Local hospitals, school officials, and politicians will launch a public awareness campaign today aimed at preventing teenagers from taking dangerous steroids and hormonal supplements to improve their athletic performance and appearance.
The campaign is designed to teach students, parents, teachers and coaches about the health risks posed by the substances and the social pressures that lead to their abuse.
"We need to educate teenagers on how to get to their maximum potential without turning to a substance," said John K. Tolmie, the president and CEO of St. Joseph Medical Center in Baltimore, which is spearheading the campaign.
"In the long term," he added, "these substances can result in life-threatening health problems."
The "Powered by ME!" campaign will include a telephone hot line, brochures and television and print advertisements. Organizers also plan to launch an informational Web site this week - www.PoweredByMeMD.com.
The campaign planned to kick off with a news conference at 11 a.m. today at Towson High School. Officials from St. Joseph Medical Center, State Superintendent of Schools Nancy S. Grasmick and Rep. Elijah E. Cummings are scheduled to attend.
Tolmie said the campaign is one of the first of its kind in the country. It will initially focus on Baltimore and Baltimore County, but organizers hope to eventually expand the program to the rest of the state.
Few studies have explored the issue, but the number of teenagers taking steroids and supplements appears to be on the rise.
Nearly one million high school students said they had tried steroids, according to a 2003 study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That is three times the number of students who admitted to using them in 1993. The most rapid increase was seen among girls.
"Lots of kids have been ensnared by this," said Dr. Harry A. Brandt, the head of psychiatry at St. Joseph Medical Center.
He blames the trend on increasing pressure on teenagers to excel at sports and have a certain body type, and on the use of performance enhancers by professional athletes whom teenagers admire. In addition, the Internet has made obtaining performance enhancers much easier.
"There is a lot of misinformation out there and a lot of access to these drugs," he said.
Illegal use of synthetic steroids has been linked to a host of health problems, including depression, stunted growth, heart disease, and liver and prostrate cancer, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse.
