13.03.07 - According to AP, Sylvester Stallone, 60, has been charged with importing 48 vials of human growth hormone, “Jintropin,” a muscle building drug, after being stopped by customs officials at the Sydney airport last month in Australia, at a time he was in the country promoting his movie “Rocky Balboa.” The hormone is a banned substance in Australia and requires a special permit before it can be allowed into the country. Apparently, Stallone had marked down “no,” on his customs declaration form when asked if he was bringing into the country any restricted substances. Stallone faces a penalty of $22,000, if found guilty.
Stallone, most notably famous for his “Rocky” and “First Blood” Hollywood movies, looks nothing like the average 60-year-old man. Instead of having a loose skin and a large paunch, Stallone is incredibly muscular, looking as defined as an amateur bodybuilder in his thirties. His face, however, shows his age somewhat, with some wrinkles around his eyes, but nothing like what a normal sixty year old man looks like.
Human growth hormone, now popular with many sports athletes as well as body builders, primary advantage over older Anabolic agents, such as Anabolic Steroids, is that it makes a person lean, increasing muscle definition, while at the same time building muscle mass and decreasing fat.
For many, it’s considered a fountain of youth drug, in that it gives the person using it a large variety of beneficial effects, for example, younger, tighter skin, higher energy levels, lowered blood pressure, increased muscles mass, reduced body fat, greater sexual desire, lowered blood pressure and re-generation of major organs that shrink with age. However, the drug is not without its major side effects, notably a condition called “Acromegaly,” which is caused by the body producing too much growth hormone, resulting in the extremities – hands, feet, and knuckles – brow, heart and jaw growing larger. Additionally, the condition often causes diabetes. Often times, Acomegaly leads to an early death by the person suffering from it.
Whether Stallone has been using it, is not known. However, the 48 vials represents a large amount of the drug, enough to last him for a significant period of time if he were making weekly injections of the drug. The side effects listed above - enlarged jaw, hands, feet, brow, and potentially early death - would be an areas of concern if Stallone were to be, in fact, using the drug.
At present, the case has been recessed until April 24, at which time Stallone’s lawyers will introduce a plea for him.
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