There is growing concern by physicians and public health experts about widespread use of steroids and steroid-like supplements among young people, with serious health implications.
Part of the concern stems from a recent disclosure by a former professional baseball player that steroid use is rampant within the leagues, especially among the top performers.
"Kids are going to baseball games and they want to stop off at the supplement store on the way home and get what their heroes are taking," Lewis Maharam, a sports physician in private practice in New York City, told United Press International.
"That's very unhealthy and it's bad for our youth," said Maharam, who is the president of the New York chapter of the American College of Sports Medicine. "It's horrible because we see kids everyday that are taking it and we're worried about health problems."
The known side effects of steroids include stunted growth, coronary artery disease, the development of breasts in men, shrinking of the testicles, hair loss, liver tumors and acne. The drugs can also cause enlarged prostate, cancer, psychiatric disorders and even death.
In a recent interview with Sports Illustrated magazine, Ken Caminiti admitted taking steroids during his career with the San Diego Padres. He said up to half the league uses the illegal substances. Another former player, Jose Canseco, said the problem was worse -- perhaps 85 percent of major league ballplayers used the drugs.
A recent Blue Cross Blue Shield survey found one million youths reported using steroids, as well as performance-enhancing drugs such as ephedra, androstenedione, and creatine, chief Blue Cross medical officer Allan Korn said in a statement. More than half of the young people in the survey participated in sports and their No. 1 reason for taking the drugs was to enhance their athletic performance.
"It would be a national shame to watch our heroes go from the Baseball Hall of Fame to places like the Testicular Cancer Hall of Fame where a majority of the 'inductees' are athletes," Korn said.
There is still concern about the use of steroids among kids, but the supplements are a "bigger problem because they are easily accessible and it's like taking an anabolic steroid" and can probably cause the same negative health effects, Maharam said.
He noted Major League Baseball conducted a study after former player and home run champion Mark McGwire admitted taking androstenedione "and it showed that using these products caused testosterone to increase," just as the steroids do.
Another performance-enhancing supplement that can have steroid-like effects is nandrolene, Blue Cross spokesperson Iris Shaffer told UPI. Androstenedione and nandrolene "have the same health risks as steroids, and you don't have to go to Mexico to get them, you can probably get them down the street or on the Internet," she added.
Betterbodz.com, one of the Web sites offering androstenedione, claims the supplement "will increase blood levels of testosterone. Testosterone is effective in eliciting greater gains in the gym through increasing energy, enhancing nitrogen retention and speeding up recovery time. It may also heighten sexual arousal and performance, as well as provide a greater sense of well being."
Regarding possible negative effects of androstenedione, the Web site states, "There are no known negative side effects to Androstenedione, however, all athletes should consider the effect rapid testosterone increases have on their personality. Androstenedione will not convert to estrogen ... so there are no negative estrogenic side effects possible."
Other supplements of concern are human growth hormone, which has potentially serious health risks such as heart disease and disfigurement associated with excessive growth of bones, and ephedrine, which has been associated with heart attacks and death, Shaffer said.
William O. Roberts, a family physician at MinnHealth in White Bear Lake, Minn., and a fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine, told UPI he is concerned when he finds adolescent patients who are taking performance-enhancing supplements and tries to discourage them from using them.
One reason for alarm is "because you're concerned about what else they are going to take," Roberts said. Another reason is that they are supplements and "aren't well tested or well monitored ... so you don't know exactly what is in there."
He tells his patients to "train hard, eat a good diet and sleep well and avoid the recreational drugs."
Korn noted Blue Cross two years ago asked the Major League Baseball's top 60 sluggers to sign a drug-free pledge. Only two players responded.
"This suggests that these players and/or their agents are not willing to take a stand against the use of drugs in sports," Shaffer told UPI. "It's too bad for the youth of America and it's too bad for the game of baseball."
Maharam said players' unwillingness to sign the drug-free pledge indicates they are using steroids and other banned substances. "Why don't we have a dream team for baseball in the Olympics that consists of our best major league baseball players? Because they test in the Olympics and they would test positive," he said.
The players' union has resisted testing for illegal substances, insisting the players have a right to personal privacy, Maharam said. "I think it's beyond their personal rights because it's affecting our kids," he added.
Blue Cross is launching a campaign to promote awareness about the potential health risks of steroids and other performance-enhancing substances, Shaffer said. One of the places the campaign will focus on is major league ballparks and on youth attending the games.
