In the quest to become leaner, faster and stronger, young children across the country are looking for ways to become the next LeBron James, Alex Rodriguez or Serena Williams. The unfortunate consequence of such desire is that young athletes often will do whatever it takes to see their name in lights and find success in the athletics arena -- no matter how damaging their behavior is to their health and future.

After Mark McGwire admitted to using androstenedione the year he broke the single-season home-run record, andro became aspiring athletes' ticket to success as sales of the supplement soared. Under the fallacy that such performance-enhancing drugs and supplements are critical to attaining their goals, young athletes began turning at alarming rates to steroid precursors such as the andros (androstenedione and androstenediol) and the 19-nors (19-norandrostenedioene and 19-norandrostenediol) as their quick fix to differentiate themselves from their competitors.

It is discouraging to hear of youth in high school and even middle school purchasing steroid precursors disguised as "dietary supplements" at local nutrition stores because they do not fully understand they are buying drugs that have the same effects and dangers as steroids. Once ingested, steroid precursors metabolize in the body into anabolic -- or illegal -- steroids, which can lead to liver tumors, heart disease, capped bone growth and violent behavior. Even more alarming, the side effects of performance-enhancing drugs pose an even greater risk for young people than they do for their adult role models. Non-athletes, too, are reaching for steroid precursors to build a perfect body. This growing trend should concern coaches, parents and athletes everywhere.

To ensure youths are protected against steroid precursors, in October 2002, Rep. John Sweeney (R-New York) and I introduced legislation, H.R. 207, The Anabolic Steroid Precursor Control and Health Education Act. The legislation would list steroid precursors as controlled substances, thereby making over-the-counter sales of these substances illegal and only allowing patients with a doctor's prescription to use them. The manufacturers of steroid precursors thus would be prohibited from aggressively marketing dangerous steroid precursors and prevent them from exploiting teenagers, athletes and unsuspecting consumers by selling them untested, unregulated steroid equivalents.

One group in particular that acknowledges steroid precursors as dangerous substances is the Coalition for Anabolic Steroid Precursor and Ephedra Regulation (CASPER), which was founded initially to support H.R. 207. CASPER is composed of the nation's leading medical, public health and sport organizations such as the NCAA, the United States Anti-Doping Agency, the USOC and the NFL, among others.

With the recent controversy created by the use of steroids among high-profile Olympic and professional athletes, the problem of steroid use has gained new national attention. I hope current criminal investigations and the refusal among several Major League Baseball players to agree to regular drug testing will finally prompt Congress to take action on this important issue. On March 1, Rep. Sweeney and I joined House Judiciary Chair James Sensenbrenner (R-Wisconsin) and Ranking Member John Conyers (D-Michigan) in introducing H.R. 3866, the Anabolic Steroid Control Act of 2004. This legislation is similar to H.R. 207 but goes further to penalize those who distribute steroids within 1,000 feet of a sports arena.

H.R. 3866 would update the list of illegal dangerous substances by modifying the current definition of an anabolic steroid to include tetrahydrogestrinone (THG), the andros and specific related chemicals. The legislation doubles penalties for anabolic steroid offenses near sports facilities and requires a review of federal sentencing guidelines with respect to offenses involving anabolic steroids.

I am pleased we now have bipartisan support from the House Judiciary Committee, which should help facilitate the advancement of this legislation in the House. In fact, on March 31, the House Judiciary Committee passed H.R. 3866; the legislation now moves to the House Energy and Commerce Committee for consideration. Sens. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Joseph R. Biden (D-Delaware) have been actively pushing similar legislation in the Senate. Additionally, in the State of the Union Address this past January, President Bush called on America's sports industry to end the use of performance-enhancing drugs.

If action is not taken to list steroid precursors as controlled substances, manufacturers of these drugs will continue their ongoing masquerade of marketing drugs as anabolic-equivalent "dietary supplements" that promise to magically build muscle. Young people are impressionable and are easily swayed by dazzling ads if the facts are hidden. The truth, which is being kept from youth across the country who purchase bottles of the latest "wonder pill," is that the andros and other performance-enhancing drugs are steroid precursors that harm them in the same ways steroids destroy one's health.

If the NCAA, NFL and the USOC recognize the health risks associated with steroid precursors by rendering athletes who use such drugs ineligible for competition, why are we ignoring America's high-school and middle-school-aged youth -- a group that needs our help the most? Our young athletes deserve better and need to understand the use of steroid precursors will only jeopardize their health and set them on the fast track to danger.

Tom Osborne represents Nebraska's 3rd District in the United States House of Representatives. He previously coached football at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln.