The NFL was instrumental in creating the program. Together with the ATLAS (Adolescents Training and Learning to Avoid Steroids) and ATHENA (Athletes Targeting Healthy Exercise and Nutrition Alternatives), the program promotes healthy living and winning in competitions without the use of drugs, particularly steroids, which has been used to enhance performance in sports events.

Track and Field coach Stephanie Toole from Lakewood High says the program is very effective in empowering students and athletes to make the right decisions to become better leaders of their teams. Coaches from John Hay also echo the same benefits from the program, saying that school athletes become more resilient when faced with the temptation to use steroids, and that they are better at saying ‘no’ to these addictive substances.

Students from the local schools are glad that such a program exists to help them go through the challenges a lot easier. John Hay student Ogechi Onyeukwu says “the problems, the conflicts, and the struggles of peer pressure, smoking, and drinking and taking steroids…I’m just honored to be able to be around people that go through the same problems as me and are facing the struggles… and are able to discuss how to overcome them.”

The same sentiment is felt among Lakewood students. Student Jay Andreani states that the program helps those who think that taking drugs is alright. He says the idea that drugs is not necessary to be successful has been lost especially on those who are on the competitive side. The program is the answer to bring back this awareness into the school population.

One of the things that parents should watch out for is abuse of anabolic steroids, which has gained popularity in recent years among high school students who would like to improve their abilities in sports, the way some professional athletes do.

Here are some signs and symptoms that parents should watch out for when it comes to anabolic steroid abuse.

A teenager who is taking anabolic steroids will undergo rapid weight gain – as much as 5 to 10 kg within the first 12 weeks of taking the drug. They will also show rapid muscle development, which is one of the main reasons why student athletes – even ones who are still in high school – take steroids to begin with.

Teenagers are known to be at that stage in their lives when they are most prone to acne, and this is made even worse with steroid intake. Anabolic steroids can cause severe acne on the face, arms, shoulders and upper back.

Beyond physical changes and symptoms, parents may also notice extreme personality changes in teenagers who are taking anabolic steroids. A teen on steroids may be happy or pleasant one moment, then suddenly erupts in anger and rage.

Other signs of anabolic steroid intake include the appearance of red and purple spots on the body (especially in the upper body), baldness, changes in the color of the skin, swelling of the face, excessively oily skin, and development of breast tissue in males.

Dr. Harrison Pope of Harvard University was quoted in the article: “the unique thing about steroids is that a trained eye can spot a user when they are walking in the door.”

So what are these things that a “trained eye” can look for? The physical manifestations of steroid use may include a sudden increase in muscle mass, resulting in weight gain, and small red or purplish acne which can break out on the shoulders and back as well.

Someone on steroids will also have unusually oily hair or skin. Boys will have an abnormally excessive development of breast tissue, while girls will have a decrease in breast size, a deepening of the voice and the appearance of facial hair. The steroid user may also suffer from bad breath and may be aggressive, irritable and hostile. Injection sites may lead to blood spots in the underwear, and a yellowing of the skin may point to possible liver damage.

In recent years, however, the integrity of these games has been put into question with the emergence of the use of performance enhancing drugs. For some, a game is only viable provided that the athletes have been subjected to – and successfully passed – a battery of drug tests, random or otherwise.

But how effective are these tests really? Have they been able to deter athletes from taking the easy way to the top?

On ProCon.com, the pros and cons of the “Effectiveness of Drug Testing” were discussed. While there seems to have been a decline in the number of athletes testing positive, this fact, according to Dr. Ivan Waddinngton of the Norwegian School of Sport Sciences, is not an accurate reflection of whether doping is now on a decline or not. This may well even be due to the fact that athletes just might be getting smarter.

However, Dr. Gary Wadler, the chairperson of the World Anti-Doping Agency stresses that the tests that they provide are “accurate and reliable.”

Physical changes are the most obvious and easy to spot signs, especially when dealing with novice users. Jaundice, or yellowing of the skin due to the damage to one’s liver, is an indication of abusive steroid use. Due to the steroid’s effect on a person’s hormones, gynocomastia, or an uncharacteristic excessive development of breast tissue in males, is also a clear sign to watch out for.

Other obvious physical changes are acne formations, persistent bad breath, excessive hair loss, skin infections such as abscesses and cysts, rapid or progressive weight gain, abnormal muscle growth, hyperactivity and discoloration or blood in urine.

Be wary of personality and psychological changes that happen out of the blue. Mood swings and increased aggression or irritability is a common sign of steroid use. Because of the irregularity of the hormones in the body, users have been known to become disrespectful or abusive, either verbally or physically to authority or peers, causing severe spurts of anger or lashing out. More severe mental illnesses on record are hallucinations, paranoia and depression.

If ever these signs and symptoms are evident to someone you know, never hesitate to exercise your responsibility as a friend or relative to try to prevent any more harm.

Steroids are often used to increase body mass, and these often deal with hormonal augmentation. While this may be benefit you if you’re trying to win a Mr. Muscleman competition, the long-term effects of steroids far outweigh its benefits. Not only do you risk damage to your liver, heart and kidney, but it can also affect your mental and emotional states. The worst part of it is that it can also affect your sexual development as a whole.

Getting caught using steroids is another thing to risk. It’s an act that’s generally frowned upon, simply because the pride of being in a sports team revolves around the concept of hard work and determination. While steroids may enhance physical strength, they can cause a lot of grief when people start talking about you and your drug problem. It would be a more difficult task to gain their trust again.

While there are physical benefits to using steroids, they pale in comparison to the set of disadvantages that surround their use.

Teenagers, being in the time of their lives when they start wanting everything, try the one thing most people actually try to do during puberty — make time go faster.

Teenagers engaged in sports or have started body composition training want the results to be seen in the shortest possible time. However, growing one’s physique is an intricate process in which the whole system should participate in. Becoming leaner means improving metabolism, and improved metabolism actually assists the body in assimilating the proper nutrients to be transported to the different body parts.

To absorb the optimum amount of nutrients, one would need the right amount of the right food at the right time. Yes, TIME is exactly what is needed by the body to process all these improvements to be translated into better body composition, and the time needed by your bodies should be spent by infusing a particular catalyst: exercise. Many teenagers try to find a “magic pill” or a “secret recipe” for achieving the results they want while skipping the entire natural process.

Teenagers should know and understand that their adolescent years provide their bodies the perfect environment for muscular growth. They are at a point in their lives wherein their levels of testosterone (growth hormones of the body) are at its peak. If they spend this time exercising regularly at the right pace and intensity, they already have their own personal and all-natural steroids working for them.