Esha Mahajan | TNN
Article sourced from http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/
September of 1988 added two words to street vocabulary — steroids and doping. Two days after sprinter Ben Johnson made world headlines by winning the climactic 100-metre final against Carl Lewis at the Seoul Olympics, it emerged he had used an anabolic steroid, stanozolol, to boost performance. Johnson was stripped of his medal, but his example did not stop doping.
While violations by sportspersons — most recently by the Indian women’s athletics team — regularly make news, the shocking thing about doping today is its spread among ‘regular’ people. Fitness trainers, models, amateur athletes, the teen working out at the gym — they’re all drawn to the quick, easy and fabulous results steroids bring.
Experts say anabolic steroids (those that build muscle) are becoming popular because, when taken even in small doses, they allow people to work out longer, recover faster and develop muscle definition that years of consistent exercise cannot give. In the long term, though, they cause irreparable bodily damage. “Taking steroids without a prescription can lead to long-term kidney, liver and heart conditions besides hormonal imbalance. Women tend to develop masculine features and men can suffer from overgrowth. Steroid abuse can also cause cardiac arrest and death. In children under 15, steroids can lead to growth disturbances and stunted height,” says Dr PS Bajaj, a sports doctor at Primus Hospital.
The burst of energy that users experience also causes harm. “Working out excessively can cause muscle and joint injuries, and bone loss over a period of time. Even internal organs, like the heart, are affected,” says nutritionist Ishi Khosla.
But the knowledge of side-effects is no deterrent to people whose career or self-image depends on a perfect body. “I use steroids, and know others in the profession who do, too. Deca Durabolin (an injectable steroid) is actually for weight gain in HIV-positive people, but many use it for muscle gain as well. Similarly, Nolvadex is used in breast cancer treatment, but we take it to increase chest size,” says Sudhir Basra*, a personal trainer at an elite gym.
Even life-saving hormones, such as insulin, are now used by bodybuilders. The diabetes drug finds use as it is known to improve bone density, increase muscle size by preventing breakdown of muscle protein, and stimulate glycogen production, which the body requires for bursts of energy. Easily available at all chemists, its abuse can have fatal consequences. “A friend died of an insulin overdose at home as his blood sugar plunged and he did not eat anything at the time,” said bodybuilder
Ravi Kumar*.
Bodybuilders take combinations of steroids in cycles lasting about three months each. To fight the effects of one set of steroids, another set has to be taken in the subsequent cycle. “An androgenic cycle, in which muscle size increases and testosterone is at its peak, is followed by an oestrogenic cycle in which female hormones are taken to provide a balance,” says Basra. “The natural flow of testosterone reduces after a cycle, so HCG injections are used to boost it,” says powerlifter Bobby Kapoor*, who also admits to using steroids.
While steroids are a shortcut to beefy muscles, ‘sculpting’, ‘defining’ or ‘highlighting’ them requires a different class of chemicals. “Diuretics such as Lasix take out water from the body so that muscles look more defined and cuts are easily visible. But they can lead to very low levels of water in the body, and cause an extreme dip or rise in the heart rate, which can result in death. A fellow trainer and bodybuilder died recently due to this,” said Basra.
So, why do bodybuilders persist in taking these potentially lethal chemicals? “It is very easy to start taking steroids, but once you get used to seeing an excellent physique on yourself, you don’t want to quit,” says Kumar. Fitness consultant and sports nutritionist Raghav Pande agrees, “Steroids can transform a body within days, making users feel practically invincible, and so they don’t pay attention to the more severe consequences.” Easy availability of these substances also makes people reach out for them. Users say Bhagirath Place in Old Delhi is a storehouse of steroids.
The Drugs and Cosmetics Act 1940 classifies “androgenic anabolic, oestrogenic, and progestational substances” as Schedule H, which means they cannot be bought or sold without a prescription. But looking at the rampant abuse of steroids, it is clear that the law is neither followed nor enforced. “We have special dealers who sell them to us, but once we become familiar with chemists and they develop trust in us, we can easily get them directly without prescriptions,” says Basra.
At about Rs 20,000 per cycle, steroids don’t come cheap, but, surprisingly, it is at small-time neighbourhood gyms that they find maximum takers. “Youngsters who want to get the perfect six-pack abs and bulging biceps get swayed by their trainers at smaller gyms, and take steroids at their recommendation, not fully knowing what they’re getting themselves into,” says Pande.
A 25-year-old who withdrew his membership at a Kalkaji gym after trainers there pestered him to try steroids says, “It started off with their advising me to take protein shakes, but soon they literally forced me to take steroids. I left, but many friends took them and now their systems are in total disarray”.
Lately, even women who are under pressure to look their best at all times, have taken to steroids. Pande recalls a girl seeking his advice on using the growth hormone, as she wanted to lose weight before a beauty contest. “I was shocked when she wanted to take it even after I told her it could lead to an enlarged heart, masculinity, and a bigger and imbalanced bone structure,” he says.
Two decades after Johnson’s shame, it seems no price is still too high for success, glory, an ego boost, or simply envious looks.
(*Names have been changed
to protect identities)
Article sourced from http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/
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