Steroids Blog

Students from both high school and undergraduates are facing pressures from school, work and social life. This is according to the observation of The New Yorker journalist, Margaret Talbot. She said that because students want to excel in their studies, find good jobs and prepare for their further education, they tend to rely on synthetic source of energy. She also gave emphasis that if this practice continues; it could cause serious health problems in the future.

From The Collegian online:

In this week’s issue of The New Yorker, journalist Margaret Talbot investigated the world of high-school and undergraduate students who are healthy, but take what she calls “neuro-enhancers,” drugs commonly prescribed for A.D.D. such as Ritalin. With these, students seek an edge to grind out long hours to produce quality class work. However, she finds that often times students take these not to be at the top of the class but to basically do everything needed to be considered a well-rounded student. Due to pressures for students to do a lot in little time and to succeed, students will continue to rely on these drugs, and it could only increase in the future.

Margaret Talbot found out that most high school and college undergraduate students are taking neuro enhancers or brain steroids in order to do tons of work with just little amount of time. Such brain stimulant like Ritalin, which is usually prescribed to A.D.D patients, can eventually result to physical and psychological exhaustion due to work overload. This is due to the fact that these neuro enhancers can keep their minds awake for long period of time. Because of lack of sleep, the psychological and the social pressures that youngsters are facing today, it is not impossible that these students will soon be dependent on these brain steroids.

Paul Thomas Reis is now facing multiple counts of charges on illegal possession and trade of marijuana, steroids and firearm. This was recently discovered by the East Providence Police when they conducted a search in Reis’ residence on April 2. The suspect signed the search warrant and allowed the police to check his house.

Sergeant Diego Mello of East Providence Police, they had a surveillance on Thomas Reis after they received information that the suspect trades various brands of steroids and marijuana. On the night of the said date, the police said they observed Reis while he stopped for a while at a certain address in Edward Avenue. Before he left the address, the police asked him to stop for a motor violation. Reis confessed to the officers that he was on his way to his house to smoke marijuana.

From East Bay RI.com:

On April 2, however, police arrested Paul Thomas Reis, 31, of 175 Hatton St. with more than $2,500 worth of steroids. According to police reports on the incident, the vice unit had been monitoring Mr. Reis after receiving information from confidential informants that he had been selling anabolic steroids and marijuana.

Sgt. Mello said Mr. Reis had ordered a bulk of the steroids over the Internet from Athens, Greece on a prescription he’d obtained from a doctor in Florida. After being taken into custody, police also found Mr. Reis to have nine 750 milligram Vicodin tablets.

In the search conducted, the EP police found a bag filled with multiple steroid brands, receipts and other drug paraphernalia. They also found a .22 caliber Davis Industries Derringer pistol that has been reported lost in 2003 from Plymouth County, Connecticut.

Thomas Reis is now charged with two counts of manufacturing, possessing or delivering a schedule III and IV substance, illegal possession of firearm, and first offense on possession of marijuana.

A Japanese sumo wrestler recently blew his career when he was found guilty of possessing an approximate six grams of marijuana. This scandal led the Japanese anti-doping agents to conduct a random urine test among 100 wrestlers and officials.

Japan Sumo Association head, Musashigawa told the media that the new policy will continue until everybody has submitted his urine sample. For now, the test will reveal positive marijuana users but it is believed that anti-doping officers will use these samples to determine steroid users.

From ABC News:

Speaking to reporters in Tokyo, the boss of the Japan Sumo Association, Musashigawa, says the sport must now brace itself for new scandal - saying the tests will continue and that every wrestler will be forced to produce a urine sample.

“It’s good that they’ve started these random tests”, says the 160kg wrestler. “Because in the past sumo has been beset by scandal.”

And no-one is immune from testing. Even the sumo world’s top wrestler, the grand champion Asashoryu, was called in to submit a sample.

While these tests are focussed on recreational drugs such as marijuana, it is believed anti-doping officials are also looking out for other illegal substances.

Last week, sumo’s only other grand champion, the Mongolian Hakuho, told the foreign press the sport’s governing body would soon begin testing for steroids.

Some famous sumo wrestlers who took part in the random test were sumo veteran Kyokutenho, grand champion Asashoryu and Toyonoshima. Some have aired their disappointments regarding the illegal drug scandals surrounding the sport, while the others stated their support over the new regulation. They believe that this effort will eventually show the people that sumo wrestling is drug-free sport. Sumo history reveals no wrestlers who were banned or booted out due to steroid, but most people believe - that is not impossible to happen.

Steroid is addictive. This is what the new research has revealed recently. According to the study conducted by Dr. Michael Irwig, an endocrinologist of George Washington University, steroids users have the tendency to get hooked on this drug. But unlike, other habit-forming drugs, steroids do not produce a high-feeling or euphoria.

He also stated that some young people use this drug not only to increase strength and athletic performance but more on developing body image. This resulted from the society’s focus on physical image. He also cited that using steroid causes heart attacks and strokes.

Several studies claimed that there was a decline in the use of steroids among athletes and bodybuilders but illegal use is still rampant. Among the famous sports figures that were known for their steroid pasts are Olympian Marion Jones, Tour de France winner Floyd Landis, and New York Yankee’s Alex Rodriguez.

From VOA News:

The researchers found steroids can be as difficult to quit as other types of habit forming drugs, even though, unlike cocaine and other addictive substances, steroids do not produce a “high” (a feeling of euphoria).

Dr. Irwig says young people use steroids not just to improve athletic performance.

“I’ve also noticed in our society that there’s a really large focus on body image,” he said, “and I think that’s why a lot of young people are using steroids.”

Researchers say there should be more studies on who is likely to become addicted and how to help treat those who are.

According to Dr. Irwig there should be more studies on the health damages due to prolong use of steroids; the causes of addiction and its treatment. Using anabolic steroids is illegal that is why there is no means of knowing the number of its users as well as its long-term health consequences.

In order to educate students and athletes about the bad effects of steroids to the body, National Football League funded two local high schools with $30,000. Through the Atlas and Athena program, these high schools can create new approaches in teaching and promoting healthy nutrition and sports among students to avoid using of prohibited drugs.

Will C. Wood and Vacaville High Schools celebrated the kick-off ceremony of the program last Monday. This was initiated by Dr. Linn Goldberg, one of the founders of the program. During the ceremony, Dr. Linn showed the participants a slide presentation of the negative effects of steroids in the body. She informed the participants that many have been deceived by this regulated substance as they are portrayed as a good thing.

From The Reporter:

Local high schools with funds from the National Football League took the first step Monday in a new approach to teaching student athletes to avoid drug use.

Through the ATLAS & ATHENA program, Will C. Wood and Vacaville High Schools will receive $30,000 from the Raiders organization toward the curriculum and training of the peer-led programs promoting healthy sports nutrition and strength-training as alternatives to use of alcohol, illicit and performance-enhancing drugs for male and female athletes.

“I’m surprised at how many girls would take steroids,” said Brock Hekking, a junior football player at Vacaville High School. Hekking believes steroid use isn’t widespread at local schools, but agrees it’s important to let students know.

A lot of students were surprised to what they have learned during the ceremony. They have seen how steroids ruined many lives and how it deteriorates the health.

The ceremony was attended by Vacaville Unified School District Superintendent John Aycock and Mr. Frank Marrero, the father of the late Efrain Anthony Marrero, who committed suicide five years ago after he stopped using steroids.

It seems that people suffering from hay fever might soon get relief from their itching nasal problems. In a clinical study, it was found that a natural nose spray called Sinol-M, whose main ingredient capsaicin, might effectively relieve from stubborn nasal allergies. The study findings were presented at the 47th annual meeting of the Western Society of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology in Maui, Hawaii.

Supported by a research grant from Strategic BioSciences, the District of Columbia-based company, the research team gave Sinol-M and Sinol, predecessor of Sinol-M, to 24 people, aged 13 and older, for a week. All the experimented people were suffering from hay fever. The team instructed them to use one spray in each nostril as needed up to 12 times a day. After the “washout” period of a week, they crossed them over the other formulation.

The findings showed that runny nose, itchy nose, stuffy nose and sneezing problems appeared less in case of Sinol-M and Sinol while more in pre-treatment and washout periods. The researchers also reported that fewer sprays of Sinol-M resulted in more relief symptoms of hay fever in comparison to Sinol.

From Reuters:

A second-generation all-natural nose spray called Sinol-M, whose main ingredient is capsaicin derived from hot peppers, safely and effectively relieves stubborn nasal allergies, according to results of a clinical study.

“This study proved for the first time that a homeopathic nasal spray containing capsaicin is an effective treatment for allergic rhinitis,” Dr. Christos Efessiou, CEO of Strategic BioSciences, told Reuters Health.

“Unlike the prescription nasal steroid sprays, this is an all-natural product that has now been demonstrated to provide clinical benefit and is available without a prescription,” principal investigator Dr. Martha White of the Institute for Asthma and Allergy in Wheaton, Maryland, added in a written statement.

CEO of Strategic BioSciences, Dr. Christos Efessiou said that the study had proved that a homeopathic nasal spray that contains as natural capsaicin compound was effective in the treatment of allergic rhinitis.

Principal investigator, Dr. Martha White of the Institute for Asthma and Allergy in Maryland added in a written statement, “Unlike the prescription nasal steroid sprays, this is an all-natural product that has now been demonstrated to provide clinical benefit and is available without a prescription.”

The new WADA’s code is facing a criticism as it still failed to follow the European data protection laws. The code came into force in the beginning of this year and was formed after consultation with athletes and European regulators, according to WADA officials’ previous declarations. They insisted that the code would be a proportionate response to the rising threat of drugs use in sports.

According to the code, athletes, who are registered under national testing book, must make themselves available to testers for one hour a day, between 0600 and 2300, and in three months advance. It is to be done online through Anti-Doping Administration & Management System (Adams) website and can be updated by email or text message.

The first criticism of the code came from the world of tennis and football. The Professional Players’ Association, an umbrella group of professional player associations in the UK, also alleged that WADA’s “out-of-competition testing” rule was a “fiasco”.

However, the allegation was rejected by the agency, but its new testing procedures were labelled as as”draconian” by Andy Murray, the ruiling BritishTennis player.

The BBC has obtained a copy of a report by the Article 29 of working party for the European Commission, which states that numerous issues remain problematic. The report also questions whether it is necessary that so many athletes are to be bounded by the code. In addition, it consists of the “whereabouts system”, where athletes could disclose where they are for one hour of every single day.

From BBC:

The World Anti-Doping Agency’s new code is set for renewed criticism, with new claims it may still contravene European data protection laws.

The BBC has obtained a copy of a report by the Article 29 working party for the European Commission, which says that numerous issues remain problematic.

It also questions whether so many athletes need to be bound by the code.

It includes the “whereabouts system”, where athletes reveal where they are for one hour of every single day.

Under the rules, any athlete on the national testing register must make themselves available to testers for one hour a day, between 0600 and 2300, three months in advance.

However, the working party report, which is set to be published next week, could raise doubts about information gathering and its secure transferring processes. The report would also suggest that the policy of naming drugs cheaters and publishing their doping details online is unneecessary.

Whatever the upcoming report will suggest, but it seems that football’s place in the upcoming Olympics is under threat after FIFA and its European counterpart, UEFA, said that they would not comply with the code because they wanted to respect players’ privacy.

According to U.S Ministry of Health report, teenage boys are becoming the victims of steroid addictions. In the desire of the perfect body, more and more boys under the age of 18 are increasingly ending up in hospitals after injecting anabolic steroids.

The official figures revealed that the number of under-18s admitted in the hospitals due to muscle-building drugs’ posionous effect had increased by almost half in five years, from 97 to 138. The number of 11 to 15-year-olds teenages also soared to almost doubled, from 6,800 to 13,300, betweenthe periods from 2001 to 2007.

Among them, the increasing number is of those children who want to follow sporting and fashion heroes. The figures were revealed in a parliamentary answer given by health minister Dawn Primarolo to Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman Tom Brake.

Dawn said that the rapid increase in the number of children being admitted to hospitals for steroid misuse was extremely concerning. He further added that it was clear from the figures that many children felt increasingly pressurized by society’s obsession with the perfect body and some were using steroids to deal with it.

Continuing the statement of Dawn, DrugScope chief executive Martin Barnes said that steroids might be viewed as a shortcut to the perfect body image, but the reality could be quite different.

From steroidology News:

Teenage boys are increasingly ending up in hospital after injecting anabolic steroids in the search for the ‘perfect body’.

The number of under-18s admitted for poisoning from the muscle-building drugs has soared by almost half in five years, from 97 to 138.

But that is only the tip of the iceberg, according to official figures.

The number of 11 to 15-year-olds taking steroids almost doubled between 2001 and 2007, from 6,800 to 13,300.

Children using the drugs are most likely to be young boys who want to emulate sporting and fashion heroes. Anabolic steroids are chemically produced class-C drugs that mimic testosterone. For males, the sideeffects can be withered testicles, sterility and breast growth. In women it can be the growth of facial hair.

Meanwhile, it is legalized that you can have steroids for personal use, but it is illegal to import or supply them to others. Now-a-days, it is quite easy to buy steroids on the internet and from black market, as well as through dealers at gyms. The anabloic steroids not only have various common side effects, such as aggressiveness, hair fall or occurrence of feminine characters, but can also increase the risk of hepatitis C and HIV if needles are shared.

It seems that now its time to take some action by the ministers. Dawn said, “Ministers need to wake up to the fact that this is no longer just a problem that affects sports like body building but also an issue for the whole of society.”

In a recent update about the steroid issue, a Daily News reporter was able to buy testosterone enanthate, a syringe and the oral steroid Dianabol at a pharmacy in Dominican Republic without any legal prescription of a doctor.

It is known that you can get hardcore steroids in Dominican Republic easily, but buying a human grwoth hormone without any prescription is quite tough. But the story is quite different from what it appears to be.

Various Dominican supplement shops, pharmacies and black market of Santo Domingo sell growth hormone illegally. When contacted in this regard, several Dominican pharmacies, including the chain Farmax, said that they did not sell HGH. Even one Farmax employee told that HGH could be bought at health clinics with a doctor’s prescription and it is usually prescribed severe medical problems, such as AIDS wasting.

But two other sources confirmed the news that HGH was easily available in bodegas and supplement stores that also sell a variety of performance-enhancing drugs. Though, the price is quite high. The 10-cc vial of Primobolan - good for two injections in a week - approximately costs $95.

From The Daily News:

Hardcore steroids aren’t the only drugs easily obtainable in the Dominican Republic. Human growth hormone - baseball’s scarlet letter - is available on the black market in Santo Domingo, in Dominican supplement shops and even in the island’s pharmacies.

Sometimes even without a prescription.

Baseball banned HGH before the 2005 season, but does not test players for the substance as there continues to be debate on the reliability of an HGH blood test. The league’s current drug testing program uses urine samples only, and HGH cannot be detected in urine. Doping experts believe HGH use among athletes, particularly baseball players, has increased in recent years since a reliable HGH test has yet to be adopted in all sports.

Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez’s recent admission to steroid use from 2001-03 has created a steady stream of headlines, but baseball’s HGH headache seems poised to linger for a lot longer.

Baseball players union chief Donald Fehr is making his spring-training rounds and once again addressing a deluge of questions about growth hormone.

However, the president of the Dominican Federation of Sports Medicine and a member of the Dominican Olympic Committee, Milton Pinedo said that HGH is legal with a prescription only. But sometimes you could get it illegally too. Pinedo further said that he did not think use of HGH in the Dominican was as big a problem as steroid use.

It was only before 2005 MLB season that baseball banned use of HGH, but did not test players because of the reliability of an HGH blood test, which still remains a hot topic of debate. The recent confirmation of steroid use was declared by Yankees star player Alex Rodriguez only after his name appeared in the BALCO investigation report.

Johan Bruyneel, team manager and longtime friend of Lance Armstrong, defends the legendary cyclist against the recent anti-doping control allegations charged on him by French media. Bruyneel on Monday strongly opposed the report that states that the cyclist deliberately delayed a representative of the French anti-doping agency (AFLD) during an out-of-competition test on March 17 this year.

The manager stated that no effort was made by the player to thwart the anti-doping control. Bruyneel further said that both, he and Armstrong encountered with the AFLD tester, who was waiting outside the cyclist’s home in Beaulieu-sur-Mer, while returning from a training session for Milan-San Remo one-day race. He stated, “Lance took a shower and put on shorts and a T-shirt, and then he gave the samples, which took about an hour and a half.”

Though, unsourced reports on several French Web sites and Radio Monte Carlo commented that Armstrong made the tester sent by the AFLD waiting for at least 30 minutes behind a closed door before giving samples. The French daily sports newspaper L’Equipe reported that the AFLD had filed a report about the incident and would also forwarded it to the UCI and WADA.

From ESPN:

Lance Armstrong’s team manager and longtime friend Johan Bruyneel on Monday strongly disputed a report that the cyclist deliberately stalled a representative of the French anti-doping agency (AFLD) during an out-of-competition test on March 17.

Armstrong was training in southern France at the time in preparation for the Milan-San Remo one-day race. Unsourced reports on several French Web sites and Radio Monte Carlo stated that Armstrong kept the doctor sent by the AFLD waiting for 30 minutes behind a closed door before giving samples. The French daily sports newspaper L’Equipe reported that the AFLD had filed a report about the incident and forwarded it to the UCI, cycling’s international governing body, and WADA.

AFLD head Pierre Bordry would not confirm any details about the report. “I am not making any judgment on what is in the report, because I’m not certain that it’s an infraction,” Bordry told ESPN.com.

Bordry said he was still awaiting a formal response from the UCI, but federation spokesman Enrico Carpani told ESPN.com that the UCI has no jurisdiction over this kind of issue. “The rules are very clear,” Carpani said. “Any out-of-competition control made by a national anti-doping agency has to be managed by them.”

However, Pierre Bordry, the AFLD head, denied the confirmation of any details about the report. Bordry said, “I am not making any judgment on what is in the report, because I’m not certain that it’s an infraction.” He also said that he was waiting for a formal response from the UCI.

But, Enrico Carpani, federation spokesman said that in such type of issues, the UCI has no authority to make judgement. He further added that if any out-of-competition control was made by a national anti-doping agency then it would be managed by their own.

As per thr rule, the AFLD has full authority to test athletes, covered by the WADA code, who are in France for any reason. The March training period was the cyclist’s first visit to the country as an active athlete since his comeback from three-year retirement. Armstrong has also been tested several times by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency.

Earlier also this seven-time Tour de France winner had defended himself against doping allegations throughout his career. He told his online fans that it was his 24th anti-doping control test since his comeback after a three-year retirement. “Yet another ’surprise’ anti-doping control,’” he wrote. “This one from the French authorities. Urine, blood and hair! Classic, “he said. Armstrong further added that he was clear and was not complaining about these tests.