REALITY CHECK: Think steroids are for teens? Well, think again. A recent survey found that kids as young as ten (fifth graders!) are taking illegal steroids to do better in sports. And it isn’t just boys who are partaking: use among middle-school girls is almost as prevalent as it is among boys (2.8 percent of boys and 2.6 percent of girls). One CNN report found that up to 7 percent of middle school girls—some as young as nine years of age—admit to using anabolic steroids as a way to lose weight. Health professionals and educators alike are alarmed, but so too should parents.

If you haven’t heard, Mark McGwire just joined the Baseball Hall of Shame for testing positive for using performance-enhancing drugs. He is among the 100 + players that tested positive for steroids in the past few years. Sports announcers caution that this issue will not go away—more announcements are yet to come which means the whole steroid issue will be hot news event for some time. But it’s also the perfect opportunity to start up the “steroid talk” with your kids.

First, make no mistake, steroid use is dangerous. Steroids can harm the liver, stunt growth and cause a host of other long-term ailments, but these young bodies particularly vulnerable. That’s exactly why we should start talking to our kids about the dangers of steroids at a much younger age. And there is no time better than now. It’s hard to read a news story these days that doesn’t list yet another a pro baseball players, wrestlers, swimmers, runners, bikers found guilt of abusing performance enhancing drugs.

Do know these tainted-athletes do impact our children’s beliefs and behavior. One teen survey found that 57 percent admitted that professional athletes influenced their decision to use the drugs and 63 percent of kids said pro athletes influenced their friends’ decisions to use them. Recognize that your kid’s sport hero may be influence his or her decisions.

Here are a few ways to talk about steroids as well as a few strategies from The Big Book of Parenting Solutions to help you navigate yet another worrisome subject with our children.

1. Open up the steroid dialogue–don’t wait for your kids to come to you. “Hey Mom, can we talk about steroids?” probably isn’t going to be the reality. Open up that conversation with your child at least by fourth grade. Remember, kids as young as fifth grade are now indulging, so get a year start. Just tailor your talk to their level. Remember, one talk isn’t going to do it. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat.

2. Use real world events. Cut out an article about Mark McGwire and use it as your conversation opener: “Do you think he knows what the long-term damage could be on his body?”  “What are your friends saying?” Use the issue as a bridge and cover the next few tips. Or go back to Barry Bonds: “Do you think he should make the Hall of Fame is they find out he took steroids?” “Do you think it’s fair to other players who aren’t using steroids?”

3. Do your homework. If you want to talk steroids you better be one step ahead of your kid. Read up on the dangers so you can talk facts and knowledge. If you aren’t getting through enlist the help of your doctor or child’s couch. Useful sites include:

http://www.usantidoping.org

http://www.steroidabuse.org

http://hormore.org/learn/abuse.html

4. Discuss the health dangers. There are clear health risks that your child needs to know. Here are just a few: severe acne, loss of hair, liver abnormalities (including peliosis hepatitis or blood-filled cysts), increase in the harmful kind of cholesterol, rage, angry outbursts or uncontrolled aggressive behavior, increase in blood clots, and high blood pressure. The results really aren’t back yet on real long-term affects of steroid use—especially on young bodies.

5. Look for doping signs.  Here are a few possible signs for boys and girls: increased acne, a deeper voice, increased facial or body hair; more aggressive behavior, a marked change in personality, a fast increase in weight and muscle mass, a preoccupation with weights and working out.

6. Monitor your computer. Did you know the majority of kids buy anabolic steroids and other so-called performance-enhancement supplements at home straight off the Internet? Set clear parameters on Internet use, and know which sites your child frequents. Many kids say that they buy drugs from local distributors at private gyms or even from youth coaches. Stay tuned to what ‘s going on in your kid’s life.

7. Examine your kid’s wallet.   Steroids can be pricey—even a few hundred dollars. So check that savings account for any sudden big withdrawals. Also look to brothers and sisters (and unsuspecting grandparents) as the loan sources. And monitor your credit card activity.

8. Downplay appearance and popularity. Steroids can help enhance muscle definition (which is all the rage in those body-building magazines many of our kids devour), so downplay physical appearance in your home. Find ways to build your kid’s self-image from the “inside-out” so he doesn’t rely on muscle mass as his own source of personal pride.

9. Share your views. Many kids actually feel their parents are accepting of steroids. Why? Well, it seems one of the biggest reasons kids take steroids is to please their parents. If you’ve been stressing that college scholarship, winning at any cost, how proud you are that she’s such an athlete (“Olympic are right around the corner, darling”), then bite you tongue. Your child needs to know (and pronto) why you think steroids are wrong (think this one through carefully so you do create a strong, powerful case), and what your family values are (push that this is also cheating, lying and deception).

Just as parents are the best antidotes for drugs, they are also the best hope to stopping this deadly and fast-rising trend: steroid use! Whatever your feelings about these players (a little disclosure here- I’m a die-hard Giants fan), do use these upcoming media-moments to start the steroid talk!

So what are you waiting for? Start talking!

This article is excerpted from Michele Borba’s book, The Big Book of Parenting Solutions: 101 Answers to Your Everyday Challenges and Wildest Worries (Jossey-Bass):

http://www.amazon.com/Big-Book-Parenting-Solutions-Development/dp/0787988316

Follow Michele on twitter @micheleborba or on her daily blog at http://www.micheleborba.com