50 weightlifters were interviewed in detail, a
majority had no competitive interests in weightlifting, bodybuilding, or any
other athletic event just used the steroids because they wanted to. Baldoenzi
and Giada concluded that anabolic-androgenic steroid abuse had reached alarming
proportions in noncompetitive athletes (Baldoenzi, 1990, p. 205). The Buckley
survey in 1988 suggests that one-quarter to one-half million adolescents in the
United States has used or is currently using anabolic-androgenic steroids.
Anderson and Mckeag reporting on a nation-wide survey of alcohol and drug use
among college athletes indicated that anabolic-androgenic steroids were used in
all men's sports, one women's sport and that the sport with the greatest
admitted use was football with 9% (Bowman, 1980). The overall
anabolic-androgenic steroid use rate in all sports was 4%. Anderson and Mckeag
replicated their original study four years later and although they found that
overall use rates for anabolic-androgenic steroids remained the same,
anabolic-androgenic steroids were now being used in two additional women's
sports (Bowman, 1980). The psychological and behavioral aspects of maleness were
noted by Aristotle prior to 300 BC and were studied in numerous uncontrolled
experiments up through the 1800s. The effects of the purified sex hormones,
including those on mood and mental disorders, began to be experimentally and
clinically explored more intensively a half century ago when commercial
preparations became available. Since that time a large number of literature
reviews have been reported on these and other effects. The most potent sex
steroid produced in human males is testosterone. Testosterone has been
chemically characterized and more than 100 derivatives synthesized, some of
which have found uses in human and veterinary medicine, animal husbandry, and
most recently, in athletics. A Purely anabolic steroid has not been found and,
therefore, Kockakain suggests that the appropriate nomenclature should refer to
anabolic-androgenic steroids.
What do steroids actually do for you? Steroids
increase your strength. They also increase your muscle mass and allow you to
train harder. Steroids also reduce recovery time needed after training. Some
people believe the benefit from taking steroids is psychological, they make
people feel that they are stronger or faster. Others believe that they make
people feel more aggressive and so they are able to train harder. There is no
doubt about that. The major question is Are the positives worth taking the risks
for. There are far more negatives to using anabolic steroids then there are
positives. Anabolic steroids affect males in seven major ways: 1) They can make
the testicles shrink and deteriorate (even after just six to eight weeks of use)
2) they can reduce sperm count for up to four years 3) they cause the
development of tender and enlarged breasts 4) they cause early aging symptoms 5)
they cause sterility and impotence 6) also they make your voice high-pitched 7)
They cause baldness. Anabolic steroids affect females in eight major ways: 1)
They stop or cause irregularity in your menstrual periods 2) they cause
permanent reproductive damage 3) they cause infertility 4) they make hair grow
on your face and chest 5) they deepen your voice 6) they cause fetal damage and
birth deformities 7) they make your skin very oily 8) they increase testosterone
production and take on masculine characteristics. Anabolic steroids have many
other more dangerous affects that can occur in both genders. They are as
follows: 1) Cause addiction to steroids 2) hallucinations, hearing voices,
schizophrenia, and mental disorders 3) aggressiveness, violence, hostility,
irritability, roid rages or uncontrolled temper 4) purple or red spots inside
mouth or nose 5) yellow tint to skin, jaundice, chronic hepatitis 6) swelling of
hands, face, feet 7) acne, rashes, hives 8) severe depression and suicidal
tendencies 9) increased size of heart, liver, kidneys 10) increased cholesterol
count and blood pressure 11) suppress immune system and retard healing 12)
fever, headache, insomnia, chills, gallstones 13) diarrhea, stomach ache, muscle
cramps, black tarry stools 14) liver cancer, heart disease, stroke, obstructed
blood vessels 15) bone deterioration. Steroids have been used to enhance
performance and appearance since the beginning of recorded history. Now all ages
of athletes are using anabolic steroids, not just the elite athletes are using
them but now even high school athletes are using them. In 1989 anabolic steroids
became a controlled substance because of an investigation conducted by the
American Medical Association. Several Surveys have shown that there are patterns
in the use of anabolic steroids. Now athletes who don't actually participate in
competition are using the drug, where before it used to be only competing
athletes as the primary users. Steroids have both positive and negative affects.
The positive affects are generally short-term affects while the negative affects
tend to be more long-term. Using anabolic steroids and testing positive on a
drug test will more than likely ruin a sporting career for anyone. The bottom
line is taking steroids is cheating, it's addictive, and they can kill you.
Bibliography
Baldoenzi G, Giada F. (1990). Body builders during and after self-administration
of anabolic steroids. Metabolism Clinical and Experimental, 39, 203-8. Bowman S.
(1980). Anabolic steroids and infarction. British Medical Journal, 300, 750.
Hickson, R.C. and Kurowski, T.G.(1986). Anabolic steroids and training. Clinics
in Sports Medicine, 3, 461-469 Unknown. (1996). IDEA Prevention Guide.
Naperville, IL: IDEA
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