Father: Steroids caused son's suicide

THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS
PLANO, Texas -- Taylor Hooton's smiling face filled the projector screen when his father, Don, took the stage in the Plano West Senior High School auditorium.
Taylor, his father told an audience of approximately 600 parents, coaches and students on that weeknight in September, was a handsome, pleasant boy with a steady girlfriend, a high SAT score and a spot on the Plano West varsity baseball roster.
Taylor Hooton committed suicide July 15 at the age of 17, just weeks before he started his senior year.
"Why would such a nice young man with his whole life in front of him take such an irrational step?" Don Hooton asked. "I am convinced that the answer to this question can be found in one word -- steroids."
Steroids seminar
Don Hooton is determined to make sure his son did not die in vain. Hooton, with Dr. Larry Gibbons of the Cooper Clinic in Dallas, were at Plano West to present a 90-minute steroids seminar.
As are many adolescents, Taylor was obsessed with improving his appearance and athletic ability.
Don Hooton said he and his wife became suspicious about steroid use because Taylor experienced rapid weight gain and extreme mood swings and developed acne on his back.
Don said Taylor denied using steroids when first confronted in late winter, but confessed a couple of weeks later. He said his son had started a cycle of anabolic steroids approximately six to eight months before his death.
"Parents, I want you to imagine for a moment how horrifying it was to go through his room after the funeral and find his stash of needles and syringes," Hooton said. "For some of you in this audience, this horrifying activity is going on in your homes right now."
Negative effects
The seminar detailed the negative effects of steroid use -- particularly in adolescent -- and the availability of the illegal substances at gyms, from local drug dealers and via the Internet.
According to Gibbons, the median age of initiation to steroids is 15. He cited a study that determined that 2 to 3 percent of high school students used steroids in the 1990s. He added that the percentage of steroid users among athletes is probably significantly higher.