For Parents and Caregivers - Dangers of Anabolic Steroids

Steroids are dangerous for two reasons: they are illegal, and they can damage a person's health, especially if used in large doses over time.

Although they may build muscle, steroids can produce very serious side effects in both males and females. Using steroids for a long time can negatively affect the reproductive systems. In males, steroids can reduce the amount of sperm produced in the testicles and even reduce the size of the testicles. Steroids also can cause impotence in males.

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Females who use steroids may have problems with their menstrual cycles because steroids can disrupt the maturation and release of eggs from the ovaries. This disruption can cause long-term problems with fertility.

Steroids taken for an extended period of time can also:

*stunt growth in teens by causing the growth
plates in the bones to mature too fast and fuse

*cause irreversible liver damage

*enlarge the heart muscles

*cause violent, aggressive mood swings

*contribute to heart disease and increase
cholesterol and lipid levels

*increase breast growth in males, especially teens

*create irreversible stretch marks
heighten a person's tendency to lose hair
cause muscles to ache

In addition to these, teen girls and women risk additional side effects:

*permanent effects of male hair growth or male-pattern baldness

*deepening of the voice

*enlargement of the clitoris

The health problems caused by steroids may not appear for years after the steroids are taken. The risk of steroids causing bones to fuse early and preventing a teen from reaching full growth potential is significant - and at an all-time high. The National Institutes of Drug Abuse estimates in recent studies that 325,000 teenage boys and 175,000 teenage girls are using steroids.

"A testosterone measurement of more than 200 nanograms per milliliter would signal steroid abuse, and I have seen athletes with levels in the thousands," says Larry Bowers, MD, a steroid expert. "Although it may take 20 years, case studies of long-term steroid use indicate negative effects on almost every system of the body."

In addition to the health risks, steroids are illegal. Drug testing for all athletes has become more prevalent, and athletes who fail a drug test for steroids can face numerous legal consequences: jail time, monetary fines, exclusion from an event or from the team, or seizure of trophies or medals.

Although the health problems associated with steroid use are well documented, it's important to remember that the rules about the legal use of steroids can be confusing. Even professional athletes don't always agree on the issue. For instance, when Mark McGwire freely admitted that he used androstenedione on the way to setting baseball's single-season home run record, he wasn't kicked out of the league or stripped of his achievement. That's because the use of andro - what some people in sports still consider a dietary supplement, although it is proven to be a form of anabolic steroid - is still permitted in Major League Baseball and National League Hockey. But andro is banned in other sports organizations. The International Olympic Committee, the National Football League, the National Basketball Association, the National Collegiate Athletic Association, the Association of Tennis Professionals, and most high school athletic associations currently ban the use of androstenedione.

Andro is banned as an illegal substance in Canada, but in the United States can be easily obtained as a dietary supplement.

Updated and reviewed by: Kim Rutherford, MD
Date reviewed: February 2002
Originally reviewed by: Steven Dowshen, MD