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| Steroids |
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Steroids Packaged In Cycles and for
Injecting |
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| What It Is |
| Anabolic/androgenic steroids are synthetic substances related to
the male hormone testosterone. These substances have two effects, the
androgenic (masculinizing) and the anabolic (tissue building). Most people who
use steroids want the tissue building effect and so use steroids with higher
anabolic than androgenic properties. |
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| Street Names |
| Anabolic and Androgenic Steroids |
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| How It Is Taken |
| Usually taken orally or injected. |
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| What It Does |
How
steroids work in the body is complex and not fully understood. It is thought
that the drug finds particular body cells such as skeletal muscle cells, hairs
follicles, sebaceous glands and certain areas of the brain. Steroids appear to
increase protein production and so increases the size and strength of the
muscle. This process can reverse if the muscle is not stimulated, hence
training is an important factor Bodybuilders use steroids in cycles from 4 to
12 weeks in length, with rest periods in between.
There are a number
of health problems associated with steroid use including increased
irritability, aggressiveness, acne, accelerated hair loss, bloated appearance,
changes in sex drive, impotence, and decline in sperm production in men.
Steroids cause masculinizing in women and can lead to growth of facial and body
hair, baldness, voice deepening, enlargement of the clitoris and disruption of
the menstrual cycle.
Except for hair loss, the above effects are
generally reversible upon stopping steroid use. Adolescent steroid use may lead
to a premature fusion of the epiphyses, the end of growing bones, leading to
stunted growth. |
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| Medical Uses |
| Anabolic steroids are used for medical purposes. |
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Did you Know?
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1.8% of 8th graders have tried steroids.
2.0% of 10th graders have tried
steroids.
2.4% of 12th
grades have tried steroids. |
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