The beef industry is one that is steeped in destructive practices, and artificial growth hormones are just one of the many sources of problems. If these hormones can leak into streams and affect fish as a side effect, imagine how they affect consumers of red meat and cow's milk! I believe that science will ultimately link prostate cancer and other forms of cancer to the intake of hormones through beef and milk. Remember: many of these hormones are banned throughout the world (Canada, the U.K., etc.) but are allowed in the U.S. only because profits took precedence over consumer health.
The beef industry has problems far beyond growth hormones, of course: mad cow is now ravaging the industry. As many as 35 countries have banned the import of U.S. beef, and U.S. consumers are turning to alternative choices for dietary protein. Mad cow is no accident: it is the result of sickening practices in the beef industry, such as feeding chicken litter to cows, grinding up dead, diseased cows and feeding them to other cows, and the rampant use of antibiotics across cattle populations.
I have nothing good to say about the mainstream U.S. beef industry. It is cruel, it is unclean, and if I may use the term, it is unholy. It has even been described as a holocaust against animals. Visit PETA for more information, or check out The Meatrix.