of course steroids can be bad if used poorly......you can get bitch tits and thinning hair/acne......you can do stuff to make sure you dont get any of that though.....most of us are not staying on cycles for over 15-20 weeks which IMO is bad......you're natty levels will have a hard time recovering w/ really long cycles......but but if you do cycles 10-15 weeks, with the same time off, and you following instructions, you really have nothing to worry about. So to answer you question, it really depends on how you are taking them, but yes, doctors are blowing everything outta proportion. Only reason they're really illegal is because of sports. You can go to the doctor and say "my elbow hurts" and boom, you'll get some vicodin, which can be very dangerous if you're eatting them like candy.