TEENAGERS as young as 16 are turning to illegal anabolic steroids to transform themselves into their sporting heroes, according to a national drugs survey.

Researchers say that steroids have become a sought-after commodity on the drugs black market in 11 cities and towns: London, Blackpool, Birmingham, Middlesbrough, Nottingham, Torquay, Cardiff, Manchester, Portsmouth, Luton and Newcastle.

The annual survey published in Drugslink, a monthly magazine on drug research, looked at 20 areas of the United Kingdom and found that sales of anabolic steroids had grown so much over the past year that they have become “mainstream”.

The charity DrugScope, which carried out the research, says that drugs workers are having to treat people including professionals and students aged between 16 and 25. They are using steroids “for purely aesthetic reasons — a shortcut to the muscled, toned physique of their sporting heroes”.

Anabolic steroids are defined as prescription-only drugs under the Medicines Act. It is not illegal to possess them but supply can lead to 14 years in jail and a fine.

Side effects of steroid misuse in men can include reduced sperm count, kidney and liver problems, high blood pressure and increased aggression. Injectors risk contracting viruses such as HIV and hepatitis B and C.

Martin Barnes, chief executive of DrugScope, said: “The rise in the number of young men misusing steroids is extremely worrying and seems to be in response to a growing obsession with the ideal body image.” He said that there were serious risks associated with steroid misuse but that people often ignored the dangers or failed to seek help because they did not consider themselves to be drug users.

Mr Barnes said that gyms, drug and health services should provide more information and practical support for young people exposed to steroid misuse.

The survey was carried out with information provided by 80 drug agencies, police forces and drug action teams in July and August. It gauges the latest street prices for 10 drugs, and found very little change since last year.

As well as steroid abuse, the survey also points to a growing epidemic in “speedballing”, involving a mix of injected heroin and cocaine. It has become so prevalent in parts of South London that speedballs are being treated as a drug in their own right.

Drugs workers and police fear that the addiction to the drugs mix could create a new crime wave and add to health problems because of the use of needles.

People using the mix spent £500 a week, or £26,000 a year, on the drugs, the study indicated. Speedballing was the main method of drug-taking for 80 per cent of those interviewed, compared with 25 per cent a decade ago.

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