Steroids (Health and Medical Issues Today)

A thorough, balanced examination of the controversies on the therapeutic and non-therapeutic use of steroids that covers both legal medical therapy and illegal performance enhancement.

The discussions regarding the ethical, medical, and social controversies surrounding steroid use are as heated as the drugs themselves are powerful. Steroids comprehensively addresses the separate debates over steroid use in therapeutic medical treatments, sports performance enhancement, and cosmetic lifestyle choices. The contents provide balanced coverage of the complex positive and negative implications involved with using these "ingredients of youth" to evade the common ailments of old age and to overcome some of the limitations of natural biology. This book will be invaluable to students of not only health and exercise sciences, sports and sport-related fields, and medical science, but also those researching social and ethical questions involved with the use of steroids in related fields. For example, the book may be used by sociology students investigating social aspects of sports, health policy, and public role models; psychology students focusing on the role of self-image and mental health; and political science students researching public health policy.

• Examines the historical trends leading to steroid use as part of social attitudes and problems related to self-image, competitiveness, and aging

• Provides a thorough discussion of policy responses to steroid policy issues such as law enforcement and illegal trafficking, safety guidelines for medical practitioners, and unique considerations for youth protection

• Includes a host of related primary document resources that support the discussion on steroid use

• Supplies a detailed chronology of the major relevant events in steroid history, starting from the first discovery of synthetic versions of testosterone and including all major scandals in professional sports