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[Definitie:] "An ergogenic aid is any substance or phenomenon that enhances performance."
(Wilmore and Costill) 
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1 7 - 0 1 - 2 0 0 6 Steroid use an educated choice
Ian Gerard STEROID users are tertiary graduates or professionals who worry about their "roid rage" reputation but are prepared to put body image ahead of the well-known dangers of the drugs. A survey of non-athletes in the often subterranean world of performance and image-enhancing drugs challenges the conventional wisdom that steroid users are angry young men prone to outbursts of fury. A majority of the steroid users who took part in the federal government-funded survey had a university degree or held down a professional job, but continued to use the drugs despite unsettling side effects for the image-conscious, such as acne and shrinking testicles. While aware of the long-term health risks posed by PIEDs, the vast majority were still more concerned about the state of their pecs and abs.
"They are a very unusual group of drug users," study co-author and National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre information manager Paul Dillon said. "They get an incredible amount of information about their drug of choice before they commence use and the vast majority of them try to use it as responsibly as possible." Almost two-thirds of the 60 men who took part in the study had completed Year 12 and 33 percent had gained a university degree and earned more than $60,000 a year. A further 32 percent had completed a trade or TAFE studies. Most held full-time jobs, with 15 percent of respondents employed in white-collar administration or management positions. "We don't see the same levels of school education and after-school education in other groups of drug users," co-author Briony Larance said. "This is a group that has an interest in health and physical activity, they are very regular gym-goers, are interested in diet and nutrition and draw on all kinds of research." In August, state and territory police chiefs asked the federal Department of Health and Ageing to commission research into the use of PIEDS to help focus law-enforcement operations. Most PIEDS used in Australia, such as anabolic steroids, either enhance muscle growth or reduce body fat, and mostly are prescription-only or veterinary drugs diverted to the black market. Body image was the most popular reason for taking steroid-like drugs in users aged between 18 and 25, who represented one-third of all respondents. A quarter of respondents were bodybuilders, the "pioneers" in the abuse of steroids. While more than 90 per cent said the benefits of steroids outweighed any associated health risks, almost every user reported at least one physical side effect. The most commonly reported physical side effects included increased appetite, water retention, reduced testicle size, acne, increased sex drive and sleeplessness. Other research has documented the severe psychogenic side effects of high doses of steroids, which include aggressive and violent behaviour. Problems with drug withdrawal and drug dependence are also common in users of anabolic steroids and these drugs may also provoke psychiatric disorders. Mr Dillon said users were often difficult to reach, partly because they were concerned about their portrayal as quick-tempered young men. "This study showed that realistically if you're someone who has a temper this isn't the drug for you, but it's not going to turn a harmless man into a murderer," he said. "Definitely there are people who say they have experienced a change of mood, but they aren't about to go and kill people." The study also brought into question the assumption that most steroid users became involved with the drug through going to the gym. More than half of men surveyed said they first became involved in taking performance-enhancing drugs through dealings with friends. 1 8 - 0 1 - 2 0 0 6 Steroid study debunks user stereotypes
Australian Broadcasting Corporation KAREN PERCY: A new study has debunked the stereotype of the steroid taking gym-junkie, showing that more and more educated Australians are taking steroids despite the physical risks involved, such as acne and shrinking testicles. Researchers at the University of New South Wales interviewed 60 users of the drugs and found the majority are intelligent young professionals who are concerned with body image. The University's National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre found that two-thirds of users had a tertiary education and a significant proportion earned more than $60,000 a year. Paul Dillon is an author of the report. He told Jennifer Macey that the shape and make-up of steroid users had changed over the past seven years. PAUL DILLON: When we did the study in 1997 [Meer] we found them to be a very unusual group but it was even more so this time. They're well educated; usually professionals who really do know an awful lot about the risks involved with their drug, but are prepared to put body image ahead of those risks. And we don't see that with other classes of drugs. JENNIFER MACEY: Are they also well educated about the side effects that these types of drugs will have on their body? PAUL DILLON: When it comes to the risks associated with steroid use, the people we interviewed had really done their research. They knew very well what the risks were, although they didn't believe them to be as "risky" as often portrayed in the media. But they knew that those risks existed but they believed that the benefits they received from taking these drugs far outweighed those potential risks. JENNIFER MACEY: Well, what are the benefits? Why are people attracted to these types of drugs? PAUL DILLON: Things like ability to train harder and longer, muscle growth, strength - all of those things are the effects that people are actually looking for. And very interestingly, you know, a huge percentage of the people that we were talking to are not using these drugs for elite sports. They're actually using it for body image purposes. They want to look better. That's the key reason why we see people using these drugs now, or at least the people that we were interviewing. JENNIFER MACEY: But the drugs are dangerous, aren't they? PAUL DILLON: Well, I suppose the research is… it's not as clear-cut as that. People use small amounts [ahum... red.] - you don't see huge side effects on the most part. Now, that doesn't mean they're safe. I mean, there are definite risks involved, but I think we need to keep the risks in perspective. In terms of the reported physical side effects that we saw in our study, things such as increased appetite, water retention or bloating, reduced testicle size, acne, increased sex drive and sleeplessness, and really, if you go through all of those ones, realistically, the only negative ones or severely negative ones there, I suppose, are water retention and reduced testicle size. Most of the others they live with and they say, well, I get bigger, I look better – put those two up against each other and where am I going to go? So you can see why they're using, if the physical effects aren't as severe as the ones that are often reported in the media. JENNIFER MACEY: So what sort of strategies should governments be looking at? PAUL DILLON: Well, one of the reasons why this study was conducted was to feed into policy decisions around, you know, where do we go from here with this group of users. One the huge problems that we face with this group is that they believe that they have been severely misrepresented, particularly in the media. So we really do have to find new ways of targeting this group of users because the traditional ways are not going to work. KAREN PERCY: Paul Dillon from the National Drug and Alcohol Centre, with Jennifer Macey. |
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