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Using Drugs Won't Help You Perform Better

Steroids

Infertility. Breast development. Testical shrinkage.  Acne. Baldness. Sound sexy? What about heart attacks and liver cancer? Sounds more scary than sexy, because these are just some of the effects science has shown can happen if you take steroids to bulk up.

Steroid abuse is a growing phenomenon, and a mounting body of research shows that it can do much more to destabilize your body – not enhance it.

Steroids don’t just damage your hormonal system, either. They have been shown to stop growth among both boys and girls, and contribute to tendon rupture. Steroid abuse has also been significantly associated with heart attacks and strokes, even for those in their 20s. Steroids also contribute to raising “bad” cholesterol and lowering the “good” kind.

Steroids also contribute to liver complications, infections, and skin defects. But don’t take our word for it, check the facts of these statements by clicking the sentences above. You’ll be taken to a scientific journal where you can read about it all on your own.  You can also check out the references below.

  • Bahrke MS, Yesalis CE, Wright JE. Psychological and behavioral effects of endogenous testosterone and anabolic-androgenic steroids: an update. Sports Med 22(6):367–390, 1996.
  • Berning JM, Adams KJ, Stamford BA. Anabolic steroid usage in athletics: facts, fiction, and public relations. J Strength Conditioning Res 18(4):908–917, 2004.
  • Blue JG, Lombardo JA. Steroids and steroid-like compounds. Clin Sports Med 18(3):667–689, 1999.
  • Bronson FH, Matherne CM. Exposure to anabolicandrogenic steroids shortens life span of male mice. Med Sci Sports Exerc 29(5):615–619, 1997.
  • Brower KJ. Withdrawal from anabolic steroids. Curr Ther Endocrinol Metab 6:338–343, 1997.
  • Daly RC, et al. Neuroendocrine and behavioral effects of high-dose anabolic steroid administration in male normal volunteers. Psychoneuroendocrinology 28(3):317–331, 2003.
  • Elliot D, Goldberg L. Intervention and prevention of steroid use in adolescents. Am J Sports Med 24(6):S46–S47, 1996.
  • Goldberg L, et al. Anabolic steroid education and adolescents: Do scare tactics work? Pediatrics 87(3):283–286, 1991.
  • Goldberg L, et al. Effects of a multidimensional anabolic steroid prevention intervention: The Adolescents Training and Learning to Avoid Steroids (ATLAS) Program. JAMA 276(19):1555–1562, 1996.
  • Goldberg L, et al. The ATLAS program: Preventing drug use and promoting health behaviors. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med 154(4):332–338, 2000.
  • Gottfredson GD, et al. The national study of delinquency prevention in schools. Ellicott City, MD: Gottfredson Associates, Inc., 2000.
  • Green et al. NCAA study of substance use and abuse habits of college student-athletes. Clin J Sport Med 11(1):51–56, 2001.
  • Gruber AJ, Pope HG Jr. Compulsive weight lifting and anabolic drug abuse among women rape victims. Compr Psychiatry 40(4):273–277, 1999.
  • Gruber AJ, Pope HG Jr. Psychiatric and medical effects of anabolic-androgenic steroid use in women. Psychother Psychosom 69:19–26, 2000.
  • Hoberman JM, Yesalis CE. The history of synthetic testosterone. Sci Am 272(2):76–81, 1995.
  • Leder BZ, et al. Oral androstenedione administration and serum testosterone concentrations in young men. JAMA 283(6):779–782, 2000.
  • The Medical Letter on Drugs and Therapeutics. Creatine and androstenedione—two "dietary supplements." 40(1039):105–106. New Rochelle, NY: The Medical Letter, Inc., 1998.
  • Middleman AB, et al. High-risk behaviors among high school students in Massachusetts who use anabolic steroids. Pediatrics 96(2):268–272, 1995.
  • Pope HG Jr, Kouri EM, Hudson MD. Effects of supraphysiologic doses of testosterone on mood and aggression in normal men: a randomized controlled trial. Arch Gen Psychiatry 57(2):133–140, 2000.
  • Porcerelli JH, Sandler BA. Anabolic-androgenic steroid abuse and psychopathology. Psychiatr Clin North Am 21(4):829–833, 1998.
  • Rich JD, Dickinson BP, Flanigan TP, Valone SE. Abscess related to anabolic-androgenic steroid injection. Med Sci Sports Exerc 31(2):207–209, 1999.
  • Stilger VG, Yesalis CE. Anabolic-androgenic steroid use among high school football players. J Community Health 24(2):131–145, 1999.
  • Su T-P, et al. Neuropsychiatric effects of anabolic steroids in male normal volunteers. JAMA 269(21):2760–2764, 1993.
  • Sullivan ML, Martinez CM, Gennis P, Gallagher, EJ. The cardiac toxicity of anabolic steroids. Prog Cardiovasc Dis 41(1):1–15, 1998.
  • Verroken M. Hormones and Sport. Ethical aspects and the prevalence of hormone abuse in sport. J Endocrinol 170(1):49–54, 2001.
  • Yesalis CE. Anabolic steroids in sports and exercise, 2nd edition. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics. 2000.
  • Yesalis CE. Androstenedione. Sport dietary supplements update, 2000, E-SportMed.com.
  • Yesalis CE. Trends in anabolic-androgenic steroid use among adolescents. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med 151(12):1197–1206.
  • Yesalis CE, Kennedy NJ, Kopstein AN, Bahrke MS. Anabolic-androgenic steroid use in the United States. JAMA 270(10):1217–1221, 1993.
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Cocaine

So you want to lose weight, and you hear that cocaine may be a quick way to do that? Good luck with that. While you may or may not actually lose weight, you’ll be putting yourself at risk for drug addiction, brain dysfunction, and death.

Why, you ask? Because cocaine is very dangerous. See what you think of these facts. And if you don’t take our word for it, click on the sentences to go directly to a scientific article.

Cocaine seriously complicates the way your brain works. Researchers have taken pictures of cocaine using brains and non-cocaine using brains to find that sections in the brain that control judgment are significantly smaller in the cocaine using brains (Makris et al 2004). Researchers in the UK and US found that cocaine can also cause permanent brain damage by destroying a key protein responsible for learning and memory (Yao et al 2004). Brain damage from cocaine use causes what researchers call "silent brain dysfunction" - your brain remains changed even after you stop to use the drug (Volkow et al 1992).

This confirms a massive body of research signaling cocaine's harmful effects on the brain (e.g. Milne 1999; Little et al 1999). Cocaine also dramatically affects the heart by constricting the body's blood vessels and forcing an increase in blood pressure. Research carried out at 64 medical centers in the U.S. over a period of seven years has found that using cocaine increases one's risk of a heart attack 24-fold after the first hour of use. 29 of the 38 cocaine users in the study had no prior symptoms for a heart attack, so it appears that cocaine was the vital ingredient. The lead researcher, Dr Murray Mittleman, said "As the public learns more about the huge risk involved in using cocaine, we hope fewer people will want to experiment with this truly dangerous drug." (Mittleman 1999).

Additional Scientific Research about Cocaine:

Ritalin and Adderall

Do you think that taking Ritalin™ and Adderal™ is a safe way to stay up and study? Increasingly, some college students are taking these drugs to help them concentrate on otherwise mundane homework. You may have even heard that literary geniuses Jack Kerouac and W.H. Auden took the drugs to help them write. But have you heard that scientific studies are now pointing to the fact that these drugs are dependent-producing and have nasty side effects?

Indeed, Kerouac's excessive use of these types of drugs eventually landed him in a hospital with thrombophlebitis. Auden went through a withdrawal in the late 1950s that sadly minimized his creative output.

But enough anecdotes. What does the science say?

First, the FDA voted to put a “black box” on both Ritalin™ and Adderall™ early in 2006 because of the sudden death and cardiovascular complications that can come of its use.

These drugs can produce symptoms such as anxiety, twitchiness, aggressiveness, loss of appetite, confusion, dizziness or blurred vision, insomnia, headaches, sweating, and dryness of the mouth and eyes. These effects are strengthened when the drugs are taken in high doses.  

Other side effects like include irregular heartbeat and very high blood pressure have been shown to occur. Over twenty case studies shows that ingesting these drugs puts one at risk for addiction in the same way as cocaine and heroin.

These drugs may be useful for kids with specific disorders, such as ADHD. But they should never be used as study aids. The dangers far outweigh any benefits.

  • Ritalin fast facts. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Justice; 2003. National Drug Intelligence Center.http://www.usdoj.gov/ndic/pubs6/6444/index.htm
  • Kollins SH, MacDonald EK, Rush CR. Assessing the abuse potential of methylphenidate in nonhuman and human subjects: A review. Pharmacol Biochem Behav. 2001;68:611–627. doi: 10.1016/S0091-3057(01)00464-6. [PubMed]
  • White BP, Becker-Blease KA, Grace-Bishop K. Stimulant medication use, misuse, and abuse in an undergraduate and graduate student sample. J Am Coll Health. 2006;54:261–268. [PubMed]
  • Alonso-Zaldivar, R. Warning urged for ADHD drugs: An FDA panel cites heart risks in its advisory on Methylphenidate and similar medications. Los Angeles Times February 10, The Nation section; 2006.
  • McCabe SE, Knight JR, Teter CJ, Wechsler H. Non-medical use of prescription stimulants among US college students: prevalence and correlates from a national survey. Addiction. 2005;100:96–106. doi: 10.1111/j.1360-0443.2005.00944.x. [PubMed]
  • McCabe SE, Teter CJ, Boyd CJ. Medical use, illicit use and diversion of abusable prescription drugs. J Am Coll Health. 2006;54:269–278. [PubMed]
  • McCabe SE, Teter CJ, Boyd CJ, Guthrie SK. Prevalences and correlates of illicit methylphenidate use among 8 th, 10 th, and 12 th grade students in the United States, 2001. J Adolesc Health. 2004;35:501–504. [PubMed]
  • Kroutil, LA.; Van Brunt, DL.; Herman-Stahl, MA.; Heller, DC.; Bray, RM.; Penne, MA. Nonmedical use of prescription stimulants in the United States. Drug and Alcohol Dependence. February 15, 2006.
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  • Website title. http://www.oas.samhsa.gov/stimulantsNS.htm