Prevalence and Predictors of Anabolic-Androgenic Steroid Use among Gym Users in Kuwait: A Preliminary Study

摘要

Recreational anabolic-androgenic steroid (AAS) use has become a world-wide pub-lic health concern, however there is currently no published literature pertaining toits use in Kuwait. Therefore, the goal of this preliminary study was to determine thelifetime prevalence of AAS use among gym users in Kuwait. A logistic regressionwas also used to assess whether age, nationality, smoking, and discrepancies be-tween ideal and perceived body image predicted AAS use among men. Participantswere recruited from 6 gyms in Kuwait. Among the 200 individuals (86.5% male,13.5% female) who participated, 35% reported AAS use. Only one female reportedAAS use. When limiting the sample to Kuwaiti males between the ages of 18 and 30,the prevalence rose to 59.1%.Lower age, being Kuwaiti, smoking, and placing highimportance on muscle tone and definition were all significant predictors of AAS use.Implications of these findings and directions for future research are also discussed.