America has built a society based on power and speed. We practice that more is always better and there is forever competition to be the best, at anything and everything. It should come as no surprise, then, that there is a fast-growing epidemic of the use of anabolic steroids. The short-term use of these steroids can be so impressive that athletes and the common man alike can be easily tempted to try these substances, but the long-term effects of use can be incredibly damaging, on an individual and a social level. From a Christian perspective, in a country claiming Christian heritage, the use of steroids can be seen as nothing other than an abundantly wide-spread act of evil against one's own body. .
The explosion of increase in steroid use over the past few decades is a result of the roles they perform in the body. They imitate the predominately male hormone testosterone by producing both the androgenic and the anabolic affects that are associated with the hormone. The androgenic effects include masculine characteristics such as deepening of the voice, growth of facial hair, and the maturation of sex glands. The more desirable anabolic effects include the growth of body tissue and assistance in rapid muscle mass increase. Most modern products are titled anabolic steroids because they have been engineered to maximize the anabolic effects and minimize the androgenic ones. Unfortunately, the typically considered negative androgenic effects cannot yet be completely avoided. This will be the source of much of our dilemma. 1.
To get to the heart of the problem, it will help to know who uses steroids and why they choose to use. Steroids are most commonly used by young male athletes. In fact, New York Times indicates that, "Nearly half a million teenagers in the United States use steroids each year." Many of them do so to improve their status in their particular sport, but more and more young males and some females are just trying to look good.
