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Use of anabolic steroids is linked to antisocial behaviour such as illegal weapon possession and fraud, say Swedish researchers.
But the researchers said they were surprised to find that users of the muscle-building drugs were no more likely than non-users to commit violent crimes such as murder and assault.
Sexual offences such as rape and property crimes also were not linked to steroid use, they found.
The researchers examined the relationship between steroids - associated with increased aggressiveness and impulsive violent outbursts sometimes dubbed "roid rage" - and criminal behaviour.
They looked at people using steroids without a doctor's prescription.
"Our findings indicate that the use of steroids is associated not only with impulsive antisocial behaviour but also with an antisocial lifestyle involving various types of criminality, some requiring advance planning", the researchers led by Dr Fia Klotz of Uppsala University wrote.
The steroid users were roughly twice as likely as other people to have been found guilty of a weapons crime and 1.5 times as likely to have been found guilty of fraud.
Anabolic steroids are related to male sex hormones, and can be taken through injections or orally.
Many athletes, bodybuilders and others, male and female, use steroids without prescriptions to build muscle bulk and strength.
In men, steroids can shrink testicles, reduce sperm count, raise prostate cancer risk and cause infertility and baldness.
In women, they can cause facial hair, male-pattern baldness, menstrual problems and a deep voice. They can stunt the growth of adolescents.
- REUTERS
