<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p> Anabolic-androgenic steroids (AASs) are highly sought-after in order to achieve muscle growth and better physical attributes. The study was conducted to measure the prevalence and attitudes towards the use of AASs among university students. 1008 male students from Isfahan University, Iran, between the ages of 18 and 25 years (23.3 ± 1.2 years) completed a questionnaire that investigated participation in bodybuilding, level of sport competition, participation in sports and recreational activities, AASs use, prevalence, knowledge among users, attitudes, as well as intent to continue using AASs in the future. 8% of respondents had used AASs and 6% currently use AASs. 71% of users believed using only a small amount of AASs or using AASs with anti-toxic drugs would not result in any harm, 10% indicated that AASs were harmless and 19% admitted to taking AASs despite knowing the adverse effects. 33% of respondents believed that they needed to use AASs to ensure athletic success and 26% believed that athletes should be allowed to use AASs without consequence. The prevalent use of AASs is a public health concern which implies that educational programmes at university level are needed to educate students about the adverse effects of AASs use</p></abstract>

Anabolic-androgenic steroids (AASs) are highly sought-after in order to achieve muscle growth and better physical attributes. The study was conducted to measure the prevalence and attitudes towards the use of AASs among university students. 1008 male students from Isfahan University, Iran, between the ages of 18 and 25 years (23.3 ± 1.2 years) completed a questionnaire that investigated participation in bodybuilding, level of sport competition, participation in sports and recreational activities, AASs use, prevalence, knowledge among users, attitudes, as well as intent to continue using AASs in the future. 8% of respondents had used AASs and 6% currently use AASs. 71% of users believed using only a small amount of AASs or using AASs with anti-toxic drugs would not result in any harm, 10% indicated that AASs were harmless and 19% admitted to taking AASs despite knowing the adverse effects. 33% of respondents believed that they needed to use AASs to ensure athletic success and 26% believed that athletes should be allowed to use AASs without consequence. The prevalent use of AASs is a public health concern which implies that educational programmes at university level are needed to educate students about the adverse effects of AASs use

Prevalence and Perceptions Toward Anabolicandrogenic Steroid Use Amongst University Students

Department of Sport Physiology, Faculty of Physical Education and Sport Sciences, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran

Department of Occupational Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University Putra, Malaysia

Department of Health and Human Performance, Cleveland State University, Cleveland, Ohio, USA

Department of Sport and Movement Studies, University of Johannesburg, Republic of South Africa

Research Department, Monash University (South Africa Campus), Ruimsig, Republic of South Africa

Department of Psychology, Faculty of Human Sciences, Islamic Azad University, Shahrekord, Isfahan, Iran

Department of Computer, Science Faculty of Information Science and Technology University Kebangsaan Malaysia 43600 UKM Bangi, Selangor, Malaysia

Acta Medica Bulgarica

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 License.

Anabolic-androgenic steroids (AASs) are highly sought-after in order to achieve muscle growth and better physical attributes. The study was conducted to...

Prevalence and Perceptions Toward Anabolicandrogenic Steroid Use Amongst University Students

Publié en ligne: 26 nov. 2015

Pages: 61 - 67

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/amb-2015-0019

Mots clés
attitude, drug abuse, prevalence, steroids, students

© 2015

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 License.

Prevalence and Perceptions Toward Anabolicandrogenic Steroid Use Amongst University Students

Publié en ligne: 26 nov. 2015

Pages: 61 - 67

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/amb-2015-0019

Mots clésattitude, drug abuse, prevalence, steroids, students

© 2015

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 License.

Mots clés
attitude, drug abuse, prevalence, steroids, students