Big muscles but drugs take a toll elsewhere

While taking anabolic steroids, combined with intensive training and a high protein diet, is said to build body weight and increase the size of muscles, there are associated health risks.

The active ingredient is the male hormone testosterone which can exaggerate baldness and acne, and can also cause lasting damage to the liver as well as heart problems. The drug also prompts production of the female hormones, causing male testes to shrink and breasts to develop.

Injecting can lead to serious infection, especially hepatitis and HIV if injecting equipment is shared.

Other possible problems include hypertension, as the drugs are said to encourage the body to retain water and raise blood pressure, a lowered sex drive, sleep disorders, depression and paranoia. Regular users are said to become more aggressive and competitive and better able to perform strenuous physical activity, but it is also claimed they can become violent and sexually abusive.