Steroids are powerful drugs that, if used improperly, can cause many serious side effects including heart attacks, high blood pressure and cholesterol. They also can shrink testes, cause gynaecological problems in men and lead to breast growth and facial hair in women. They can also damage internal organs and impede the body’s natural immune system. For some people the symptoms are not reversible and can include infertility, impotence and kidney failure that requires dialysis treatment.
In Australia, steroids are classified as dangerous drugs and possessing or supplying them without a licence is illegal. Yet amateur bodybuilders and sportsmen from as far afield as the UK are taking advantage of Thailand’s lax regulations by going on ‘steroid holidays’ to bulk up. Jarrad Fisher, a former rugby player from Queensland who starred on Australian television show Supersize vs Superskinny, said he spent two weeks in Pattaya last year during which time he increased from 70kg to 102kg. His bulking regimen was aided by a diet of meat and fish, oats and bananas and plenty of steroids.
Pharmacies in Pattaya openly advertise their steroids and some even display them on shop-front windows. One on Beach Road Soi 7 proudly displays Andriol and Testoviron, which are both types of testosterone in tablet and injection form respectively. Spectrum was able to obtain the drugs easily and at a fraction of the cost they sell for online. Sixty capsules of Andriol cost 840 baht, while a 10-day supply of Testoviron is priced at 3,000 baht _ a quarter of the price of what it would cost online. Steroids Thailand
