Anabolic Steroid Use In Teens

This study examined the trends in anabolic steroid use among adolescents in the United States between 1988 and 1996. Usage was evaluated by reviewing state and national studies. Various sampling procedures were employed, and all surveys used anonymous questionnaires. The national studies used for this analysis included the Monitoring the Future (MTF) study, the Youth Risk and Behavior Surveillance System, and the National Household Survey on Drug Abuse. Most of the surveys described were self-administered in school classrooms. The National Household Survey on Drug Abuse was administered in the respondent’s home. Most survey respondents were junior high and high school students aged 12 to 18 years.

This review of long-term anabolic steroid use (1989-1996) indicates that use among adolescent males and females has decreased significantly. However, for females the low point in steroid use was 1991, with subsequent significant increases. For adolescent males, after declining sharply between 1989 and 1991, steroid use has generally been stable since 1991. Based on the 1995 estimates of high school students and Youth Risk and Behavior Surveillance System data, approximately 375,000 adolescent males and 175,000 adolescent females in public and private schools in the United States used anabolic steroids at least once in their lives.

These results suggest that prevention, intervention, and regulatory efforts to reduce steroid use at the local, state, and national levels should be reassessed, especially those for adolescent females.

(Yesalis C. Trends in anabolic-androgenic steroid use among adolescents. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med 1997; 151:1197-1206)

COMMENT: The journal editor (who is both a nurse and a physician) noted: "It seems that with the increased interest and support for female athletics comes the emulation of the dangerous use of anabolic steroids by males. Bad habits are certainly not sex specific." -R.A.