Every consumer should be wary of every product that they take to ensure that it will not pose health risks for them. Health conscious people turn to supplements to enhance their physique and stay fit. But not all products available in the market can fulfill that need. There are even legal supplement products which may produce undesirable results. What more if these products came from illegal sources? Since the supplements industry is a multi-billion business, there are a lot of people who wants to venture into this business, through legal or illegal means. An example is the proliferation of underground laboratories for anabolic steroids. The demand for these products is not waning even with strict government regulations.

People who are not cautious about the possible dangerous effects of these products are the usual target of illegal manufacturers. They also go after individuals who want to feel the immediate effects of steroids. Conniving with gym owners or health professionals was also used as a strategy to market these products. Authorities must work double time to ensure that these products will not reach the public. The FDA, DEA and other enforcement agencies should work hand in hand to be more effective in monitoring and controlling the illegal manufacture of anabolic steroids and other performance enhancing drugs. The FDA for example issued warning letters to supplement companies manufacturing dietary supplements tainted with steroids or with steroid-like contents. They also conducted raids on some health and nutritional stores selling products which may endanger the general public. But there are some experts saying that these actions are not enough.

Recently, the police were able to arrest 3 people involved in illegal manufacture and distribution of anabolic steroids in El Dorado Hills in California. An agent of the DEA said that the underground steroid lab is considerably large. “In terms of underground steroid labs, this was a huge seizure for this area,” said Assistant Special Agent in Charge Gordon Taylor of the Drug Enforcement Administration. “The illegal use of anabolic steroids can be a dangerous practice, especially for young people. This danger is only compounded when drug rings manufacture steroids in unsanitary, unsterilized underground labs like we found in this case,” he added.

According to the report of the El Dorado Hills Telegraph, the steroid laboratory was located in an unsanitary utility room where steroid powders and large containers of liquid steroids were found. The authorities also found different packaging materials, vials, capsules and pre-printed steroid vial labels. The authorities estimated the value of approximately 500 vials and 1,850 capsules of anabolic steroids at $118,000.

Sheriff Jeff Neves of El Dorado County, said the arrests would not only make their neighborhood safer but at the same time make the distribution of anabolic steroids more difficult in El Dorado County. “I am proud of the cooperation between the Sheriff’s Office and the DEA in bringing this steroid ring to an end,” he added.

However, it took the authorities 10 months before they finally got the culprits. During the undercover operation, an agent was able to purchase from the respondent two vials of anabolic steroids at a parking lot in El Dorado Hills. With the span of time before the arrest, huge amount of anabolic steroids may have been distributed in the area. Users are at risk for using steroid from this underground steroid laboratory.