Oh, Naturale!

Although it may be tempting for HIVers to turn to body-building supplements to fight HIV-related wasting and lipoatrophy, doing so risks serious side effects, including liver injury, strokes, kidney failure, and artery blockages in the lungs, the Food and Drug Administration warns. This summer the agency issued a public-health advisory stating that many body-building products marketed as dietary supplements actually contain steroids or synthetic steroid-like substances, which are unregulated drugs. The advisory warns consumers to stop taking products that outwardly claim to contain steroid-like substances or claim to enhance or diminish androgen-, estrogen-, or progestin-like effects in the body.