When people think of sports, people might wonder if the greatest people in sports used performance-enhancing drugs.
Steroids build mass and strength and increase tissue to boost endurance (Szumski 11). Athletes use drugs in sports to build mass and strengthen a person’s bones, increase oxygen intake, work tissues, help pain, stimulate a persons body, reduce a person weight, and to hide the fact that a person is using other drugs (Szumski 12). Things that are considered steroids or an illegal body building drugs are, Anabolic Steroids, Beta-2 agonists, human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) , luteinizing hormone (LH), Human Growth Hormone (HGH), Insulin-like growth factors, and insulin (Szumski 13).
There are also many types of Anabolic steroids, testosterone, dihydrotestosterone, androstenedione, dehydroean drosterone, clostebol, and nandrolone (Szumski 13). The anabolic steroids other name can be “dual personality drug” because it makes a person basically bi-polar (Dolan 23). Weight lifters were some of the first athletes to use steroids, but there was still no guarantee it would work (Dolan 25). Sports players suffer career crushing blows that the person uses performance-enhancing drugs to get back in the game (Dolan 55). Amphetamines could be obtained legitimately to outside sources including the black market (Dolan 58).
Growth hormone is in all sports, it is banned by the anti-doping agency, athletes have to do a drug test, to prove that a person is not doing drugs (Harvard Kennedy School). Creatine is a supplement, it is used to help recovery after workout, and it also helps increase the mass of muscles (Mayo Clinic). A steroid precursor is something the body converts to anabolic steroids (Mayo Clinic). There were polls taken,...
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...mful effects, these effects can end somone’s life. These drugs are really bad, and hope that people do not use them. Therefore do not ever use performance-enhancing drugs.
Works Cited
Harvard Kennedy School. “Performance-enhancing drugs in athletics”9 May. 2013. Web. 5 May. 2014
Mayo Clinic. “Tween and Teen Health” 22 Aug. 2013. Web. 5 May 2014
Sports Illustrated. “How we got here: A timeline of performance-enhancing drugs in sports” 11 Mar. 2008. Web. 5 May 2014.
Performance-Enhancing Drugs. Farmington Hills, Mi: Bonnie Szumski, 2003. Print.
Dolan, Edward F. Drugs in Sports New York: Franklin Watts, 1986. Print.
Grant, Scott. “Results the effects of performance enhancing drug use in sports on American society.” Articals.elitefts.com/trainin-articals/results-the-effect-of-performance-enhancing-drug-use-in-sports-on-american-society. 23 Jan 2013. Web. 5 May. 2014
Anabolic steroids have become an epidemic amongst athletes since the 1950's when a Swiss company by the name of Ciba Pharmaceuticals introduced what was to become the most popular anabolic drug for athletes called methandrostenolone. “By this time, the era of the steroid athlete was well underway and world records were being shattered and re-shattered with remarkable regularity.” (Oklobdzija & Weyrauch, 1989, para 3) From then on, there have been many cases throughout professional sports where athletes are reported or caught using anabolic steroids.
Those who believe the use of anabolic steroids should be allowed in professional sports have numerous arguments for those in opposition. Professional sports leagues have tried to stop the use of steroids by drug testing players and punishing those who do not pass. A number of major athletes, such as Lance Armstrong, have been stripped of their athletic accolades due to discoveries of drug use. Despite witnessing the fall of great competitors due to “doping,” people continue to use. Because of unsuccessful attempts at banning the drug, many people believe “it may be time to head in the other direction: legalize performance enhancers” (Smith 1). No matter how many rules and regulations are made against the use of steroids, athletes will continue to abuse the drug in order to get ...
The problems with performance enhancing drugs are that they give the user unfair advantages over other athletes and come with many health risks such as baldness. Steroid use can result in very substantial legal consequences and can ruin the user’s reputation. There are many alternatives to steroids but not all of them are safe. Different organizations have different rules on steroids, but in most cases, the user can get suspended, fined, or even both. Various types of steroids can have various short-term or long-term side effects. There are several types of steroids, the most popular ones being anabolic steroids. Historically, steroids have been around for many years, but the debate surrounding them started recently, more specifically a few decades ago. An important term to know is anabolic steroids which are made to work with the user’s muscle mass. Another term to know is clarified by Ida Walker, author of the book, Steroids: Pumped Up and Dangerous, published by Mason Crest Publishers in 2008, defines, peliosis hepatis is a rare condition in which cysts filled with blood form in the liver, if the cysts were to pop then internal bleeding would occur. A positive argument about steroids is stated by Adrianne Blue, author of the essay, “Performance Enhancing Drugs Should Be Legal,” published in the book Athletes and Drug Use, published in 2009, disputes, “Blue concludes that legalizing performance- enhancing drugs can protect athletes from dangerously abusing them.” The utilization of performance enhancing drugs has left a giant scar on sports and has compromised the achievements of many athletes; therefore, they are transforming the sports world into a drug filled world.
In today’s society in athletics, muscle mass and strength seem more important than in years past. It is believed that many athletes use anabolic steroids to increase their muscle mass and also their strength. Anabolic steroids are a group of synthetic hormones that promote the storage of proteins and the growth of tissue, sometimes used by athletes to increase muscle size and strength. Before the mid 1970’s the use of anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS) was used mainly by highly trained athletes especially those involved in weight training. Since then other athletes including those involved in recreational sports and non-competitive sports have started using the steroids. Steroids are also being used by many school age children especially those involved in sports in the schools. Everyone wants to be bigger, stronger, and faster and will do almost anything to gain this.
The use of illegal substances in sports is a trendy topic in today’s society. In the last few years a copious amount of players have been under the spotlight of substance abuse, which led to a punishment for their actions. Andrew Sullivan wrote an article in the year 2004 called “In a Drugged-up Nation, the Steroid Sports Star is King”, in which he illustrates how these “pharmaceuticals” have revolutionized sports around the world but mostly in America. These drugs have had a large influence in the overall performance of the players, even if it the use of drugs is “often denied or simply overlooked”(Sullivan 1), it will lead to a lack of judgment in what is right and what is wrong.
To begin with, there are two main types of steroids: adrenal steroids and sex steroids. Because of the great therapeutic value of adrenal steroids, many synthetic steroids have been made; some more potent than the natural hormones. Synthetic steroids are anti-inflammatory drugs, oral contraceptives. A synthetic adrenal steroid is used to treat adrenal insufficiency. Anabolic steroids are also synthetic and they mimic the male hormone testosterone. Anabolic steroids are most often abused by athletes and can have serious side effects when taken improperly (Silverstein, p.14). The term "anabolic " means "to build tissue"; therefore, anabolic steroids tend to increase constructive me...
Anabolic steroids are a group of muscle building chemicals, which are synthetic versions of the male hormone, testosterone. Developed in the 1930’s, they were prescribed to aid in muscle tissue repair by those who had undergone surgery or had degenerative diseases. Now the patients do not only use them but also athletes. Starting in the 1940’s steroids were introduced into sports. Steroids were one of the main reasons that Russia’s 1952 Olympic weightlifting team came out with pile of medals. With these results other nations thought their competitors should have the same advantage, and the use of steroids spread like wildfire.(NIDA pg 2) But now steroids are illegal to use if not prescribed by a physician, and have been banned by nearly all-athletic organizations, both professional and amateur.
The truth is, they do produce side effects and irregular muscle growth. By banning the use of performance enhancing drugs, just like steroids, sports competition will have a much healthier and fairer environment to participate in. Performance Enhancing Drugs in Sports The use of steroids and performance-enhancing drugs is a common trend that is currently fascinating athletes all over the world. Athletes who are using these drugs are damaging the sport and harming their bodies at the same time.
Anabolic steroids are drugs containing, or hormone-like substances, that are used to increase strength and promote muscle growth. They were first developed in the 1930s in Europe to treat undernourished patients and to promote healing after surgery. Competitive weightlifters began using steroids in the 1950s as a way to increase their athletic performance. Use gradually spread throughout the world among athletes in other has been estimated that at least one in 15 male high school seniors in the United States--more than a half-million boys--has used steroids. Some are athletes attempting to increase their strength and size; others are simply youths attempting to speed up their growth to keep pace with their peers. In some countries, anabolic steroids are available over the counter. In the United States, a doctor's prescription is necessary.
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 hop es 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. This is why the search is now on to find some legal means of enhancing athletic per formance.
“Performance Enhancing Drugs: Know the Risks.” Mayo Clinic. Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research, 12 Dec. 2012. Web. 19 June 2013
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.
Another dangerous substance is anabolic steroids. People use anabolic steroids as an illegal way to enhance their testosterone levels within their body as well as increase their muscle mass. Every time someone uses anabolic steroids it is considered abuse because using anabolic steroids is never recommended to you by any officials. Side effects of the drug can result in paranoid jealousy, extreme irritability, delusions, and impaired judgment from a large ego. (Steroids) Long term effects include euphoria, confusion, sleeping disorders, pathological anxiety, paranoia, and hallucinations.
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