Steroids and High School Athletes, By: Wendy Suares

Madison Central quarterback Jared Foster faces 15 alcohol-related charges after throwing a party at his Madison home last Saturday, where police say a number of minors were drinking.

The investigation continues regarding alleged controlled substances at the party. Sources say that substance is steroids, the use of which is a disturbing trend among Mississippi's young athletes.

Madison police say they don't know exactly what they found at 18-year-old Jared Foster's home.

Foster was released on $7,600 bond for the alcohol charges.

The calls that tipped us off to this story have suggested it was steroids. Police also arrested an unnamed minor in connection with selling the controlled substance.

More young athletes are turning the drug to become bigger, faster, stronger.

"I don't know how big of a problem it is, but it is a problem," said Ennis Proctor, executive director of the Mississippi High School Activities Association.

The MHSAA is in charge of all high school sports in the state. Proctor says more school districts are doing random drug testing on athletes, but those tests don't screen for steroids.

"Not many of the schools have gotten into that, because that's a more expensive test," said Proctor.

Madison schools, where Foster attends, do about 1,000 drug tests on students each year. It's an extensive urine screening, but it takes a more expensive blood test to find steroids.

Educational videos were sent out to every school district in the state this year to warn students about the dangers of steroid use. It's a growing trend among adolescents.

A national study in 1999 found nearly three percent of high school students report taking steroids at least once, and it's only getting worse according to an athletics official at Ole Miss. He says Division I schools are seeing more high school athletes enter college programs, addicted to steroids. He says they go through withdrawal and often suffer depression.

Still, Proctor says Mississippi has a handle on the problem.

"I don't think it's a problem that's gotten away from us in our state and I think because our coaches do a good job of watching what's happening there," Proctor said.