Harnessing the global expertise in drug use and drug prevention in physical activity settings: results from the Anabolic Steroid Prevention Survey

Abstract

Recent decades have seen increased efforts internationally to prevent the use of anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS) and other image and performance-enhancing drugs (IPEDs) in gyms and fitness environments. Yet, very little is known about effective prevention strategies. This study aimed to identify key risk factors for AAS use and assess the relevance of these risk factors as targets of intervention. Seventy four (n = 74) IPED experts participated in the Anabolic Steroid Prevention Survey (response rate: 62.4%). A total of 18 psychosocial and two behavioral risk factors identified in a literature review were rated by participants along two dimensions: importance and preventability. The results show that most IPED experts (91%) believe that preventing AAS use in gyms is important to public health, and that AAS use can be prevented to a certain degree (91%), but not eliminated altogether (85%). Based on participants’ assessment, six risk factors were categorised as very promising (e.g. the descriptive norm and poor knowledge on AAS alternatives), 10 as promising (e.g. body dissatisfaction and drive for muscularity), and four as unpromising but worthy of consideration (e.g. AAS-using peers and perceived benefits of AAS use). To effectively prevent AAS use in gyms, interventions should attempt to reduce these risk factors.

Keywords:

• Anabolic androgenic steroids
• prevention
• gyms
• public health
• education
• anti-doping

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank my colleagues from the Sport and Body Culture research unit at Aarhus University for their critical and helpful comments on an earlier version of this manuscript. I am also grateful to Helle Terkildsen Maindal, Geoff Bates, and Malene Radmer Johannisson for stimulating discussions during the development of the survey instrument.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Data availability statement

Access to data can be requested by contacting the corresponding author.

Notes

1 It is currently unclear exactly how these viruses are transmitted among AAS users but potential routes of transmission include the reuse and sharing of injecting equipment and unprotected sexual intercourse.

2 Based on a review of 84 Erasmus+ projects which include the term ‘doping’ in their project description (Undertaken by the author in May 2020: https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/erasmus-plus/projects_en)

3 Three additional participants were included in August 2020.

4 One risk factor (exposure to sale of sports supplements in the gym) relates to the physical and not the social environment.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by Anti Doping Denmark. The agency had no influence on the conception and design of the study nor on the preparation of the manuscript.