Also known as roids, arnolds, andro, arnies, a’s, balls, bulls, caseys, gear, gym candy, juice, pumpers, stackers, steroids, vets’ drugs, weight trainers, weight gainers
Often known as performance and image enhancing drugs, anabolic steroids are synthetic drugs that imitate male sex hormones (testosterone), and are used to grow and repair muscle tissue.
Use can be legal or illegal. They are used illegally to improve strength and body image, often towards achieving success in sports, athletics or image-based careers. They are also used legally for medical purposes to treat hormonal issues such as delays in puberty or muscle loss due to disease. Anabolic steroids come in the form of tablets, capsules, liquids, gel or cream. Depending on type, they can be injected, swallowed or applied to the skin.
Effects of steroids
Effects depend on the person (age, weight, size, health and tolerance), as well as the frequency of use, the amount of use, and if it is used with other drugs, including alcohol.
Short-term effects, both desired and undesired, may include…
Long-term effects may include…
Depends on use and person. It can be detected in urine for 14 to 28 days after last dose. It can take up to 4 months to restore natural testosterone levels after being on anabolic steroids for a long time.
Anabolic steroids should only be used under prescribed medical supervision. There is no safe way to use them. There will always be a health risk. The only way to be safe is not to use. If you choose to use, the following will help reduce risk:
Before: keep to limits, keep to cycles of 8 to 10 weeks between use. Injecting is not recommended, though if choosing to inject, get your own clean, sharp syringes and find a clean location.
During: use only recommended dosage (injecting more will not lead to larger muscles just saturation and more negative effects), don’t need to inject directly into muscles. Safely dispose of syringes.
Avoid: injecting directly into biceps, calf muscles or pectorals to prevent permanent nerve damage, repeatedly injecting into the same area of the body, using with other drugs, including alcohol, using too much or too often, needle sharing.
It may be a problem if you agree with any of these statements:
It is illegal to use or possess steroids without a doctor’s prescription or to sell or give anabolic steroids to someone else. Anabolic steroids are banned in competitive sport. In Queensland, it is illegal to possess needles or syringes if they are not disposed of safely and therefore pose a risk to others.
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