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Drugs in sport current issues
Drugs in sport current issues
Drugs in sport current issues
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Research Project Outcome
Topic Question: What are the effects of performance enhancing drugs and why are they popular amongst athletes?
Performance-enhancing drugs are commonly used amongst athletes who compete in sports. These substances enhance the performance of the user, which makes them to be stronger, faster and allows them recover from training quicker than an average person. These drugs are illegal in competitive sports and are considered cheating by many people. There have been number incidents in the past and recently where athletes have been caught using these prohibited substances and has suffered consequences. This report is a collation of all the information gathered from websites, journals, news articles, documentaries, movies, interviews and surveys, which discuss the risks involved when taking these drugs, and the reason why athletes take these drugs, whether they take it for the sole purpose of winning, wealth or fame.
What are performance-enhancing drugs? How do they work?
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Testosterone has two main effects on the body, Anabolic and Androgenic, where Anabolic promote for muscle growth and Androgenic are responsible for male traits.3 Some athletes take straight testosterone to boost their performance, while anabolic steroids are synthetic modifications of testosterone. These substances can be taken in form of tablets or can be injected directly into the muscles.4 Anabolic Steroids can be taken in three different ways to maximise the effect of the drug. Cycling, Stacking and Pyramiding are different styles of taking these drugs, where Cycling involves taking doses of the drug for a period of time, stopping for a while and restarting the process again. Stacking involves combining two or more different types of steroids and Pyramiding is when the user gradually increases the dose
Professional athletes, throughout history, have been exalted for their outstanding abilities and achievements in sports. Unfortunately, many athletes have turned to anabolic steroids in order to give them an edge, a boost their athletic performance. Starting with the 1954 World Weightlifting Championships, where the Soviets unexpectedly dominated their lifting classes with the use of steroids, it has become increasingly popular among athletes to cheat with the help of this drug. Although the appeal to steroid use is evident when observing how it increases someone’s athletic abilities, many users fail to consider the detrimental side effects of the drug. Also, in my opinion, athletes should be expected to perform based upon their natural abilities, opposed to abilities enhanced by anabolic steroids. Ultimately, anabolic steroids should continue to be illegal in professional sports due to their major health risks and the unfair advantage they serve players.
The topic for my stakeholder research paper is performance enhancing drugs. My research is the affects of performance enhancing drugs on athletes and how it affects society. The stakeholders for the research paper are the professional athlete, the college athlete, governing bodies and the fan. The effects of drug use on the professional athlete can cost them their career and also their lives. The college athlete wants to become the fastest or the biggest and nevertheless don’t view performance enhancing drugs as dangerous. Sports governing bodies in the United States have taken action towards controlling the use of performance enhancing drugs. However there is the fan that will still idolize the top athletes even though they use performance enhancing drugs.
Jost, Kenneth. "Performance-Enhancing Drugs: An Overview." Performance Enhancing Drugs. Ed. Louise Gerdes. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2008. At Issue. Rpt. from "Sports and Drugs." CQ Researcher 14 (23 July 2004): 616-622. Gale Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 31 Jan. 2014.
One of the many questions that need’s to be answered is why do football players use performance-enhancing drugs. Rachel Olander who is a resource special...
Abstract: Since the beginning of sports competition, athletes have always looked for some kind of edge over their competitors. They will do whatever it takes to be one of the elite, and that includes injecting supplements into their bodies to make them bigger, stronger, and faster. Steroid use is probably one of the most common drug misuses in sports competition. Athletes found that with anabolic steroids, one could become a better athlete twice as fast. Not until 1975 was the drug first banned from Olympic competition because of the health risks it produced.
Testosterone is a naturally occurring hormone in our bodies. Anabolic or androgenic steroids are synthetic variants of testosterone (James 7). Testosterone is good for your body when produced at normal levels. In males, it helps promote protein-building, production of sperm. It also has metabolic effects on muscle, bone, and skin (Goldman 72). Anabolic steroid’s main purpose isn’t to gain muscle they are used as medicine. They help with types of anemia, a few types of breast cancers, endometriosis, osteoporosis, and hereditary angioedema (NIDA 2). But anabolic steroids are often taken at 10 to 100 times the natural levels by athletes looking to be their best (Yesalis xxv).
Anabolic steroids are all derivatives of the male sexual hormone testosterone. With the use of steroids, a person will receive two types of effects from the use.
Over one million American seek short cuts to larger muscles and greater endurance with anabolic steroids and other performance enhancing drugs. Steroids are drugs that act like chemical in the body. Most steroids are transformed into testosterone when they enter the body. Testosterone is a male growth hormone. While user may gain short-term results, they are seriously shortchanging their health (Kalawalski 13-15).
Athletes are always searching for ways to enhance their performance. Recently, beginning in the 1950s, that search has included the use of illegal substances like steroids and growth hormones. Illegal substances have been used widely by athletes in hopes of achieving the desired Olympic gold medal or multi-million dollar contract. Some nations, for example the late East Germany in the 1970s and 1980s, have mandated the use of steroids by their athletes. The downside of using those illegal substances is that because they are illegal, getting caught using them can lead to losing that coveted gold medal, a lifetime ban from sports, and a total loss of honor and dignity.
“Performance Enhancing Drugs: Know the Risks.” Mayo Clinic. Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research, 12 Dec. 2012. Web. 19 June 2013
Steroids increase the rate of protein synthesis within the cells. Athletes use anabolic steroids; Anabolic steroids resemble androgenic hormones such as testosterone (2). These steroids enhance weight gain, speed, power, and aggressiveness. The intake of anabolic steroids induces an increase in muscle size by both hypertrophy and the formation of new muscle fibers (1). Anabolic steroids have an androgenic and anabolic effects, which are essentially the male hormone testosterone. Androgenic eff...
Numerous athletes already use performance-enhancing drugs. “Everyone’s enhancing, it’s a reality that we should embrace.” (Allenby B.4) Athletes would be on the same playing field if everyone used some sort of PED. A majority of athletes use some sort of PED to help them improve. In South Florida, even high school athletes are using these drugs and their parents are encouraging it. “It’s about making sure that your child has every advantage whether it is legal or illegal.” (Shipley A.1) A variety of athletes a...
06 Jan. 2014. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/9780470510544.ch70/summary>. Haugen, Kjetil K. "Why We Shouldn’t Allow Performance Enhancing Drugs in Sport." Academia.edu. Academia.edu, 1 Apr. 2011.
Bello. Robert J. "Faster, Higher, and Stronger: Why athletes should have the choice to use performance-enhancing drugs" 2008, ExpressO
Overall it is clear that the need to use performance enhancing drugs is outweighed by the consequences and issues caused by performance enhancing drugs. Sporting events such as the world cup, the Olympics or the World Series make young children feel inspired and encouraged about what they could achieve through dedication and hard work. I feel it is important for the sporting industry as well as the athletes to return respectability to the sport. By