Steroids Essay Research Paper The PerformanceEnhancing Supplement

Steroids Essay, Research Paper

The Performance-Enhancing Supplement Controversy

The use of performance-enhancing supplements among athletes should be banned

from all athletic sports and competition, in that it provides an unfair

advantage over other athletes trying to excel naturally. Performance-enhancing

drugs are a controversial topic in today?s society, which are currently under

debate.

Performance-enhancing drugs are substances, which are used to stimulate

certain areas of the body to make an athlete excel in a certain event. A

performance enhancing supplement is defined by Edward Dolan in his book Drugs

and Sports as ?any substance or method used to enhance athletic performance?.

The most common form of performance-enhancing supplements are called steroids.

According to Hank Nuwer in his book Steroids, steroids are anabolic drugs that

build growth hormones that include the androgens (male sex hormones) principally

testosterone and estrogen and progestogens (female sex hormones). Steroids were

first developed for medical purposes. Steroids are compounds that are necessary

for the well being of many living creatures, including human beings. These

include sex hormones, bile acids, and cholesterol (Nuwer 17). Steroids are used

in the medical field to treat many ailments, and this use is not the use, which

is currently under controversy. As steroids entered the mainstream after their

historic introduction in the 1930?s to help patients malnourished due to the

war and disease, they evolved into something understood by more than the

prime-time college or Olympic-bound athlete as John Papanke reports in Sports

Illustrated. The medical uses of steroids are to treat anemia, asthma, anorexia,

burns, intestinal disorders, and much more (Nuwer 15). These types of steroids

are called cortical steroids.

In addition to the medical use, another purpose of steroids and

performance-enhancing drugs are that they are used by athletes to gain an unfair

advantage over their competitors, or use them to keep up with the competition

since so many athletes are using these types of drugs. These desired effects

range from increasing muscle size and strength, to decreasing fatigue, providing

quick temporary weight gain, inhibiting growth, and even simple pain relief (Lupica

24). Performance-enhancing drugs are taken in a variety of different ways. The

two most common ways these drugs are taken, are orally in a pill form, or

injected into the body with a needle. The most common kind of

performance-enhancing drugs are Nelvar, Deca-Durabolin, Anavar, Stanzolol,

Dianabol and Anadrol-50 (Nuwer 19). These drugs are much more dangerous then

legal performance enhancing drugs because the athletes take more than the

recommended doses that would be prescribed by a doctor. Athletes feel that the

more pills or injections they take the stronger, faster, and the better they

will perform when competing, but this is not always true.

The effects of steroids on the human body are well recorded, they could

permanently damage the heart and liver, stunt growth and change sexual

characteristics (Green 81). Performance-enhancing drugs and steroids have been

proven to be harmful to ones health according to many studies. These studies

have shown that steroids have been a major factor in causing liver damage,

cardiomyopathy (the wearing out of the heart), jaundice, peliosis hepatis (blood

filled cysts that form in the liver), and adverse affects on both the

cardiovascular system and on the reproductive system (Meer 97) other side

affects which are shared by both sexes which include high blood pressure, water

retention, depression, cholesterol problems, septic shock, diarrhea, continuous

bad breath, heart disease, yellowing of the eyes or skin (due to liver

problems), insomnia, fetal damage for pregnant women, aggressive behavior, and

of course, death (Bamberger 61). Yet, women and men are still willing to risk

their health and their lives in order to win and stay competitive in the world

of sports. These products have also been linked to causing some forms of cancer.

Due to these hazards, many performance-enhancing drugs have been banned in

certain national and international sports, such as the NFL, NBA, ABA, WNBA, CFL,

AFL and the Olympics (61). Although these performance-enhancing supplements are

banned, this does not mean that athletes participating in these sports do not

take them, however. Professional athletic sports are a major area in which

performance-enhancing drugs are used. Although some people use them just to try

to make themselves look bigger and better, most people use them to help keep up

with the competition in athletic events. The use of performance-enhancing

supplements and drugs gives the user an unfair advantage over their competition

through achieving strength in a shorter amount of time. The main purpose of

performance-enhancing supplements is to get bigger and better faster.

Unfortunately, it is not just the major athletes in pro sports and in the

Olympics who use these drugs.

Performance-enhancing drugs are used in all levels of competition today,

whether it is in the Olympics, in pro sports, in colleges, or even in high

schools. In our society today we have seen an increase in the amount of high

school athletes using performance-enhancing supplements for the sole purpose of

achieving victory. ?Steroids use permeates at all levels of sports,

threatening the futures of hundreds of thousands of teenagers? (Blair 17). The

issue concerning teens and performance-enhancing drugs is a rapidly growing one.

According to Nuwer in his book Steroids, almost 66% of male high school seniors

have used anabolic steroids at least one point during their short lives so far

(65). Also, Nuwer says that …medical researchers believe that between one and

three million youths and adults have taken anabolic steroids in one form or

another specifically to enhance their looks or athletic performances (61).

Athletes hear about professional athletes using the drugs and they see the

difference it makes, but what they don’t know or don’t care about are the

long-term effects. The effects on teenagers are similar to the effects on

adults. If a teenager starts out using at a young age and constantly uses these

supplements, the long term side affects are more likely to be life threatening.

Over eight percent of high scholars use anabolic steroids (Goldwire). Medical

researchers believe that between one and three million youths and adults have

taken anabolic steroids in one form or another specifically to enhance their

physical appearance (Day 45). Another large part of the use of performance

enhancing drugs is in colleges. College athletes take a big risk in using these

types of drugs because they can jeopardize the scholarships that they have

worked so hard to earn. When other athletes use performance enhancing drugs they

can sometimes force a teammate to use. Most of the time, the athletes on the

team distribute the drugs so that it can improve the team. A study found that

seventy percent of users got their drugs from the black market as their drug

source (Wright 52). Athletes see other people taking these drugs who are

excelling in events, breaking records, and bulking up and they feel in order to

compete at the next level they must do the same. Also, many athletes are

misinformed about the dangers of performance-enhancing supplements, but on the

other hand many athletes are aware of the dangers and consequences of taking

these enhancers. In professional sports it is very likely to see performance

enhancing supplements while athletes are in the training stages before their

season begins. ?Performance-enhancing drugs in sports has been known for

generations, the users have generally constituted a small minority of athletes?

(Nardo 24).

The Olympics have been long known for having athletes take steroids. For

years now, certain countries such as the former Country of East Germany and the

former U.S.S.R., as well as China, have had a number of athletes who have taken

performance-enhancing supplements leading up to and during Olympic competition.

Bob Costas reports in a recent Sports Illustrated:

They?re building into a power, but amidst suspicions?especially

concerning their track athletes, female swimmers, and in the weight lifting

arena alone, Chinese women eclipsed every world record in all nine-weight

classes, possibly using performance-enhancing drugs (18).

Currently there is an investigation involving coaches and athletes from

Germany who competed in the 1976 Olympics. As Don Kardong reports in Runners

World: A German investigator is searching for evidence for a criminal trial of

four coaches and two doctors accused of giving steroids and other

performance-enhancing drugs to unsuspecting athletes (72). For years athletes in

the Olympics have been using performance-enhancing supplements that have been

banned from competition, some have not been caught but others haven?t been so

lucky. Ben Johnson was an Olympic runner who represented Canada. In 1988 he was

disqualified from the Olympics after winning the gold medal in the 100-meter

dash because he tested positive for steroids. Ben Johnson was banned from the

Olympics and his great career and reputation was ruined. In an article by

Michael Janofsky for the New York Times stated that medical and legal experts as

well as drug traffickers estimated that at least half of the nine thousand

athletes who compete in the Olympics have used steroids (Nardo 17).

In the past three decades, steroids have been becoming a serious problem more

than ever in the athletic field. ?The use of drugs by athletes has become a

major problem: Not that drug abuse is anything new in sports, it has just picked

up new momentum? (Reilly 41). They’re used in controlling inflammation,

strengthening weakened hearts, preventing conception, and alleviating symptoms

of arthritis and asthma (Cowart 33). Unfortunately research has shown that

steroids have been abused in almost every kind of sport. Although steroids

contribute to a muscular body, usage should remain illegal because they

physically deteriorate and mentally destroy the body. ?Researchers have

noticed changes in brain wave activity in steroid users? (Nardo 24).

Many people are fascinated about steroids because of their ability to build

up the body. Whether taken by injection or the pill it increases strength and

endurance. ?Yes Steroids do lead to the increase of muscle mass, but they also

lead to serious problems in the long run? (Alvin 64). Steroids also help in

the healing process of muscular tissue by first injuring them, then the muscles

heal quicker adding more fiber increasing their bulk (Edelson 138). Steroids are

also very hard to trace because of their water base composition. They can pass

through the body within two days (140). All these benefits of steroids help

athletes become more competitive and increase their chance of becoming a winner.

Of course everybody wants better biceps and triceps but when using steroids to

achieve this goal there is a large price to pay.

Steroids should remain illegal because they physically deteriorate the whole

body system. In women steroids contribute to the growth of facial hair,

enlargements of the clitoris, shrinkage of the uterus, sterility, deepening of

the voice, decrease in breast size and irregularity of the menstrual cycle (Meer

61). In men steroids cause shrinkage of the testicles, decrease in sperm count,

sterility, impotence, prostate enlargement and growth of female breast. In both

men and women hair loss, liver ailments, acne, atherosierosis and cancer are

very common (61). The side effects and reactions from the usage of anabolic

steroids are endless.

Along with the physical problems there are also mental reactions associated

with the usage of steroids. This drug becomes very addictive and damaging to the

mind. It causes violent episodes, which an athlete can claim, a legal insanity

defense as Jonathan Harris reports in his book Drugged Athletes. Research has

also discovered that steroids cause psychotic side effects sometimes referred to

as "roid rage". Along with these are wild aggressive, combative

behavior, depression, listlessness and delusions during and after performance.

Steroids mentally destroy the brain and ability to reason (139). Overall the

usage of steroids is very damaging to the human body. Even though it physically

builds up the body for better performance the risks of usage are enormous.

Steroids physically deteriorate and mentally destroy the body. The usage of

steroids provides an unfair advantage to non-user athletes and therefore should

remain illegal for non-medical use. Drugs in sports can cost a player his or her

scholarship(s) and more seriously, their lives.

Drug testing is a way for sports officials to sort out the users and

severally punish them by throwing them off the team and sometimes expelling them

from school. Performance enhancing drugs have a major impact on sports and

athletes. The sports of today are experiencing more problems with performance

enhancing drugs mainly because of the popularity of them (141). There are

different effects for men and women but all of the problems are very serious.

Gaining that little bit of competitiveness can lead to greater increases in

performance (139). Steroids increase muscle mass and strength which helps

athletes recover quicker from injuries (Bamberger 62). Pat Butcher reports in

the Independent that the most common sports where you would find the anabolic

steroids are in bodybuilding, football, track & field, power events, and

weightlifting. Weight lifting has reported the highest use with

eight-teen-percent, football ten-percent, track and field follows with

four-percent, and baseball with two-percent (Gildea 57). Cycling has also become

a sport where performance drugs are found. Cyclists used the drugs not only in

training but to aid them in their races giving them that extra mile (Dolan 29).

Athletes come up with new and different ways of using drugs to enhance their

performance without getting caught. Athletes use the drugs in cycles. They use

the drug in cycles of six to twelve weeks, followed by three to six months of

being drug-free, this is known as cycling (Meer 61). Athletes start off with a

low dosage and then gradually increase to the highest point of use; this is

called pyramiding (57). Performance enhancing drugs can either be taken orally

or they can be injected. Lyle Alzado explained, "the injected type is

usually injected into the butt so that there are no visible scars" (Harris

91). Oral forms include Winstrol, Anavar, Dianabol, and Andro-50, which athletes

can easily overdose on these types of drugs, which can cause serious heath

injury and/or possibly death (91). Many sports facilities have rules and

regulations against drug use, so the teams and organizations perform drug tests

to eliminate the drug problem in the organizations. I think that the use of drug

tests is a good idea to discharge the players that have a drug abuse problem.

Athletes today have the urge to use the performance enhancing drugs to make them

selves perform at a higher level.

Drug testing of athletes needs to become more effective to clamp down on

supplement use. A recent clinical survey taken on the drug testing policies in

colleges shows that out of two hundred and forty-five schools, only twenty-nine

percent of those schools reported drug testing (Bamberger 63). With all the new

drugs out on the market it is virtually impossible to have tests that can

identify all the different drugs. Athletes have come up with new ways to escape

positive testing. Many of the world-class athletes are able to adjust their

normal dosage so they can escape detection (Reilly 42). According to Hank Nuwer

most of the professional leagues and the NCAA have lists of banned drugs and

testing procedures.

In 1983, the National Basketball Association set its drug policy and it is

now viewed as the most progressive in all sports. The NBA has the right to

administer drug tests to players if it feels there is a need to. In 1988 the NBA

expanded its policy to include random drug testing of the rookies that enter the

league in their first year. In 1990, the NCAA instituted a very stiff policy

regarding steroids. The policy states that division one-football players must

undergo a year-round, mandatory testing for steroids on a random basis (Nuwer

17).

I think that drug testing should be a mandatory event in every college

whether or not it is an invasion of their privacy.

A constant battle has been fought as the International Olympic Committee

struggles to keep drug testing up-to-date and effective. We have come to

associate drug use with a few famous names of fallen heroes, such as Ben

Johnson, but few realize just how widespread drug use is in Olympic sports and

how small a percentage of offenders ever get caught. Recent studies show that

increased testing procedures have done little to deter athletes from relying on

drugs to aid performance and that drug use among Olympic athletes is actually on

the rise (Dolan 29). Performance-enhancing drug use is not limited to the

Olympic games. There are few sports that have not been affected in some way by

drug use. The fact is that there are numerous substances currently available

with potential benefits for athletes in all sports. Most professional sports do

not have rigorous testing procedures for performance enhancing drugs for the

simple facts that there are too many drugs to test for, and the tests are too

easy to beat says Hank Nuwer. This presents the International Olympic Committee

(IOC) with one of it?s greatest challenges; trying to keep it?s drug testing

procedures on par with the technology of today?s pharmacists (63). Don Kardong

reports that the IOC faces major problems when posing these tests:

Is that many of these drugs can be cycled, where the athlete stops taking

doses long enough ahead of time so that no trace of the drug will show up in

urine samples. Another problem is the testing procedure itself. Samples are

tested for a list of known substances, and since new drugs have to be used and

discovered in tests before the IOC is aware of them and can include them on the

list, those athletes who have access to the newest products have the advantage

of using drugs not yet on the banned list.

In addition, many of these athletes according to Jeff Meer have access to the

same high-tech equipment used by the IOC to detect drugs, allowing them to

familiarize themselves with levels of detection and necessary clearance times

for different drugs. This is how many athletes are able to consistently avoid

testing positive, while maintaining a diverse regimen of drugs. In addition to

the difficulties involved in detecting many drugs and illegal procedures, Meer

feels the IOC is faced with the tremendous cost involved in implementing an

all-encompassing testing protocol for all athletes. In his article ?The Drug

Detectives?, Mike Lupica states that the IOC ?is deploying hand-picked

technicians and three $700,000 high-resolution mass spectrometers? to perform

drug tests at a cost of about $800 per test (Lupica 1). Although many recent

studies estimate that roughly 80 percent of all Olympic athletes are currently

using, or have at some time used, some type of performance-enhancing drug, only

a handful have ever been caught and punished according to Hank Nuwer?s studies

(23). This again points to the inefficiency of the IOC?s efforts to diminish

the prevalence of drugs in Olympic competition. Due to the lack of success that

the IOC has had in controlling the rampant spread of drug use, many have asked

why they do not simply go with the popular trends and legalize the use of these

drugs in competition. While most will agree that drug use is now rampant

throughout the Olympics, eliminating the tests and lifting bans would surely

cause the use and abuse of these substances to increase dramatically. If allowed

into the Olympics and other sports, we would surely see a drastic rise in the

black-market. While these bans are forced, athletes who chose to remain natural

and compete without drugs still have a chance. Lifting the bans would

effectively force all serious Olympic hopefuls to take potentially dangerous

drugs. Even with the current bans and testing procedures, ?the nationalistic

driving force for Olympic competition has been athletic performance, and because

of this relationship, sports medicine has become an integral component of the

Olympic movement? (Tipton 2). Another reason why the use of these substances

is controlled is that many substances are potentially dangerous to the health of

the athlete. Athletes have been known to suffer from liver and kidney

dysfunction to various forms of cancer (Rogak 96). Many of the drugs today lack

the extensive testing needed to predict possible side effects and consequences

of long-term use (96). Many would ask why athletes would put themselves at such

tremendous risks to both their health and reputations. To many athletes, these

rewards of stardom are worth any risk. I mean, the common motto in sports is ?win

at all costs?. Americans do not hope for success from their athletes, they

expect and even demand it, and ?exposing the public to the darker side of

elite-level sports could produce negative sentiments towards the Olympic Games?

(Moore 4). It seems that the best plan for the IOC is to continue with their

current procedure, and enforce testing wherever possible. The IOC is sending a

message to athletes, that they are aware of the use of drugs but they will never

condone it, and that they will continue to implement testing in an attempt to

discourage the spread of the use of supplements throughout sports. With

continued funding and research, the IOC may someday develop testing procedures

more advanced than the technology available to the athletes. This would

hopefully eliminate the use performance-enhancing drugs and return professional

sports to a level playing field that was originally intended. Because doctors

and IOC officials know very little about the many types of performance-enhancing

drugs and steroids, they have yet to come up with good ways of detecting them

(61). According to Michael Bamberger and Don Yaeger of Sports Illustrated, the

only ways the IOC can test right now is to use urine tests, a gaschromato graph,

and a high-resolution mass spectrometer, yet there are many ways to bypass all

three of these tests (61). Also, Bamberger and Yaeger note that, the

sophisticated athlete who wants to take drugs has switched to things we can?t

even test for. To be caught is not easy; it only happens, says David Reid,

director of the doping control center, when an athlete is either incredibly

sloppy, incredibly stupid, or both (79). Another way to deceive drug tests is to

use special performance-enhancing drugs, which are made especially for one

person to do one specific duty. These drugs do not have the same chemical parts

as the ones the IOC tests for, and therefore these athletes are not usually

caught. But, these drugs are extremely expensive, sometimes costing the athletes

up to $1,500 a month (Bamberger and Yaeger 64). Also, legal

performance-enhancing drugs such as creatine and androstenedione, which may also

have adverse side affects, and both of which are used by professional baseball

player Mark McGwire, are seen as drugs that help a person to become stronger and

better, without any of the negative results in which some illegal

performance-enhancing drugs and steroids can bring. Young athletes have heard

and seen that established athletes whom they admire use [performance-enhancing

drugs], and they want to follow the same victorious paths of their heroes (Nuwer

12). According to an article written in the October 1998 issue of People Weekly,

…sales of the steroid (androstenedione) are expected to top $100 million this

year, up from $5 million in 1997 (144). Many of these sales will be from younger

athletes competing at the high school level, unaware of the dangers of this

legal substance. According to a USA Today report, …175,000 teenage girls in

the United States have reported taking anabolic steroids at least once within a

year of the time surveyed–a rise of 100% since 1991 (Winner A3). This compares

to the estimated 325,000 teenage boys who currently use steroids (A3).

George Will notes that ?A society?s recreation is charged with moral

significance, sports and a society that takes it seriously would be debased if

it did not strictly for bid things that blur the distinction between the triumph

of character and the triumph of chemistry? (Edelson 139). One action that

these organizations must take in the near future is to spend a lot of time and

money on the study of performance-enhancing drugs and steroids. Thus, they would

be able to come up with better ways to be able to test athletes. These

regulations are needed not only to protect the athletes, but also to bring some

integrity back to the world of sports. These athletes care only about themselves

and do not have enough discipline and desire to train hard, the honest way

without the use of supplements.

Work Cited

Alvin, Virginia, and Robert Silerstein. Steroids: Big Muscles, Big Problems.

New Jersey: Enslow Publishers, Inc., 1992: 64-68.

August, Paul N. Drugs and Women. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1987

Bach, Julie S., ed. Drug Abuse, Opposing View Points. St. Paul: Green haven

Press, 1988.

Bamberger, Michael and Don Yeager. ?Over the Edge with Performance

Enhancing Drug

Use.? Sports Illustrated v86: 14 April 1997: 60-64+

Blair, Tim. ?Just Say Go To The Latest Performance Boosting Drugs

Impossible To

Detect, and For Many Athletes, Impossible To Resist.? Time International

27 July 1998.

Butcher, Pat. ?Live Fast, Die Young.? Independent 23 September 1998.

Cowart, Virginia S. ?Athletes and Steroids- A Bad Bargain?

Saturday Evening Post 11 January 1987: 30-37.

Day, Michael. New Scientist. 10 October 1998: 45-46.

Dolan, Edward F. Drugs In Sports. New York: Sports Chrome East/West, 1986:

27-29.

Edelson, Edward. ?Sports Medicine.? The Encyclopedia of Health. Chelsea

House

Publishers 1988: 135-141.

Gildea, William. ?Life and Drugs-In Sports Fast Lane.? Readers Digest, 9

January

1988: 57-58.

Green, Gary A. Drugs and the Athlete. Delaware: Medical Journal, September

1987.

Harris, Jonathan. Drugged Athletes. New York: For Winds Press, 1987: 90-91+

Hazard Alert. People Weekly v50 no13: 12 October 1998: 143-144.

Jaffe, Steven L. and Dynise Balcavage. Junior Drug Awareness ?Steroids?

Philadelphia: Chelsea House Publishers, 1997.

Kardong, Don. ?Precious Medal.? Runners World. V33 no8: August 1998

70-73.

Lupica, Mike. ?The Drug Detective.? Esquire September 1992: 23-25.

Meer, Jeff. ?Drugs and Sports.? The Encyclopedia of Psychoactive Drugs.

New York:

Chelsea House Publishers, 1987. Vol. 2: 60-61,97.

Moore, Kenny. ?The U.S. Olympic Women Swimmers of 1976 Swept Into Montreal.?

Sports Illustrated 13 July 1992.

Nardo, Don. Drugs and Sports. San Diego: Lucent Books, Inc. 1990: 15-24.

Nuwer, Hank. Steroids. New Jersey: Enslow Publishers, Inc. 1992: 15,17,19+

Papanke, John ?Athletes or Role Models?? Sports Illustrated 15 June 1997:

16-18.

Reid, David C. ?Sports Medicine? The Sports Encyclopedia 1997: 40-47.

Reilly, Rick. ?Hey Mac, Do What Comes Natural.? Sports Illustrated: v90

no9: 1 March

1999: 42,90-91.

Rogak, Lisa A. Steroids: Dangerous Game. Minneapolis: Lerner Publications

Company,

1992. 95-98.

Telander, Rick ?The Nightmare of Steroids.? Sports Illustrated 24 October

1998.

Tipton, Paul. ?Dope and Glory.? Runner?s World. December 1996: 2+

Voy, Robert M. Drugs, Sports, and Politics. Champaign: Leisure Press 1991.

Wadler, Gary I. And Brian Hainline. Drugs and the Athlete. Philadelphia:

Davis

Company 1989.

Winner, Christopher P. ?Sports Doping Crisis Faces a Crossroads.? USA

Today 28

September 1998: 2A-3A.

Wright, James E. and Virginia Cowart. Anabolic Steroids: Altered States New

Jersey:

National Institute 1989.

317