RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Rate Of Anabolic-Androgenic Steroid Use Among Students In Junior High School
JF The Journal of the American Board of Family
                Practice
JO J Am Board Fam Med
FD American Board of Family Medicine
SP 341
OP 345
DO 10.3122/jabfm.6.4.341
VO 6
IS 4
A1 Jeff Radakovich
A1 Peter Broderick
A1 Garfield Pickell
YR 1993
UL http://www.jabfm.org/content/6/4/341.abstract
AB Background: Anabolic-androgenic steroid use has become an increasingly large problem. Studies document steroid use in high-school students, but not students in junior high school. We surveyed 7th-grade students to assess rate of use and knowledge about steroids. Methods: Seventh-grade students completed a 22-question survey instrument that addressed previous steroid use, knowledge about the effects of steroids, other previous substance abuse, and demographic data. The one-sided Z test was used for statistical analyses. Results: Of those students who admitted to using steroids, 4.7 percent were male and 3.2 percent were female. Those more likely to have tried steroids included African-Americans (P < 0.05), 15-year-olds (P < 0.05), football players (P < 0.025), wrestlers (P < 0.005), and past users of alcohol (P < 0.005) or tobacco (P < 0.005). There were significant differences between steroid users and nonusers in knowledge about the effects of anabolic-androgenic steroids on the body: steroid users knew less than nonusers. Conclusion: The establishment of steroid use in junior high school should cause physicians to seek signs or history of steroid use, especially in patients who are members of groups more likely to use them. In addition, physicians should initiate dialogue about steroids with patients before they are likely to have tried them.