"Testosterone Boosters" and ATD

I've already written my opinion of prohormones  and "testosterone boosters."

But I want talk about a specific ingredient common in some "testosterone booster" supplements: ATD.

This compound has been blamed for false-positive steroid test in professional athletes (some soccer players had this issue back in 2008). 

Apparently the compound itself is so similar to testosterone that tests mistake it for testosterone:

Radioimmunoassay (RIA) for testosterone (T) in unchromatographed plasma extracts from ATD-treated rats gave spuriously high values for T. Cross-reaction and chromatographic studies subsequently showed that ATD and, to a much greater extent, its metabolite(s) were responsible for this overestimation. Celite column chromatography proved to be an effective way of separating T from ATD and its product(s) of metabolism.

-Excerpt from Pubmed.gov (emphasis mine)

Some supplements claim to "increase testosterone" by a certain percentage (it's usually a crazy number, like 500-700%), citing independent lab results to back up their claim.  

But I strongly suspect some of these tests are simply detecting ATD metabolites, not actual increases in testosterone. 

I'll repeat something I've said in previous articles:  I see many teenagers talking about wanting to use this and other "testosterone boosters."  Listen:  if you are a teenager with no medical issues, you have plenty of natural testosterone!  Just train hard, eat well, and save your money!