The anabolic steroids is familiar name for the synthetic substances that are related to male sex hormones (testosterone). They generally promote growth of the skeletal muscle (or anabolic effects) as well as development of the male sexual characteristics (or androgenic effects) in females and males both. Term “anabolic steroids” are used throughout the report due to the familiarity, though the right term for the compounds is the “anabolic and androgenic steroids.” The anabolic steroids were actually developed in late 1930s mainly to treat the hypogonadism, condition where testes don’t produce enough of testosterone for the normal growth, development or sexual functioning. Primary medical uses for such compounds are treating the delayed puberty, and some kinds of impotence or wasting of body that is caused by the HIV infection and other diseases. During 1930s, the scientists buy anabolic steroids can facilitate growth of the skeletal muscle at laboratory animals that led to the abuse of compounds first by the bodybuilders or weightlifters and by athletes in sports. The steroid abuse has now become very widespread in the athletics that this may affect outcome of the sports contests.
Illicit steroids often are sold in gyms, competitions or through the mail order operations just after getting smuggled in the country. Most of the illegal steroids in US are been smuggled from the countries who don’t need prescription for purchase of the steroids. The steroids are illegally diverted from the US pharmacies and synthesized in the clandestine laboratories.
What are the steroidal supplements?
In US, the supplements like tetrahydrogestrinone (or THG) & androstenedione (or “Andro”) earlier can be bought legally without prescription through a lot of commercial sources, which includes the health food shops. The steroidal supplements are converted in testosterone or same compound in body. And less is known regarding side effects of the steroidal supplements, however if huge quantities of the compounds increase the testosterone levels in your body, then they are possible to produce same side effects like anabolic steroids themselves. Purchase of such supplements, with notable exception of the dehydroepiandrosterone, became very illegal after passage at 2004 of the amendments to Controlled Substances Act. The steroid abuse generally affects people of different ages. But, it is tough to estimate true prevalence of the steroid abuse in US as a lot of data sources measure the drug abuse don’t include steroids. The scientific evidence also indicates that the anabolic steroid abuse in athletes might range between 1 and 6 percent.
Some of the people who abuse the steroids to increase muscle size have also experienced the physical and sexual abuse. In series of the interviews with the male weightlifters, over 25% that abused steroids reported the memories of the childhood physical and sexual abuse. In the same way, the female weightlifters that were raped were also found twice as possible to report the use of the anabolic steroids and other purported muscle building medicine, when compared with one that was not raped. Furthermore, almost all those who are raped reported they increased the bodybuilding activities after attack.