Gold Coast Bulletin
The growing prevalence of anabolic steroid abuse is set to overtake ice epidemic
Recently in the media, the coverage and public advocacy for healthcare support for illicit drug use has lead to fantastic progress in the war against drug abuse and addiction.
Less publicised is the growing prevalence of anabolic steroid abuse, particularly in cities across Eastern Australia.
In an attempt to raise awareness of the problem Stephanie Bedo, Health Editor at the Gold Coast Bulletin, covered a story investigating the prevalence of steroid abuse on the Gold Coast.
Dr Dan Donner, as well as Taskforce Maxima Detective Inspector Phil Stevens and Assistant Professor Dr Terry Goldsworthy, weighed in on the issues of steroid-related seizures, steroid use prevalence and long-term side effects of steroid abuse. The full story can be found here.
"The dangers of steroid abuse may not necessarily have comparable impact on the community in terms of violence and anti-social behaviour, but in this post-social media age it does have all the major factors needed to fuel its exponential growth - and its long-term impact on the actual users can be absolutely devastating." says Dr Dan Donner.
"My biggest worry is for the young men leaving school whose potential for steroid addiction is prepped and fuelled all throughout their high school years through social media before they're flung out of school gyms and step into public gyms where the substances are available and even pushed on them."
"Long gone are the days where you had to visit a bodybuilding competition or buy an obscure sports muscle mag to see these unrealistic body images, now Joe Blogs from down the street has an 8-pack and 20-inch arms and boys don't understand that this is NOT the body image standard they should be striving for." warns Donner.
