Contrary to popular belief, when non-prescribed steroid users enter Beng Eu's clinic, their shoulders are not trapped in the doorframe.
Rather, a world-first study headed by the Melbourne GP and published this week reveals that anabolic-androgenic steroid users resemble the general population.
Dr. Eu explained that it is not always the massive bodybuilder that is on anabolic steroids.
Their BMI is about 28, which is comparable to that of the typical Australian and testosterone users.
However, health hazards arise under the surface.
Non-prescribed users who walked into six GP clinics throughout the nation had a higher risk of blood clots, impaired liver function, and excessive cholesterol when compared to the general population.
According to the research, the risk of hypertension even surpassed that of persons using prescription testosterone, which is already significantly above average.
According to Dr Eu, the findings demonstrate the need of a harm-minimisation strategy to non-prescribed steroid usage.
He claims that steroid users seldom tell anybody because they are afraid of being judged by others, especially physicians.
He added that some physicians are a little judgemental about it, and others feel like they don't know what to do with the knowledge anyhow.
So many of them (AAS users) are desperate for assistance. They don't want to die of liver failure or a heart attack, and they want to do it safely. In general, it's similar to illegal drugs in that individuals take it for a short amount of time and then cease.
A NSW coroner probing the death of personal trainer Jesse Drabsch addressed the problem of a lack of excellent public information on performance and image-enhancing medications last month.
In 2017, the 31-year-old fell in the restroom of a 24-hour gym after injecting himself with non-prescribed insulin.
Coroner Harriet Grahame discovered that there was little solid research concerning the incidence of PIEDs. She expressed astonishment at the absence of specialised teaching and therapeutic measures, as well as user assistance.
She recommended industry participants and health authorities collaborate with Dr. Eu and others exploring the use of PIEDs to develop harm-minimisation techniques.
Dr. Eu's research indicates that once the dialogue with AAS users begins, a large number of them are ready to change their behaviour.
According to questionnaires completed by users' treating physicians, around half of the users looked to be prepared to monitor and/or treat the negative consequences of AAS usage.
According to the findings, around 36% of those polled expressed a desire to alter their usage, whilst approximately 9% had AAS turned off.
Dr. Eu stated that harm minimisation is critical.
If we're concerned about these folks and the damage steroids truly bring to health, we should watch them so you can counsel them.
The study, which the authors claim is the first epidemiological study on non-prescribed PIEDs users seeking healthcare, was carried out between 2019 and 2021.
It was presented at the Australasian Professional Society on Alcohol and Other Drugs (APSAD) conference this week.
