An Explanation of the Dangers of Steroids
Androgenic Anabolic Steroids (AAS) Should Not be Taken Lightly!
Apr 1, 2009
Who is the young sportsman who has not heard of steroid supplements being used to help with body-building?
These drugs – known as Anabolic Steroids , Androgenic-Anabolic Steroids or just plain AAS - are synthetic forms of the male hormone Testosterone that have the particular property of Anabolism or ‘building up’ muscle. They have the reputation of being useful to increase muscle bulk and power - and advertisements for these “supplements” are quite common in men’s magazines and physiculture periodicals. In fact recent surveys suggest that many AAS users are are non-athletes who are not always motivated by sports performance.
What these advertisements do not disclose is that the use of such steroid drugs should be strictly limited to those who take them on medical advice – men who lack male hormones due to losing their testicles through cancer or injury, or men who were born without functioning testicles. Unfortunately, many young men who have only heard of the “body-building” effects of anabolic steroids are not aware of the dangers of misusing these powerful medications.
Dangerous side effects
The most serious adverse effects associated with these drugs are
- Tendon damage. Because they result in an increase of muscle power disproportionate to tendon strength, steroids in effect weaken the tendons – and during increased muscle activity, the weak tendons can rupture. A typical injury is a tear of the Achilles tendon (the major tendon joining the calf muscle to the heel) which can occur for example in athletes when taking off from their blocks or rugby players during a sudden sprint.
- High blood pressure. Taking steroids causes the body to retain salt and water, thus increasing the amount of fluid in the blood stream and so pushing up the blood pressure. It also increases the proportion of LDL Cholesterol (the 'Bad' or insoluble form that can stick to blood vessel walls) to HDL Cholesterol (the 'Good' or soluble form that stays dissolved in the bloodstream) resulting in more cholesterol being deposited on the walls of the arteries and so narrowing these blood vessels. The net result of both these processes – increased blood pressure and narrowed arteries – puts steroid takers at greater risk of heart attacks and strokes.
- Increased stickiness of the blood. Steroids increase the number of platelets in the circulation, making them more likely to form clots (a process known as thrombosis). These clots can then travel in the circulation and block a vital blood vessel, resulting in a sudden heart attack or stroke.
- Damage to the liver (causing jaundice) and weakening the immune system. Excess steroids can cause obstructive jaundice, preventing the outflow of bile from the liver into the intestine. They also have the effect of suppressing the immune system, making those regularly using steroids more susceptible to infections and reducing their ability to fight infections.
- Infertility. While anabolic steroids may give a more manly shape to your body, they can render you infertile – reducing the sperm count and also reducing the sex drive (libido). It is not unheard of for doctors to have a couple come for a consultation because they have been married for a while and have not been able to conceive a baby. It often transpires after examination and lab tests that the husband – a fine muscular specimen of manhood – is at fault, because he has a very low sperm count, the result of several years using hormone tablets for “body-building”.
- Diabetes, a disease that many know to be caused by the body not having enough of the hormone Insulin, can also be caused by the body having too much of steroid hormones. People taking artificial steroids regularly will develop insulin resistance and go on to manifest the signs of diabetes.
Steroids not Body-building Drugs
Thus it will be seen that steroid supplements are not really body-building drugs. While they can certainly build up your muscles, they have the potential to destroy the rest of your body.
And even worse – if you are caught taking these dangerous drugs as a competitive sportsman, you will certainly be disqualified or find your sporting career over.
