Who Takes Steroids? 30 Year-Old White Guys.

[FUZO]

TweetWho Takes Steroids? 30 Year-Old White Guys.


A new study on anabolic steroid usage has pinpointed Wired's demographic as the primary users of the substances.

Contrary to the steroid-user image epitomized by pro athletes like Barry Bonds, the survey of over 2,000 male steroid users found that the typical user was "30 years old, well-educated, and earning an above average income in a white collar occupation."

On the other hand, perhaps Wired's readers are like its writers, in which case the other attributes of steroid users -- driven as well as dedicated to gym attendance and diet -- are qualities that we can only wish for.

The study, which appears today in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, pinpointed the desire for more muscle mass, strength, and physical attractiveness as the primary drivers of usage, not increases in athletic performance. Other "significant" factors driving men to take steroids were "increased confidence, decreased fat, improved mood, and attraction of sexual partners." Curiously, side effects like shrunken testicles, baldness, and back acne were left off the list.

The desire for muscle mass for muscle mass' sake appears to be a relatively new phenomenon that some researchers link to changes in marketing around male body image. Just as Barbie's waist line has shrunk while her chest has grown, GI Joe's biceps (scaled to human size) grew from 12.2 inches in 1973 to 26.8 inches in 1998.

The study's authors questioned whether you could shoehorn steroid usage patterns into the traditional substance abuse paradigm. The steroid users planned their steroid use to maximize its benefits within their otherwise healthy lifestyles.

"This is simply not a style or pattern of use we typically see when we examine substance abuse” said Jack Darkes, Ph.D, a co-author.

The study also could help drive changes in public health efforts to stop anabolic-androgenic steroid (AAS) use. Most outreach has focused on the Varsity Blues demographic, not the Office Space demographic.

“The focus on ‘cheating’ athletes and at risk youth has led to irrelevant policy as it relates to the predominant group of non-medical AAS users," said Rick Collins, another author of the study. "The vast majority of AAS users are not athletes."

Though accurate numbers for drug abuse are hard to produce, a National Institute on Drug Abuse study found that about 1 million Americans had used anabolic steroids.

[horsepwr]

Tweetgood read

[daved150]

Tweetcool!!! i thaught i had to play baseball to do that shyt!! i'm gonna try them out now!

[snickers1]

Tweetcool good post

[horsepwr]

Tweet...and, you notice how steroids are always used metaphorically as a good thing. For instance I overheard Rachael Ray on the food channel say "This thing is great. It's a toaster oven on steroids." a little bit ago.