Bulking up and shrinking down
Parents can encourage a healthy approach to building muscle.
Steroid use among adolescents can result in permanently stunted stature, said Ruth Gassman, executive director of the Indiana Prevention Resource Center at Indiana University.
The pressure to perform on the sports field can lead some adolescents to try anabolic steroids, which provide enhanced energy for movement and augment the production of muscle-building proteins. But while the muscles may grow larger, the skeletal structure can halt development in response to steroid use, she said.
"Premature closure of the epiphysis, the growing end of the long bones, is seen among adolescents and school age children who abuse steroids," Gassman said.
Other side effects of the drug include severe acne, hostility, aggressiveness and nervousness, as well as breast growth among males and increased body hair among females. Long-term effects can include cardiovascular disease, hypertension and stroke. Use of steroids can often be prompted by a desire to achieve an optimal physique within a short period of time, Gassman said.
Parents, teachers and coaches can help discourage steroid use by utilizing programs such as the Adolescents Training and Learning to Avoid Steroids program, which focuses on changing students' attitudes toward performance enhancing drugs.
"According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, prevention programs that focus on a team approach to addressing proper exercise, nutrition and the harmful effects of steroids can lead to avoidance of these drugs and encourage a realistic approach to athletic goals," she said.
The IPRC is a center within the Department of Applied Health Science in IUB's School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation. For more information about anabolic steroids, download the IPRC's Factline brochure from http://www.drugs.indiana.edu/publs/factline/pdfs/factline-screen-steroids.pdf.
