because of hysteria over athlete steroid use, said Troy Dickerson of Lifelink in Grover Beach, Calif., who said he sells up to 10,000 bottles of andro annually and has never had a health complaint. Andro's use soared after McGwire said he used it in 1998, the year he hit a record-setting 70 home runs for the St. Louis Cardinals. He later said he was quitting andro, citing concern that children copied his use of the pills. Andro's use has since plummeted, from $55 million in 2001 to $15 million last year, according to the Nutrition Business Journal. But sales of supplement steroid precursors have almost doubled, to $125 million last year. Mike in Brazil So why did FDA only now crack down on andro, and not its competitors? The government is investigating a list of supplements and could take additional action, said Health and Human Services (news - web sites) Secretary Tommy Thompson. But it took several years to clarify andro's risks, McClellan added. Andro remains popular with kids, said Rep. John Sweeney, R-NY, citing interest among his own children's friends. One government survey found one in 50 high school sophomores and one in 40 seniors had used andro in 2001, the latest data available. 8th street latinas Anabolic steroids, which build muscle, are controlled substances, available only under certain circumstances with a prescription. Andro — because it is a precursor, not the steroid itself — has long been marketed as a dietary supplement. U.S. law lets supplements sell with little oversight. But FDA cited a seldom-used provision of that law: Supplement ingredients that weren't on the market before 1994, when the law was passed, must provide FDA reasonable assurance that they'll be safe before selling. Andro's makers never did that, McClellan said — and if they try now, it's doubtful FDA would grant clearance. "In short, it's not a legal product," agreed Hatch, who wrote the supplements law.