The risks of using performance-enhancing stimulants are widely known and documented, and range from infertility and erectile dysfunction to addiction and baldness, according to the UK’s National Health Service.
But despite clear warnings of its dangers, more than a million people, the majority of them male, still accept the use of these stimulants in Britain, according to the United Kingdom Anti-Doping Agency.
After years of investigative research into the UK’s illicit drug market, Josh Torrance, a doctoral researcher at the University of Bristol, concluded that “a lot of young people take steroids on the advice of their friends”.
Besides friends, reality TV and social media are also among the media behind young people’s demand for steroids in search of a better body shape, according to researcher Torrance.
None of these risks discouraged professional bodybuilder, Josh Bridgeman, from taking steroids. The 28-year-old Bridgman has been taking stimulant drugs since 2019, and says he considers the side effects an acceptable “sacrifice” in order to reach the desired height.
“Ask any of the Olympic athletes and they will tell you that you have to make sacrifices… it doesn’t matter here… it’s one of the sacrifices you have to accept,” Bridgman told the BBC.
Bridgman says he researched his drugs, followed a strict diet, and exercised regularly.
While Bridgeman follows a strict diet, many do not, which puts them at greater risk, according to Torrance, who believes that the body needs a long time to recover from steroids to recover.
Torrance believes that this is due to a “confusion” in understanding how stimulants are used, as well as their addiction and dependence.
And he warns that many “are not doing what bodybuilders should do: eat six healthy meals a day and spend hours in the gym.” The researcher explains that these people just want to reach a tight, muscular body quickly.
“With or without steroids, building muscle requires a lot of serious exercise,” Torrance stresses.
‘feeling small’
The researcher says that “what is presented regarding the lives of celebrities on reality television and through social media is behind the feeling of millions of young people of their insignificance.”
Torrance notes that there is a burning race as a result of this among manufacturers of stimulant drugs in search of new drugs that target new age groups and for new purposes as well.
The UK Anti-Doping Agency has long warned that the benefits of taking doping are less than the risks.
In a 2020 report, the agency said the use of performance-enhancing stimulants was “now a serious public health problem”.
Emily Robinson of the Anti-Doping Agency said, “Social media and television often use people with unreal bodies, which tempts many young people to emulate them.”
“Young men, particularly in the 20-24 age group, are usually drawn to a false reality and then try to rationalize it and convince themselves that the shape they are looking for is worth the risk,” says Robinson.
Dangers of using steroids
The UK Anti-Doping Agency has drawn up a list of health risks – both physical and psychological – from taking doping, which includes:
Gynecomastia in men
Retraction of the testicles
heart attacks
Strokes
The risk of contracting viral diseases as a result of blood contamination through injection
Tendency to be aggressive and violent
British law does not criminalize the possession of steroids for abuse, but it does criminalize people to sell them, but they are only sold through pharmacies with a prescription. Accordingly, stimulants are classified as Class III narcotic substances, and those convicted of selling them in the United Kingdom are punished with imprisonment of up to 14 years, and an unspecified fine.
It is also illegal in the United Kingdom to send steroids by mail or through courier companies.
It is estimated that there are around one million people taking anabolic steroids in the UK
Medicheck Healthcare UK conducted an online survey in which more than 500 people who attend gyms participated. And revealed that 75 percent of the participants in the questionnaire were users of steroids.
Also, 96 percent of respondents said they were dissatisfied with their bodies, and 61 percent of them were looking to build bigger bodies.
Dr. Daniel Grant, chief of medical education at Medicheck, says this is in part due to the influence of reality television and social media.
Dr.. Daniel Grant takes the blame for this issue being partially featured on reality TV
With the number of people using doping in the United Kingdom reaching regarding one million, according to official statistics, the matter has become an “urgent issue”.
“The mental health of our young people is paramount, and this research highlights the concern young people have regarding their body shape,” says Grant.
In this regard, Grant stresses the importance of awareness, and adopting a positive view of our bodies.
Grant concludes by saying that reality television and social media have a very important role to play in raising awareness of this issue.
