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Drug Education and Anabolic-Androgenic Steroidsby MESO/Rx As the founder of MESO/Rx, the most highly trafficked website devoted exclusively to the discussion of anabolic steroids and performance-enhancing pharmaceuticals, my name has become practically synonymous with MESO/Rx - and by extension, anabolic steroids. My friends and colleagues repeatedly ask me why I persevere in my efforts at anabolic-androgenic steroid (AAS) education. After all, anabolic steroids are still demonized and, as controlled substances, are essentially illegal. Consequently, as an anabolic steroid "advocate," I am often stigmatized, stereotyped, and the target for drug war crusaders. Clearly, the subject of AAS is not something that will be a popular topic during my family gatherings this holiday season! So, why does MESO/Rx persist in discussing their uses and effects? Why do I care so much about the truth surrounding AAS. Why should you care about anabolic steroids? My answer involves two primary reasons. First, I want to minimize the negative health consequences experienced by AAS users through a harm reduction approach. Secondly, I want to discuss the major health benefits of AAS use that have been ignored by the medical community in the past - these health benefits are some of the same performance-enhancing effects seen by athletes. I never anticipated how controversial such open discussion of AAS would be nor how uncomfortable it would make so many people feel. Because of the perceived subversiveness of the AAS information available at MESO/Rx, I would like to take a moment to discuss both of these reasons in a little more detail. Philosophical Approach to Drug Education and Drug Abuse Prevention The success of traditional drug prevention programs is questionable at best. The main reason for this is the faulty assumption that all drug use is unhealthy; consequently, the (unobtainable) goal of such approaches is complete drug abstinence. My approach to drug education has always been a strategy of harm reduction. Rather than attempting to prevent steroid use, I feel the most practical and achievable approach was to prevent the abuse of steroids. This approach recognizes the distinction between drug use and drug abuse. A drug can be used without being abused. No drug is inherently evil - not even the highly-demonized anabolic steroids! Knowledge is power - the more information available to the consumer, the better decisions they are able to make. The Internet has provided an extremely efficient method for me to disseminate anabolic steroid information to the consumer. MESO/Rx presents extensive factual information, education, and resources regarding AAS in an effort to minimize the harms associated with AAS use. What Exactly is Harm Reduction? So, what exactly is a harm reduction approach? Well, harm reduction can include any of the following: * teaching bodybuilders how to use AAS safely and responsibly, In short, it means doing everything possible to minimize adverse consequences to the health of an AAS user. Regardless of the controversial nature of the harm reduction approach within the bodybuilding community, MESO/Rx feels obligated to hold health maintenance as the primary goal of its drug education efforts. I have always believed that the harm reduction approach would yield the greatest benefit, not only to the bodybuilder and athlete who choose to use AAS, but also to society in general. The Disgrace Within the Medical Community With the passage of the Anabolic Steroids Control Act of 1990, there was a decided shift in the political climate and laws involving AAS. Unfortunately, this resulted in an unreasonable prejudice against the medical use of AAS. This demonization of anabolic-androgenic steroids severely impeded research into inexpensive treatments for muscle wasting, a disorder most commonly associated with HIV/AIDS. Since AAS were (and still are) a Schedule III controlled substance, most physicians were reluctant to prescribe them for off-label purposes even though AAS would have offered major health benefits to some of their patients. What are some of the health benefits associated with AAS? The pairing of AAS with resistance exercise, a practice used by bodybuilders for decades, has been shown in several studies to reverse muscle wasting and significantly improve the health and well being for those individuals with debilitating diseases (such as HIV) and/or sarcopenia i.e. age-related muscle loss. Not only do AAS reduce and counteract muscle wasting but also serve as clinically significant-modulators of immune responsiveness. The good news is that androgen therapy is gaining acceptance as an HIV treatment as well as in hormone replacement therapy. Thankfully, the constitutionally-protected right to free speech allows individuals and websites, like MESO/Rx, to discuss off-label and progressive uses of prescription and scheduled drugs like AAS (e.g. the use of AAS to increase lean body mass, muscle size and strength). The discussion of off-label uses by MESO/Rx is especially needed and important at times when social and legal forces undermine the objectivity of the medical community regarding valuable medical applications of AAS. Fortunately, the use of AAS as a standard medical treatment for muscle wasting is gradually gaining broad range acceptance. Summary To the casual observer, MESO/Rx's extensive discussion of anabolic-androgenic steroids may only appear to be an exercise in freedom of speech. However, thousands of athletes, bodybuilders, patients suffering from muscle wasting, and their medical practictioners, see the information on MESO/Rx as much, much more. MESO/Rx has provided individuals with harm reduction strategies that have made the outcome of AAS use as safe as possible. Innumerable individuals suffering from muscle wasting and/or hypogonadism have printed the articles from MESO/Rx and consulted with their physicians regarding progressive uses of AAS for improving their health and quality of life. How could MESO/Rx avoid discussing the uses and effects of anabolic-androgenic steroids? |
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