Do Anabolic Steroids Affect Human Health?

Nowadays teenagers are involved into a culture of competiveness. Adolescence is a stage in life that entails physical and emotional changes. Therefore, adolescence is the period in which teenagers are reaffirming or finding their personality, so getting involved into sports or similar activities may be a crucial way for them in order to settle their character. Winning or losing is so significant for them that teens can be attracted to consume performance-enhancing drugs such as steroids. As a college student, I know how steroids are usually consumed. Although I was aware of the impact of anabolic steroids was addictive to young people, I was unaware of the ways anabolic steroids affected health of young people. Consequently, for this research project I pursue the question, How are anabolic steroids affecting the health of young people? This question needs to be analyzed because at the present time young adults and athletes are consuming anabolic steroids without knowing the consequences.
Prior to focusing on the impact of steroids among young people, I need to learn about what is the scientific definition for anabolic steroids. According to Britannica Encyclopedia, “steroid is any class of natural or synthetic organic compounds characterized by a molecular structure of 17 carbon atoms arranged in four rings” (Britannica, Androgens and Anabolic Steroids). I learned that anabolic steroids could facilitate the treatment of hypogonadism, moreover, they are used to treat wasting of the body caused by HIV infection or other immune related diseases. According to the journal Pediatrics, approximately 5.9% of boys and 4.6% of girls had used steroids. The study involved over 2,700 high school students from the Minneapolis area. Their average age was 14 years. (November 2012 issue). Among other important positive effects of anabolic steroids is the development of protein used by the body; the increase in protein will expand the ability to enlarge muscle mass and endurance. In addition, another positive effect of steroids that contribute to human health is the faster recovery time. The damage in tissues or muscles can be progressively recovered by consuming steroids; therefore, they can be useful in the treatment of recovering from injuries. One of the last positive side effects of steroids is the use as treatments for few medical conditions. Steroids are effective in the treatment of carcinogenic conditions. Thus, the consumption of steroids regulated by a doctor or an expert can be useful to increase “bone density and production of white blood cells” (Rory B. Anabolic steroids-Abuse and Addiction). Consequently, I centered my analysis focusing how young people can obtain steroids without suffering from any medical condition.
In order to know how young people abuse steroids, I turned to Aumentarmasamuscular7's Blog which gives explanation about the deep impact of steroids on human health. On this blog, I found that in United States a person can buy legally supplements like tetrahydrogestrinone, THG, and androstenedione without prescription through many commercial sources including health food stores and pharmacies; consequently, this blog gave a clear image of how young people easily acquire steroids without any prescription. In addition, a relevant element is that almost half of the young people consume anabolic steroids without suffering any diseases. Teens used these steroids to get involved into sport or similar activities not being aware of the risk when abusing steroids.
Therefore, I proceeded with my research focusing on the question, how do steroids affect the human health? According to the NIH (National Institute of Health), “Anabolic steroids, like any other illegal drug, can become quickly addictive. At first, when the person starts consuming them, the body builds a certain kind of tolerance. Young adults can become dependent without even perceiving it. Aggression is a sign