With high-school athletes competing to land college scholarships, coaches are concerned that they may turn to the nutritional supplement to get stronger and faster. "Unfortunately, I think it's going to entice kids more than deter them," said Riordan High School football coach Frank Oross.

For several years, coaches and school administrators have been dealing with an increase in steroid use among high-school students. According to health experts, steroid use among teens can lead to organ damage, stunted growth, infertility, hair loss, and severe acne.

Renowned orthopedist Dr. James Andrews said common injuries among high-school athletes, such as tendon ruptures and patellar tendonitis, could also be linked to steroids and supplements.

In the BALCO investigation, prominent athletes have been subpoenaed to testify about business they conducted with the company. Among them are Barry Bonds, Jason Giambi, Bill Romanowski, and Kelli White.

In addition, several Olympic track and field stars have tested positive for the designer steroid tetrahydrogestrinone (THG), distributed by BALCO.

Roger Blake, assistant executive director of the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF), is concerned about the impact the investigation may have on high-school athletes.

"It scares the heck out of everybody," Blake said. "What our high-school athletes see, they're going to mimic. And if they see professional athletes using performance-enhancing drugs, they're going to go, 'Why not? I can do the same thing.'"

The 2002 Monitoring the Future Study by researchers at the University of Michigan found that nationwide steroid use among teenagers was 4.0 percent, up from 2.5 percent two years earlier.

Because of the $60 to $80 per-test cost involved, public high schools in California cannot afford to test athletes for steroid use.

"You have parents and coaches with these unrealistic expectations," said Dr. Charles Yesalis, a Penn State professor of health and human development. "They think the kid is better than he really is, and that trickles down. That attitude facilitates performance-enhancing drug use."

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