Children involved in drug abuse

Press, 26 July 1983, Page 36

Children involved in drug abuse

NZPA Canberra A survey of drug use in Australian sport has found abuse, even among children in the five to ten years age group. The survey, by the Australian Sports Medicine Foundation, involved over 4000 respondents from 31 sports. It showed that about five per cent of those surveyed were seriously abusing drugs, endangering themselves and other competitors.

Professor Graeme Blackman, honorary secretary of the Australian Sports Federation Drug Control Committee, cited examples of footballers “doped up on stimulants.”

“These players can be more ferocious than they might be normally and have less control over their actions,” he said. Professor Blackman, Professor of Pharmaceutical Chemistry at the Victorian College of Pharmacy, said other sportsmen and women were abusing anabolic steriods and diuretics.

Apart from the five per cent taking very large amounts of drugs, 20 per. cent were using drugs proscribed by international convention.

“Drugs are being used across the spectrum of sports, with the type of drug depending on the sport played,” he said. “We even find drug use among very young kids — in the five to 10 years age group and in the 11 to 15 years group.” The survey findings are included in a report “Survey of Drug use in Australian Sport” which makes a number of recommendations for more efficient and effective control.