Steroids
- Anabolic steroids can be authorized by a doctor in the case of delayed puberty, cancer, or AIDs, but should never be self-prescribed.
- Often times, drug abusers of steroids take 10 to 100 times more than would be prescribed by a physician to treat a condition or illness.
- Common side effects of steroids are mood swings, manic behavior, insomnia, irritability, and lack of good judgement.
- For men in particular, steroids often cause shrinking of testicles, breast growth, hair loss, infertility, and a higher risk of testicular cancer.
- Steroid use among teens has declined in the last decade. In 2005, 4 percent of high school seniors admitted to trying steroids. However, only 1.8 percent had experimented with them in 2012.
- Anabolic steroids are commonly used among teenage athletes to bulk up. Unfortunately, the -improper use of steroids (even at a young age) causes stunted growth, kidney impairment or failure, liver damage, and increased risk of heart attack or stroke.
- Teenage girls use steroids as a way to improve or change their body shape. The side effects include male pattern baldness, a permanently deepened voice, breast shrinking, and detrimental changes to the menstrual cycle.
- Steroids are serious drugs and drugs are addictive. Discontinuing use often leads to withdrawal and depression, which creates a lack of physical drive or social interaction among users.
- One way steroids are taken is through injection directly into the muscles. Because drug injection equipment is not always sterile, users are vulnerable to life-threatening diseases like HIV/AIDs or hepatitis.
- A program has been developed for both male and female high school sport teams (ATLAS for guys, ATHENA for girls) for coaches and leaders to enforce the danger in using these drugs. So far, new steroid use has decreased by 50 percent amongst these teens.
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Human Growth Hormone (HGH)
Some people turn to a substance called human growth hormone (HGH) in hopes that it will keep them feeling and looking youthful. But experts say that hope is unfounded. And worse, these products can be harmful.
HGH, produced by the pituitary gland, spurs growth in children and adolescents. It also helps to regulate body composition, body fluids, muscle and bone growth, sugar and fat metabolism, and possibly heart function. Produced synthetically, HGH is the active ingredient in a number of prescription drugs and in other products available widely over the Internet.
HGH Uses and Abuses
Synthetic human growth hormone was developed in 1985 and approved by the FDA for specific uses in children and adults. In children, HGH injections are approved for treating short stature of unknown cause as well as poor growth due to a number of medical causes, including:- Turner's syndrome, a genetic disorder that affects a girl's development.
- Prader-Willi syndrome, an uncommon genetic disorder causing poor muscle tone, low levels of sex hormones, and a constant feeling of hunger.
- Chronic kidney insufficiency.
- HGH deficiency or insufficiency.
- Children born small for gestational age.
- Short bowel syndrome, a condition in which nutrients are not properly absorbed due to severe intestinal disease or the surgical removal of a large portion of the small intestine.
- HGH deficiency due to rare pituitary tumors or their treatment.
- Muscle-wasting disease associated with HIV/AIDS.
Because the body's HGH levels naturally decrease with age, some so-called antiaging experts have speculated and claimed that HGH products could reverse age-related bodily deterioration. But these claims, too, are unproven. The use of HGH for antiaging is not FDA-approved.
Nevertheless, some people obtain injectable HGH from doctors who prescribe it for off-label purposes (uses for which it was not approved by the FDA) and through Internet pharmacies, antiaging clinics, and web sites.
Others purchase HGH products -- or products that claim to increase your body's own production of HGH -- in the form of pills and sprays. Companies that market these products on TV infomercials or online claim they turn back your body's biological clock, reducing fat, building muscle, restoring hair growth and color, strengthening the immune system, normalizing blood sugar, increasing energy and improving sex life, sleep quality, vision, and memory. However, the Federal Trade Commission has seen no reliable evidence to support the claim that these products have the same effects as prescription HGH, which is always given by injection. Taken orally, HGH is digested by the stomach before it can be absorbed into the body.
HGH Side Effects and Other Hazards
Possible side effects of HGH use include:- nerve, muscle, or joint pain
- swelling due to fluid in the body's tissues (edema)
- carpal tunnel syndrome
- numbness and tingling of the skin
- high cholesterol levels
Furthermore, if you get the drug illicitly, you may not know what you are really getting. Because of the high cost, HGH drugs have been counterfeited. If you are not getting HGH from your doctor, you may be getting an unapproved product.
You also should speak with your doctor before considering any form of HGH.
