If you take oral corticosteroids for a long time, your adrenal glands may produce less of their natural steroid hormones. To give your adrenal glands time to recover this function, your provider may reduce your dose gradually.
Results. Compared with non-prednisone use, the hazard ratio of organ damage for prednisone was 1.16 (95% CI 0.54, 2.50) for cumulative average doses > 0–180 mg/month, 1.50 (95% CI 0.58, 3.88) for > 180–360 mg/month, 1.64 (95% CI 0.58, 4.69) for > 360–540 mg/month, and 2.51 (95% CI 0.87, 7.27) for > 540 mg/month.
Corticosteroids also have major effects on the liver, particularly when given long term and in higher than physiologic doses. Glucocorticoid use can result in hepatic enlargement and steatosis or glycogenosis.
Corticosteroids are used widely to treat many types of disease. In general, these drugs are considered safe for the liver; however, recent reports have demonstrated that high-dose methylprednisolone (MT) may cause severe liver injury.
The liver injury generally arises within 1 to 4 months of starting therapy, but may be delayed to as long as 6 to 24 months (Case 1). The onset is usually insidious with development of nausea, fatigue and itching followed by dark urine and jaundice.
Anabolic steroid use causes decreased levels of HDL or “good” cholesterol, increased levels of LDL or “bad” cholesterol, and serious liver toxicity within 12 weeks, according to a study that measured the effects of anabolic steroids on men with HIV wasting disease.
The most serious prednisone side effects usually include allergic reactions, infections, gastrointestinal issues and elevated blood sugar. These may occur when people take larger doses or take the medication for long-term treatment.
A gradual reduction in prednisone dosage gives your adrenal glands time to resume their usual function. The amount of time it takes to taper off prednisone depends on the disease being treated, the dose and duration of use, and other medical considerations. A full recovery can take a week to several months.
This depends on your health problem or condition. You may only need a short course of prednisolone for up to 1 week. You may need to take it for longer, even for many years or the rest of your life.
Anabolic steroids can produce many unpleasant and often permanent side effects, including: damage to the gonads (testicles or ovaries)
Corticosteroids — like prednisone — can have serious long-term side effects. This is especially true when someone takes them for a long time or at a higher dose. Examples of corticosteroids side effects include weight gain, osteoporosis, eye problems, and increased infection risk.
Specific medications in this group include (in no particular order) Flovent, Pulmicort, QVAR, Asmanex, and many others, both brand-name and generic. These are medicines that are similar to prednisone, but the dose is much lower than prednisone taken by mouth, and the side effects are dramatically reduced.
Prednisone has a tendency to raise the level of glucose, or sugar, in the blood, which can cause increased body fat or diabetes in some people. It is important to avoid "simple" carbohydrates and concentrated sweets, such as cakes, pies, cookies, jams, honey, chips, breads, candy and other highly processed foods.
The effects are dose related– higher the dose, the worse the side effects. Prednisone use should be minimized. A dose of 5 mg daily use to be considered acceptable, but current thoughts are to try to eliminate completely, particularly if you are prone to develop the conditions I mentioned above.
This could take weeks or even months, depending on how long you took the medication or how high your dose was. Even a tapered dose of prednisone helps prevent inflammation, which is why you took the steroid in the first place.
Official answer
It takes approximately 16.5 to 22 hours for Prednisone to be out of your system. The elimination half life of prednisone is around 3 to 4 hours. This is the time it takes for your body to reduce the plasma levels by half.
Unfortunately, if you take prednisone for an extended time, your body will start making less cortisol after a few weeks. If you take things slowly and taper off the prednisone, your adrenal glands can catch up and start making normal cortisol levels.
People taking prednisone can also experience higher blood sugar, which is a special concern for those with diabetes. Because prednisone suppresses the body's immune system, it can also increase the risk of infection. Therefore, some precautions need to be taken.
If symptoms such as abdominal pain, fever or unusual digestive problems (diarrhea, constipation) occur during corticosteroid therapy, notify your physician.
Prednisone affects areas of the brain that manage the regulation of different neurotransmitters, including serotonin and dopamine — the “feel-good” hormones. Feeling happy is a great side effect some people feel with prednisone.
Take supplements to protect liver:
In order to be a responsible steroid user, you should supplement with a liver aid that provides all the building blocks needed to restore and repair your liver during and after oral steroid usage. N2Guard is the most-popular liver support product in the steroid world.
Fatty liver is a condition that can result from the use of steroids. The condition can be caused by the accumulation of fat in the liver due to increased insulin levels.
Norethandrolone was found to be the most toxic of the 6 steroids tested. All increased the retention of sulfobromophthalein and the excretion of creatinine; none affected the serum bilirubin. The route of administration did not make a significant difference. 1.
1. Omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3 fatty acids , which are abundant in fatty fish such as salmon or tuna, are among the most potent anti-inflammatory supplements. These supplements may help fight several types of inflammation, including vascular inflammation.