Originally published November 7 2005
Doctors advise further action to prevent steroid use among young athletes
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Dr. Barry Lawson and Dr. Steven J. Anderson address the topic of steroid use among young athletes, including the online availability of these drugs.
We watched our favorite stars shrink before our eyes.
It seems the not-so-good news about steroids is trickling down and affecting our children.
Recent studies in the journal Pediatrics and the "2004 Monitoring the Future Survey" sponsored by the National Institute of Drug Abuse, show that both boys and girls are taking performance-enhancing substances as benign as protein shakes to as troublesome as anabolic steroids.
Magazines and Web sites champion the anti-aging and muscle-building capabilities of growth hormone, creatine, anabolic steroids and DHEA, and play to societal needs of increased athletic performance and desired body mass and shape.
The Paradise Valley Unified School District northeast of Phoenix has been randomly drug-testing athletes since 1991.
More than 200 schools and school districts in the U.S. have drug-testing programs and Congress has allocated $6.5 million for such programs.
The state of California recently adopted a law barring high-school athletes from using synephrine, ephedra and DHEA.
It also requires students to sign a pledge not to use the supplements, and keeps supplement manufacturers from sponsoring school events.
The Washington Interscholastic Athletic Association (WIAA) forbids any use of performance-enhancing substances, but there is no specific program for either detection of banned substances or education about their effects.
The American Academy of Pediatrics stands firmly against the use of performance-enhancing substances in youth athletics, but is not in a position to carry out testing or enforce penalties against users.
For athletes at the college, Olympic or professional level, there are policies that deal with the use of performance-enhancing substances.
� Random testing of potential users should be discussed as an option for schools, school districts and youth sports organizations.
Dr. Barry Lawson is past president of the Washington Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
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