A new study shows that about five percent of middle and high
school students have used anabolic steroids to put on muscle, and that as many
as one-third of boys and one-fifth of girls have used protein powder or shakes.
Between five and 10 percent admitted to using non-steroid muscle-enhancing
substances like creatine.
The findings came from a survey of more than 2,700
adolescents enrolled in middle school and high school in St. Paul and
Minneapolis.
Marla Eisenberg, lead author of the University of Minnesota
study, said 5.9 percent of boys in the survey reported using steroids, while
the rate among girls was 4.6 percent. Steroid use is a felony without a
prescription.
The findings were surprising, Eisenberg said, especially
since some of the steroid users were only in seventh or eighth grade. [1]
And remember these children were from Minnesota, not a
football crazed southern state such as Texas or Alabama! Just a sleepy mid-western state much
like our own. How could steroids
use be a problem at a place like that?
The pressure to win, to look a certain way are powerful
lures that can engulf a developing young person. In the sports culture we are told that we have to get
bigger, faster, and stronger and yet, no one really tells us how to accomplish
this.
Coaches, trainers and parents though often well meaning need
to be more careful about what they say to young people that can be easily
influenced and look to us for guidance not statements. If you make a comment like you need to
get stronger or bigger you had better be prepared to provide that child with
the recipe to do so.
Left to their own devices children will make poor decisions
more often that not from lack of worldly experience and knowledge. If I am kid and my coach tells me I
need to get bigger and stronger I might visit the local vitamin/supplement
store and get some “performance enhancing” powders and pills. Or in the worse case scenario maybe
they decide to talk to the big guys at the local gym and ask them for advice,
they are big and strong after all…
More on why this is such a bad idea aside from the obvious reasons a
little later on. The obvious
reason young athletes should avoid advice from bodybuilders; they might look
like a statue but they also move like one.
More often that not bodybuilders resort to weightlifting
because they have figured out that because they can’t move like athletes at
least they can try to build themselves up to look like one. These individuals are nick-named “mirror
athletes” because they want to look in the mirror and see an athletic-looking
image, but they have absolutely no interest in trying out for any of the
athletic teams.
In fact it is estimated that about half of the users of
anabolic steroids are not athletes at all. They have no interest in competing –
at least not on the athletic field. However, they are interested in competing
for the attention of members of the opposite sex, and they are using anabolic
steroids to look better.
A common thread shared by athletes that perform at a high level,
they all move extremely well. The
ability to accelerate, change direction quickly and apply force to a swing,
kick or throw requires coordinated strength and timing, two qualities that are
greatly diminished by bodybuilding.
Sorry for the rant but I couldn’t resist. Just remember when it comes to training to improve sports
performance or performance in the game of life train movement not individual
muscles!
Another compelling reason to avoid advice/contact with the
big guys at the local gym…
Kids usually obtain
steroids from body builders or weight lifters in local gyms. Often these
substances will come from Mexico or the Internet. Most recently, over the past
two years, a steroid ring of high school students was broken up in Utah, and
another one last year in Arizona.
When surveyed, most
kids say that they get their drugs from local distributors. Often those
distributors are at the local private gyms. They are people who may approach
the kids, or the kids approach them. The Internet is a readily available source
for these substances; however, that does not negate the fact that many kids
report getting anabolic steroids from local gyms. Rarely do they obtain them
from a physician or veterinarian.
Linn Goldberg, MD, head of the division of health promotion
and sports medicine at Oregon Health & Science University. [2]
Back to the issue at hand of the use of performance
enhancing substances by still developing young people.
I recently spoke with a mother who told me that her son’s
hockey coach (who happens to be a former NHL player) told the boy that he was
to short to play goalie in the NHL… The boy is 12 years old! I desperately want to go off on yet
another rant but I am confident enough that you will acknowledge the absurdity
of this bone-headed statement. As
result of this comment the parents want to do make their son feel better and
decide to go out and get nutrition shakes to give to their son.
First point to make in this regard is the choice of
nutrition shake was less than ideal (Ensure, even though I am sure it’s
fortified with omega-3’s and probitocis-sarcasm alert!) but more importantly it
could send a message to the boy that taking a supplement will solve the
problem, it’s a solution.
Supplements are never the solution and in fact can be a precursor to a
slippery slope toward more “advanced” performance enhancing substances. The “under-sized” boy would make more
progress toward his goal by dumping the drink and taking the comment from the
coach and using it to focus his energy on things within his control like his
practice and nutrition behavior.
This is where the guidance from parents and coaches becomes a necessity to
keep a developing young athlete on the right track.
There are plenty of undersized athletes competing at a high
level in all of the major professional sports leagues. They have excelled because undoubtedly
they have used the label of being to small or to slow to fuel their competitive
drive. They have had to struggle
and compete for every opportunity.
They understand their size may be an obstacle but it will only stop them
if they allow it to. These
athletes often maximize their abilities by refining skills to the point of near
mastery and developing an attitude and competitiveness that creates a champion
not only on the field of play but also in the game of life!
It’s not the size of the obstacle that determines your
destiny rather it’s the size and depth of your commitment that defines what you
ultimately become.
To fall short of any goal as long as you pursue it with
integrity and maximum effort will always leave you with a reward in the end,
and more often that not it will be far greater than what you first set your
sights on at the beginning of your journey. However, taking a short cut to a goal may provide you with a
positive result but even if no one else ever finds out you will always know
your truth. I wonder if Lance
Armstrong or Barry Bonds still believes it was worth cheating. My guess is probably not because what
they achieved was built upon a lie.
The riches may remain but they lose something along the way that they
will never be able to get back.
The Hidden
Truth: Dietary Supplements
In 2009, Americans spent $26.7 billion on nutritional
supplements, according to the Nutrition Business Journal, a trade publication.
What most of us do not realize is that supplement
manufacturers routinely, and legally, sell their products without first having
to demonstrate that they are safe and effective. As a result, the supplement marketplace is not as safe
as it should be. The labels also make absurd claims at times, and these are
beyond any scientific proof. Thus, it’s always better to consult a doctor or
sports medicines specialists prior to buying any of the bodybuilding supplement
products.
Many people are unknowingly using anabolic steroids by
virtue of the supplements that they are taking that are spiked with anabolic
steroids. Multiple studies have
shown that as many as 20%-25% of the bodybuilding products sold
over-the-counter in health food stores may be loaded (spiked) with anabolic
steroids and other substances banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).
Many kids could be
taking something that's not even manufactured with any standards or safety
controls? The DSHEA Act of 1994 excludes the FDA from analyzing supplements
that are sold in your local stores. Thus, it is truly, "May the Buyer
Beware." Ephedra is a prime example. It took many deaths, heart attacks,
and other adverse events to finally ban that substance after years of use and very
dangerous consequences. The International Olympic Committee did a study that
involved supplements in the United States. They found 18% of supplements were
spiked with true anabolic steroids, although the label did not show them as
containing these substances. So in the United States, because of this law, it
is definitely buyer beware. [2]
It should also be noted that if a child goes into a
supplement shop they are likely getting advice from a salesperson who very
likely has no background in nutrition counseling let alone how to council youth
nutrition. Even if they are a
credible source of information they can’t possibly know your unique needs and
what, if any supplements are right for you. Supplement use is definitely a topic that must be addressed
first and foremost with your doctor or pediatrician.
Statistically
Speaking
Many experts agree that about one million students – as many
as 6% of all U.S. high school students-have admitted to knowingly using
anabolic steroids. And the usage rate is on the rise.
In 1993, one in 45 high school students used anabolic
steroids.
By 1999, the number was one in 27.
Today, one in 16 high school students admits to using
anabolic steroids. (How many more continue to hide?)
More than 1 in 20 high school girls has already used
anabolic steroids and the number of female users is increasing. In fact, the
fastest growing user group is young high school girls.
It’s not an older kids’ problem, either. The median age of a
student at first usage is 15.
The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) estimates that
more than a half million 8th and 10th grade students are now using these
dangerous drugs, and increasing numbers of high school seniors do not believe
steroids are risky. [3]
Health Implications
and Side Effects
Steroid use commonly causes severe acne and fluid retention,
as well as several effects that are gender and age-specific:
For men—shrinkage of the testicles (testicular atrophy),
reduced sperm count or infertility, baldness, development of breasts
(gynecomastia), increased risk for prostate cancer.
For women—growth of facial hair, male-pattern baldness,
changes in or cessation of the menstrual cycle, enlargement of the clitoris,
deepened voice.
For adolescents—stunted growth due to premature skeletal
maturation and accelerated puberty changes, and risk of not reaching expected
height if steroid use precedes the typical adolescent growth spurt.
In addition, people who inject steroids run the added risk
of contracting or transmitting HIV/AIDS or hepatitis. [4]
Steroid Abuse by
School Age Children: A Guide for Parents and School Officials
Phil Loomis
Youth Fitness Nutrition Specialist
Reference:
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