Leveling the field
Testing should be just one weapon in Legislature's fight against high school steroid use.
April 21, 2007
When the House and Senate passed bills last week for high school steroid testing, the most important achievement was showing Texas takes this kind of drug abuse seriously. For too long, high school steroid use has been brushed off, even quietly encouraged, by some coaches and parents.
Even more worrisome, however, is the reality that most teens don't grasp the danger of these bodybuilding drugs.
Drug testing certainly plays a role in thwarting steroid use, and the expected testing law will begin this anti-steroid initiative.
But as lawmakers streamline the House and Senate testing bills, they should remember to prioritize education as the best, cheapest way to keep steroid needles and creams out of high school locker rooms.
Both the House and Senate call for $2 million to $4 million for random steroid testing in Texas high schools. The conference committee that will hash out a compromise faces two big questions: Where will the money for this testing come from, and how will the test subjects be determined?
Under the Senate bill, 3 percent — or about 22,000 — of all student athletes from at least 30 percent of state high schools would be tested for illegal drugs; the state would pay the fees to conduct the testing.
The House bill looks more flexible, calling for tests on a "statistically significant" proportion of athletes, to be determined by the University Interscholastic League, the state's governing body for high school sports.
The House bill also calls for initially testing at least 3 percent of high school athletes, a number that can be raised or lowered depending on finances. School districts would pay for the tests by raising ticket prices at athletic events, perhaps by as little as 25 cents.
By definition, high school steroid use is secretive and hard to measure. The percentage of athlete users is estimated to be as low as 5 percent and as high as 33 percent.
At least one expert guesses the figure is in the 10 percent range.
A 2003 national survey, meanwhile, showed that a startling 76 percent of high school students couldn't identify any negative side effects from long-term steroid use. Especially when used without supervision, steroid effects can be dire.
Muscles can grow too big for tendons; the heart can be overtaxed by its greater burden; resulting harmone fluctuations can produce psychosis and suicide.
For these reasons, even a small percentage of athletes on steroids is too many. Luckily, many students measurably change their habits if they're given proper incentive. Fear of random testing is one such motivator.
Far more students, though, may be swayed by elegantly designed programs such as ATLAS — Athletes Training and Learning to Avoid Steroids. First used in Washington and Oregon, the program recruits top high school athletes to teach their peers about steroids' effects, to parse advertising and other media messages and to eat healthy diets.
Though it sounds simplistic, the award-winning program has had impressive results. According to at least one study, it's led to 50 percent drops both in new drug use and new steroid use among athletes who participated.
Because education is such a promising approach, Texas lawmakers need to include it in their antisteroid campaign. Instead of committing precious state education funds for tests that cost as much as $180 each, lawmakers should opt for the more versatile House plan — bankrolling drug tests with ticket sales. That way, the state can alter its game plan against steroids if programs such as ATLAS turn out to be our star players.
