On June 30, German fitness influencer, Jo Lindner, popularly known as Joesthetics, passed away at the age of 30 due to an aneurysm. On July 1, Lindner’s girlfriend, Nicha, penned a heartfelt note announcing his death due to an aneurysm. She revealed that Lindner was experiencing pain in his neck for three days. She wrote, “3 days ago he kept said that he pain his neck.. we not really realize it… until it too late,” in her Instagram post.
Meanwhile, fellow bodybuilder Noel Deyzel shared a photo of himself and Lindner on Instagram, which he captioned, “Rest in peace Jo. I love you man.” Noel also penned a heartfelt note for Lindner, expressing how Lindner helped him achieve greatness. “I still keep checking my phone waiting for your reply so we can meet at the gym,” wrote Noel.
Jo Lindner enjoyed a massive fan following on social media with approx. 8.9 million followers on Instagram and was known for posting about his workouts, meals and training routines. Notably, Lindner was once exposed to steroids and then developed gynecomastia – a disease which causes enlargement of breast tissue and burns the nipples. While what caused Lindner’s aneurysm is still unknown, there are speculations about the use of steroids causing it.
Last month, Lindner revealed about his fear of dying on the Bradley Martyn Raw Talk. He said, “The heart is also a muscle, that’s my biggest concern what if I get such a bad cramp that my heart gets a cramp.” It was reported that his fear of death kept him away from a lot of competition.
Effect of Anabolic Steroids on Heart Health
Aneurysms occur when blood vessels become thin or weakened, causing arteries to enlarge or rupture. Research indicates that using anabolic steroids may have adverse effects on cardiovascular activities, including aortic dissection, hypertension, and atherosclerosis. Chronic steroid use can weaken blood vessels due to a negative impact on collagen formation and connective tissue strength.
According to the study presented at the Brazilian Congress of Cardiology (SBC 2017), anabolic androgenic steroids may be associated with early coronary artery disease. Anabolic androgenic steroid abuse among young people is a widespread problem worldwide, and adverse events such as sudden cardiac death and heart attack have been reported in athletes, said lead author Francis Ribeiro de Souza.
This study examined whether anabolic androgenic steroids could be associated with early coronary artery disease. It also tested whether reduced high-density lipoprotein (HDL) function could be a mechanism leading to coronary artery disease in anabolic androgenic steroid users.
The study included 51 men with an average age of 29 years (range 23 to 43 years). Of those, 21 did weight lifting and had taken anabolic androgenic steroids for at least two years, 20 did weight lifting but did not take steroids, and ten were healthy but sedentary.
Participants underwent computed tomography coronary angiography (a type of imaging used to visualise the arteries) to assess the presence of atherosclerosis in the coronary arteries. A urine test was performed on all participants to confirm steroid use. Blood samples were taken to measure lipid levels including HDL. The researchers used cell cultures to measure the ability of each participant’s HDL to perform its normal function of removing cholesterol from macrophages (white blood cells).
The researchers found that 24% of steroid users had atherosclerosis in their coronary arteries, compared to none of the non-users and sedentary participants. The steroid users with atherosclerosis also had significantly reduced HDL levels and HDL function.
Ribeiro de Souza noted that the study suggests that anabolic androgenic steroid use may be associated with the development of coronary artery disease in apparently healthy young people. Steroids may have an impact on the ability of HDL to remove cholesterol from macrophages, thereby promoting atherosclerosis.
“This was a small, observational study and we cannot conclude that steroids cause atherosclerosis,” he continued. “Larger studies with longer follow-up are needed to confirm these results.” Ribeiro de Souza concluded that greater awareness is needed of the potential risks of these drugs.
[with inputs from ANI]
