and their many generic versions all contain the same active compound.
What Anabol Actually Is
Methandrostenolone is a synthetic derivative of testosterone, the primary male sex hormone. It was developed in the late 1950s and quickly became popular in competitive sports and bodybuilding. The compound is classified as both anabolic (muscle-building) and androgenic (promoting male characteristics), which is why it falls under the category of anabolic androgenic steroids, or AAS.
In 1970, the FDA recognized methandrostenolone as “probably effective” for treating postmenopausal osteoporosis and growth deficiency caused by pituitary problems. Both of those medical indications have since been withdrawn, and the drug is no longer approved for clinical use in the United States.
How It Works in the Body
When you take Anabol orally, it’s absorbed through the digestive tract and enters the bloodstream. From there, it binds to androgen receptors on muscle cells. Once attached, the steroid-receptor combination moves into the cell’s nucleus and switches on genes responsible for building muscle proteins. The result is a sharp increase in the production of the structural proteins that make muscles contract and grow.
The drug also shifts the body into a positive nitrogen balance. Nitrogen is a core building block of amino acids, which themselves form proteins. When more nitrogen is retained than excreted, the body stays in an anabolic (growth-promoting) state. This does two things at once: it accelerates the creation of new muscle tissue and slows the breakdown of existing muscle. That combination is what makes the compound appealing for rapid strength and size gains, and it also helps explain why recovery from intense training feels faster on the drug.
Side Effects and Health Risks
Liver Damage
Anabol is taken by mouth, and oral anabolic steroids are particularly hard on the liver. The drug can cause cholestatic liver injury, a condition where bile flow from the liver is blocked. Liver enzymes (the markers doctors check in blood work) can rise to two to three times the normal upper limit. More serious complications include peliosis hepatis (blood-filled cysts in the liver), liver tumors, and, in rare cases, liver cancer.
Estrogenic Effects
Testosterone-based steroids can be converted by the body into estradiol, a form of estrogen. Methandrostenolone undergoes this conversion readily. The resulting spike in estrogen levels can cause gynecomastia (breast tissue growth in men) and significant water retention, which inflates body weight and blood pressure. These estrogenic side effects are among the most common complaints associated with the drug.
Cardiovascular and Hormonal Effects
Like other anabolic steroids, Anabol suppresses the body’s natural testosterone production. After stopping the drug, it can take weeks or months for normal hormone levels to recover, and in some cases recovery is incomplete. The drug also negatively affects cholesterol, raising LDL (“bad” cholesterol) and lowering HDL (“good” cholesterol), which increases cardiovascular risk over time. Elevated blood pressure from water retention compounds that risk further.
Legal Status
Methandrostenolone is a controlled substance in the United States, classified under Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act. Possessing it without a prescription is a federal offense. In Australia, importing it requires a permit from the Office of Drug Control. The United Kingdom classifies anabolic steroids as Class C drugs, making supply and distribution illegal without authorization.
In competitive sports, the drug is banned across all disciplines. The World Anti-Doping Agency lists metandienone under “S1.1 Anabolic Androgenic Steroids,” prohibited at all times, both in and out of competition. Athletes who test positive face suspensions that typically range from two to four years.
Why Anabol Still Circulates
Despite having no approved medical use today, Anabol and its equivalents remain widely available on the black market and through online sources. The tablets are inexpensive to manufacture, easy to take (no injections required), and produce rapid, visible muscle gains within weeks. That combination keeps demand high, particularly among recreational lifters and amateur bodybuilders. Most of what’s sold today comes from underground labs or overseas manufacturers, meaning purity, dosing accuracy, and contamination are unpredictable. What’s labeled as Anabol may contain more, less, or entirely different compounds than what’s on the packaging.