AROUND 1500 people in Scotland have been hospitalised after taking performance or image enhancing drugs in the past four years, according to new figures.

Figures revealed there were 1424 admissions since 2010 for substances like anabolic steroids and caffeine stimulants.

Last year alone, 373 were admitted for using PIEDs - with health chiefs saying around one in 10 people seeking help for addiction do so for such substances.

The figures were obtained by the Scottish Conservatives.

It is believed the true admissions figure is likely to be higher as major health boards like NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde and NHS Lothian did not hold the relevant information.

Scottish Conservative health spokesman Jackson Carlaw said: "We are seeing a series of new challenges being posed to the NHS by not only legal highs, but drugs used to enhance image and performance.

"The numbers involved are just the tip of the iceberg, there's clearly a much larger problem bubbling away underneath.

"We can't afford to be blindsided by this, because so much of our attention is dominated by what we would regard as traditional problem drug users.

"It's important that both performance and image enhancing drugs and legal highs form a key part of any future drugs strategy in Scotland.

"As a snapshot, this is extremely concerning, and I hope we can take action to see these numbers drop in future years."

Of the boards which did respond, NHS Fife had the most admissions with 118 last year, followed by NHS Ayrshire and Arran with 92.

Many of those admitted were under the age of 18, while in NHS Grampian, there were instances of patients being admitted following "abuse of herbal of folk remedies".