Pediatricians Condemn Steroid Use
Doctors, parents, and coaches should do all they can to prevent the use of steroids and other performance-boosting substances by young people, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) says in a new policy statement.
While the group stopped short of recommending drug testing, the statement said adults should keep a watchful eye on teen athletes and promote fair competition whenever possible, the Associated Press reported.
A 2000 survey by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that about 7 percent of ninth-graders admitted taking steroids without a doctor's prescription, the wire service reported. Little is known about how steroids affect teens, said Dr. Eric Small, chairman of the AAP committee that wrote the statement.
Small said the timing of the statement, in the midst of Major League Baseball's steroid scandal, was coincidental. He said the policy took five years to craft.
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