Steroids and other performance enhancers are mostly used in the sporting sector. Now, according to the Swiss government, more and more amateurs are also turning into the drugs to help them build muscles. Swiss custom officials and sniffing dogs have seen a doubling rise in the number of confiscated class-A drugs, fake good and contraband over the past year.

According to Swiss Medic, the country’s supervisory authority for therapeutic products, the main reason for the increasing use of anabolic steroids is due to the online sites that offer easy access in steroid purchase. Most of the performance-enhancing drugs that have been confiscated are in injectable form, but leading the list of the most confiscated are remedies for erectile dysfunction. In Switzerland, the use of steroids in medical and therapeutic doses are legal. The government even allows the use of muscle building substances, depending on the active ingredient and as long as it is in allowed amount. If you get caught importing anabolic steroids above the allowed amount, you will be charged a hefty sum of 400 francs.

Steroids may be of great help in building muscle mass but some of its side effects include hair loss, acne, psychological instability and heart or liver damage.

According to Radio Switzerland:

Swiss customs officials have seen a rise in the amount of anabolic steroids being confiscated—the number doubled from 2007 to 2008. And that spike, according to the government, is because more amateurs in Switzerland are turning to the drugs to build muscle and better their sports performance. Reporter Alex Helmick has the story.

In fact, customs officers and sniffer dogs go through the mail at the Swiss postal service’s sorting centre in Mülligen, near Zurich, every day to seek out drugs, fake goods and other contraband. So far this year, they’ve sniffed out 130 packages containing class-A drugs and confiscated around 60 fake identity documents. WRS’s Catherine Allen called on Swiss customs officer Max Gerber to find out more about their daily work—and some of the more unusual contraband that passes through.

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