American Medical Association Family Medical Guide - American Medical Association [232]
Anabolic Steroids
Some teenagers—both boys and girls—use anabolic steroids to improve their athletic performance. Make sure your teen is aware of the harmful (and sometimes irreversible) side effects of steroids, such as (in boys) shrunken testicles, breast development, impotence, and baldness, and (in girls) facial hair, reduced breast size, irregular menstrual periods, and a deep voice. Steroid use also can cause acne, jaundice (yellowing of the skin and whites of the eyes), infertility, depression, and aggression.
Ecstasy and Other Club Drugs
Ecstasy (also called XTC, MDMA, Adam, or the hug drug or love drug) and other club drugs are popular with teens at bars, dance clubs, and raves (all-night dance parties). Ten percent of American teens say they have tried ecstasy. Club drugs are popular with teens because they are relatively inexpensive, increase stamina, create a high, and heighten sensitivity to touch.
Most teens think that these drugs are harmless, low-risk ways to get high. But deaths from club drugs are on the rise. People 25 years or younger make up 80 percent of ecstasy-related hospital emergency department visits. Ecstasy can cause brain damage that can persist for years or be permanent. When taken together, alcohol and ecstasy can dangerously boost each other’s effects.
Temporary side effects include hallucinations (abnormal perceptions not based on reality), paranoia (excessive or irrational suspiciousness), and amnesia (loss of memory). Users may act impulsively and aggressively. Chronic users sometimes wear retainers or use pacifiers or lollipops to try to prevent the cracked or worn teeth or jaw problems caused by jaw clenching or teeth grinding, which are common side effects of ecstasy.
People 25 years or younger also make up the majority of emergency department visits involving the date rape drug GHB (gamma-hydroxybutyrate). Because GHB is colorless, somewhat tasteless (it can be slightly bitter), and odorless (like other club drugs), it can be added to drinks without being detected. GHB puts a person into a stupor and sometimes into a coma, which can be fatal.
Prescription Drugs
Increasing numbers of young people are abusing prescription drugs that have been prescribed for another person for a legitimate purpose. One of the prescription drugs most frequently abused by young people is methylphenidate (known primarily by the brand name Ritalin and popularly as Vitamin R and R-Ball), a mild stimulant prescribed for treating attention deficit disorders (see page 730). Some young people take methylphenidate without a prescription to try to improve their concentration, enable them to study all night, or boost their alertness during a test. The drugs are often made available by people who get them or steal them from someone who has a legitimate prescription, and then sell them or give them to friends, which is illegal.
WARNING!
Monitor Your Child’s Medicine
As a parent, consider yourself responsible for all medications your child takes. Hold them and administer them to your child inside the home, and do not allow your child to take medicine to school unless your doctor has told you it is necessary. If your child must take his or her medicine at school, make sure the medicine is held by the school nurse and administered in his or her presence or in the presence of a school official. If your child is attending day care, camp, or a sleepover, give his or her medicine to a responsible adult to give to your child when needed.
Methylphenidate can be dangerous if snorted, injected, or taken in large doses. The drug can increase heart rate and blood pressure and, in severe cases, cause an irregular heartbeat (arrhythmia; see page 580) that can result in sudden death. Complications from injecting the drug include overdose, blood clots, infections, lung problems, and