Despite having stringent pharmaceutical regulations domestically, Thailand is playing an increasingly prominent role in the global steroid trade. The article delves into the country’s burgeoning steroid industry and how this has positioned Thailand as a major hub for drugs being distributed abroad, often to athletes, bodybuilders and fitness enthusiasts.
THERE’S SOMETHING about the seedy Thai beachside town of Pattaya that keeps bringing back amateur bodybuilders like Jarrad Fisher from Sydney, Australia – and it’s not just the sun, sea and sand for which the resort is famous. Dorn, 20, is part of a thriving subculture of people who travel to the town to bulk up using anabolic steroids and growth hormones.
While it’s against the law to dispense steroids without a prescription, many pharmacies in Pattaya advertise them on their shopfront windows — one opposite a pub on Beach Road Soi 7 sells Andriol and Testoviron, two forms of testosterone. Spectrum was able to purchase both in a matter of minutes while a pharmacy worker was busy filling prescriptions behind the counter.
The ease of acquiring performance-enhancing drugs in Pattaya has prompted some to stockpile the products and send them home to be used illegally. In Australia, importing steroids without a prescription is considered a serious drug offence and recent revelations have seen professional sports teams including Essendon in the AFL and Cronulla Sharks in the NRL penalised for using banned substances. Those caught in possession are fined and jailed. Steroids Thailand