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Anabolic-Androgenic Steroids and Violence
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Anabolic-Androgenic Steroids and Violence Anabolic-Androgenic steroids (AAS) are used by many individuals for improved athleticism, strength, or just to look better. Many researchers believe there have been no studies that concretely show that AAS make individuals more prone to commit violent acts, however, a strong argument can be made to show otherwise. According to Forbes, the masculinizing properties of the male reproductive system have been reported since the 18th century. Androsterone was the first synthesized AAS in 1934 (Lamb 250). As more individuals started taking steroids, it became known that steroids made animals as well as humans more aggressive, but it could not be proven that AAS make users more prone to commit a violent act. Body builders started using testosterone in the late 1940’s and 1950’s. The first reports of steroids being used in weightlifting occurred in 1954 and the continued experimentation by Dr. John Zielger and USA weightlifters are credited with the first use of anabolic steroids by athletes (Lamb 251). The natural form of steroids is the hormone testosterone that is produced in males by the testes and adrenal glands and by the adrenal glands in females. The body uses testosterone to combat inflammation and stimulate development of bones and muscles. It contributes to the growth of skin and hair and can influence emotions. AAS are a synthetic version of the hormone testosterone. Given the right training stimulus and diet, AAS enable the user to process protein into muscle fibers at astonishing rates creating increased muscle size and strength with a reduction in body fat. Since AAS were first introduced, there has been much controversy with researchers if ASS makes individuals more prone to commit violent acts. There are many factors as to why there hasn’t been a proven link to ASS and violence. Doctor Jack Darkes is one who believes that it has yet to be proven that ASS make individuals more prone to commit violent acts. He supports this by stating, “There is really little evidence of a direct link between AAS and negative psychological effects” (Darkes, “Part 1”, par 4). Darkes also argues that studies that show no link to ASS and negative psychological effects that lead to violence don’t make headlines, but these studies are important to be “instructive in understanding the process involved” (Darkes, “Part 1”, par 6). The media has also not helped in the controversial link between AAS and violence. In the National Institute on Drug Abuse Research Report: Anabolic Steroid Abuse, it is reported that AAS users may commit violent acts not because of ASS direct effects on the brain, but because the users have been affected by intense media attention to the link between AAS and violence. With this theory, users are using the possible link as a justification to commit violent acts (6). This is further backed up by Lee F. Monoghan, lecturer in Sociology at the Cardiff School of Social Sciences, Cariff University commenting that knowledge of “steroid effects” comes from the larger society and mass media. He feels that this may increase the chances of a self fulfilling prophecy where the belief rather than the ASS, lead to violence (158).
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