What athletic directors can do about the steroid abuse crisis.

As more professional and Olympic athletes reveal their usage of anabolic steroids, the trickle-down effect to our young people continues to worsen.

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We are clearly in the midst of an anabolic steroid epidemic that has permeated just about every sport at every level of play. Reports from the Mayo Clinic and the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) reveal that upward of one million middle and high school-aged kids experimented with steroids in 2003.

Other scientific reports indicate that anabolic steroid use is steadily creeping upward among both athletes and non-athletes. Usage by females has doubled since the '90s and there are now confirmed reports of sixth-graders on it.

In our hyper-competitive sports culture, middle school kids wonder what it will take to make the varsity, high school kids wonder what they need to do to win an athletic scholarship, and college kids who are looking for an edge to make the pros. So there's no surprise in the way that steroid abuse has filtered down the way it has.

From a medical standpoint, we are beginning to learn that steroid abuse may be linked to heart, liver, kidney, and lung damage, as well as reproductive problems in both males and females. There are also indications that steroids may cause behavioral changes like psychotic episodes, depression, and extreme aggressive behavior (roid rages).

The horror of youngsters using anabolic steroids really hits home when you consider the story of Taylor Hooten, a talented high school athlete from Plano, TX, who abused anabolic steroids and suffered from extreme depression once he withdrew from them. He committed suicide a month after his 17th birthday.

In Texas, nine Colleyville Heritage high school football players admitted that they injected anabolic steroids over the past year. Recent reports from the Dallas Morning News suggest that we are just seeing the tip of the iceberg and that many more high school athletes across the country will be implicated in steroid abuse in the years to come. Sadly, the news reports from Texas also indicate that parents, coaches and school officials looked the other way as the epidemic unfolded right under their noses.

The National Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE) has issued a report that calls for more stringent oversight of high school athletics. One of its recommendations calls for testing high school athletes for steroids. Indeed, legislation is pending in some states to force drug testing the way some high school districts in Nevada and California are already doing with performance-enhancing drugs.

What can we do about this serious health problem among our young athletes? Specifically, what proactive measures can our high school athletic directors utilize in prevention? Let me cite six steps that a good high school athletic program should advocate in the war on anabolic steroid abuse among athletes.

1. Recognize that there is a problem.

Our athletic communities have been in a state of denial regarding anabolic steroid usage among our young people. The typical response by administrators, athletic directors, coaches, and parents is this: "These things don't happen in our community."

The reality, based upon a number of nationally conducted surveys, is that a middle/high school population of 1,000 students probably has 30-40 young people who are currently using or have used anabolic steroids. Because of this escalating pattern of steroid abuse among young people, our athletic directors should begin to incorporate strong education and prevention measures as routine policies.

2. Educate your school community about the problem.

Faculty, coaches, trainers, nurses, athletes, parents, and other personnel associated with school athletic programs need to get accurate information about the causes and consequences of anabolic steroid abuse. Athletic directors should invite qualified professionals to their schools for workshops that will educate all those who come in contact with athletes.

This can easily be accomplished through professional days as well as through parent sports nights (also called "Meet the Coaches Nights").

3. Become familiar with the signs of steroid use and the legal consequences for possession and distribution.

As leaders of community sports programs, athletic directors should become familiar with the major warning signs of anabolic steroid abuse and disseminate the information to parents and coaches.

It includes: rapid weight gain over a short period as well as accelerated growth of body hair, dramatic mood changes (including violence and aggression), psychotic symptoms, euphoria, forgetfulness, confusion, depression and suicidal tendencies, unexpected and erratic changes in relationships with friends and family and severe acne.

None of the above changes alone is sufficient; it is the combination of several of these indicators that can be the tip-off.

Importantly, steroid usage is highly secretive. At the Olympic and professional level, for example, athletes would rather admit to sexual indiscretions such as adultery rather than to acknowledge their steroid use. Young athletes are no different in this respect. Athletic directors should also educate high school athletes about the legal consequences of steroid possession. Steroids are officially classified as Schedule III drugs by the FDA. Simple possession carries a maximum of a one-year jail sentence and a minimum fine of $1000. The maximum penalty for trafficking is five years in prison and a fine of $250,000

4. Educate parents on their crucial role in promoting a steroid-free choice.

Athletic directors should encourage parents to have open discussions with their children about any frustrations they might experience in how they look or how they perform in their sport.

The A.D.'s should emphasize to parents that they are on the front lines in ensuring that their young athletes establish healthy expectations about their bodies. Parents should teach their children not to trust gimmicks or quick-fix approaches to enhancing their bodies.

The parents should:

1. Encourage hard work, good nutrition and hydration, rest and good coaching as the tools of performance-enhancement--rather than injections, pills, powders and other dietary supplements.

2. Not provide funds for purchasing publications such as muscle magazines that feature unrealistic images of men and woman.

3. Monitor their children's Internet usage and restrict their access to Web sites that advertise anabolic steroids or other performance-enhancing substances.

4. Help their young athletes to access the advice of a physician or registered dietician to develop a plan for weight gain or fat loss.

5. Educate coaches that they play a key role in promoting a steroid-free choice.

Athletic directors should encourage coaches to have regular discussions with their athletes about setting realistic short-term and long-term goals. Importantly, coaches have to keep sports fun and take the emphasis off winning as the primary goal of sports participation. The needs of the athlete are far more important than the needs of the coaches to have a championship season.

Athletic directors should also encourage coaches to lead team discussions about steroid abuse.

As part of this process, coaches should let their athletes know that the A.D.'s have strong objections to steroid use. Along with the help of parents, coaches should restrict athlete's access to environments where steroid use might occur and to people who are believed to be involved with steroid use.

6. Educate athletes in your community on the importance of ethics and morals in sports.

Athletic directors should encourage their athletes to compete as hard as possible in their sport but to never compromise their ethics or morals to win a game.

They should let them know that there are certain boundaries in sports that can never be crossed in the pursuit of victory and emphasize that their ethical and moral conduct as young athletes lays the foundation for their adult ethical and moral behavior.

Athletic directors can play an instrumental role in educating their school sports communities about anabolic steroid abuse. The adoption of the above proactive steps can be a useful prevention measure in the war against anabolic steroid abuse among our youngest and most vulnerable athletes.

By Dr. Bruce B. Svare, Professor of Psychology, SUNY-Albany (NY)

Dr Bruce Svare is professor of psychology at SUNY-Albany and Director of the National Institute for Sports Reform. He lectures widely on anabolic steroid abuse to coaches, athletic directors, educators, parents and athletes in colleges and high schools. He can be reached at [e-mail].