Anabolic Steroids

Blog #5 - October 28, 2009

In the scheme of drug use among teens steroids may seem insignificant. While the problem is more prevalent among males, the number of females using anabolic steroids is rising. In 2008, the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) found that only about 1.4% of 8th and 10th graders and 2.2% of 12th graders had ever tried steroids. However, the severity of the short and long term effects of these drugs, as well as the dangers associated with the access and actual use of the drugs is not understood by teens. Adolescents can be blinded by the few positive effects of the use of anabolic steroids, such as muscle growth and loss of body fat, yet fail to look beyond the potentially lethal consequences.

Although there are many different kinds of steroids, anabolic steroids are most commonly abused by teens because of their ability to increase muscle mass. Anabolic steroids are prescribed by doctors to adults for certain medical conditions, such as anemia or body wasting in AIDS patients, or men who may not be producing enough testosterone. Normally, anabolic steroids would absolutely never be prescribed to teens because of the serious long term effects that accompany these substances. Teen bodies are going through serious periods of growth and development. Introducing even more testosterone causes hormone imbalances, with effects including serious changes in mood, memory, and learning ability. Other long term effects include high blood pressure, blood clotting, increased LDL (bad cholesterol), decreased HDL (good cholesterol), liver cancer, kidney cancer, prostate cancer, and severe acne.

The short term effects of anabolic steroids are just as serious and possibly even more alarming. For boys, effects include shrinking testicles, difficult urination, infertility, impotence, breast development, and hair loss. Girls may experience excessive body and facial hair, male-pattern baldness, loss of body fat and breasts, changes in menstruation, and deepening voice. One of the most serious and well known effects of anabolic steroid use is "roid rage," which is the uncontrollable aggression and agitation caused by the drugs. Anabolic steroids have the capacity to cause severe depression in some users. One example of this is Chris Benoit, a pro-wrestler, who was under the influence of anabolic steroids when he killed his wife, son, and ultimately himself. Roid rage causes a loss of impulse control and causes the individual to seriously overreact to situations that normally would not provoke such a response.

The teen years are a period of significant changes for both males and females. They are constantly experiencing hormonal changes, which are only exacerbated with steroid use. They may face pressures from coaches, parents, and peers in sports where steroids may feel like a quick and easy fix to get a leg up on the competition. And they are also experiencing relationships where the effects of roid rage may be serious. The accessibility to substances like anabolic steroids is scary with the ease of the internet. It is crucial for teens today to be educated about the potentially fatal consequences of substances they do not understand. Anabolic steroids are different from other drugs because they are not as highly publicized as marijuana or cocaine. While statistically steroids may not seem as serious of a problem for today's youth, the short and long term effects are equally, if not more, alarming than the other drugs teens are taught to stay away from.

Sources:
http://teens.drugabuse.gov/facts/facts_ster1.php
http://www.webmd.com/mental-health/features/roid-rage-14-questions-and-answers
http://www.theantidrug.com/drug-information/commonly-abused-drugs/anabolic-steroids.aspx