Athletes, whether young or old, professional or amateur, are always looking to gain an advantage over their opponents. The desire for an ‘edge’ exists in all sports, and at all levels of play.
Successful athletes rely on practice and hard work to increase their skills, speed, power, and ability. However, there are some athletes who resort to drugs to improve their performance. You may have heard them called ‘roids, juice, hype, or pump. Anabolic steroids are powerful drugs that many people take in high doses to boost athletic performance. Anabolic refers to the ‘building body tissue’. They help build muscle tissue and increase body mass, by acting like the body’s natural male hormone, testosterone.
Lower doses of anabolic steroids, sometimes, are used to treat a handful of very serious medical conditions. They should not be confused with corticosteroids, which are used to treat common medical conditions such as asthma and arthritis. Although corticosteroids are strong medications, they do not have muscle-building effects. Anabolic steroids are the ones abused by athletes and others who look for a shortcut to becoming bigger and stronger.
Although steroids cannot improve an athlete’s agility or skill, there are many who swear by it. There are many factors that help determine athletic ability, including genetics, body size, age, sex, diet, and how hard the athlete trains. It is clear that the medical dangers of steroid use far outweigh the advantage of gains in strength or muscle mass. There are several problems that regular steroid usage can have on one’s body. As there are many changes that take place inside the body, these may not be noticed until it is too late. Some of the effects go away when you stop, but this may not be the case for every type of steroid used.
Males
One of the more disturbing effects of steroid use by males is that the body begins to produce less of its own testosterone. As a result, the testicles may begin to shrink. Men also tend to lose hair, both on the body as well as the scalp. Here are some more effects on males:
Reduced sperm count
Impotence
Increase in nipple and breast size
Enlarged prostate
Females
There are many women who try out steroids in their tryst to develop their own biceps. Since steroids act as a male hormone, females may also experience the following side effects.
Reduced breast size
Enlarged clitoris
Increase in facial and body hair
Deepened voice
Menstrual problems
If you truly want to experiment, it’s best if you do so under medical consultation, or else it’s only a matter of time before you experience strong negative consequences.
