Good Looks Over Health? Essay

They are abused by both athletes and non-athletes in an attempt to “enhance performance and/or physical appearance” (“NIDA InfoFacts: Steroids (Anabolic-Androgenic)”, 2009). Steroids, typically taken orally or by injection, are used in “cycles” where a user takes steroids for a period of time, then stops for another length of time and then the pattern continues. Steroids are considered very dangerous, fickle substances that have the potential to mess up the user’s bodily functions if care is not taken while on them.

Steroids (anabolic) are a drug that was discovered and made by medical scientists in the last 1930’s to help with medical problems. The drug was made to help with many medical problems such as testosterone, growth, sexual functioning, and other medical problems such as helping people with HIV to help grow musical. It also helps with many other diseases. Like any other drug on the market people learn that the drug can be used for many other ways. Steroids can enhance athlete’s performance as well as bodybuilders and is used in almost every sport out there. The use of steroids has become a widespread problem. Steroid use has caused many help problems with the misuse of the drug and has caused the drug to be illegal for people to use them in

One of the best reasons not to do anabolic steroids is because they affect the brain, which controls a person's entire body. As stated in dopinglinkki.fi, anabolic steroids cause long-standing changes in the brain. They are found to affect the central nervous system and affect the brain where it is closely linked to centres that regulate mood, sexuality and aggression. Anabolic steroids may cause a person to become psychotic and as an athlete, their head needs to be on straight to accomplish their goal. With brain effects, there are also long/short term effects of anabolic steroids.

The Upside of anabolic steroid use can’t go on to be ignored. Anabolic steroids increase muscle mass, assist in weight loss, and improve overall strength. Like any other substance in the world too much of anything is never good for the body. The oral and injectable forms of anabolic steroids have risk when being used in abundance. Oral anabolic tablets may cause liver damage, infertility, and risk of Hepatitis A and B, while the injectable form can cause vein damage (Pros and Cons).

Anabolic steroids are one of the most thought about drugs when talking about gaining weight and muscle. Steroids have been around for years and athletes today continue to use these illegal performance enhancing drugs. But are they really that bad for you? Steroids not only have terrible side effects but they are also becoming more and more common around the world today with pro icons using them and the existence of them.

Anabolic steroids are a synthetic version of male testosterone that are used to form defined muscles. Steroids increase protein in cells causing larger, more defined muscles. Although they do good on the outside, they are incredibly bad for you and have many side effects. Most anabolic steroids are illegal, how ever there are some forms of steroids that escape the law, such as human growth hormones.

So what exactly are steroids? Steroids are a synthetic substance closely related to the male sex hormone, testosterone. They are legally prescribed for some medical conditions such as AIDS, some cancers, and anemia. This is a vital medication for people with these sicknesses that make the body weaker. (Adams)A very common misconception is that steroids give you muscle. They do not. It builds protein faster then normal which allows people to work out more often. Scientifically, the human body has millions of cell receptors that accept the drug an in turn tell the body what action to perform. In particular, when

Bodybuilding is a sport that has been around for decades and encompasses big names from “the golden era of bodybuilding” like Arnold Schwarzenegger, Franco Columbo, and Lou Ferigno and modern day bodybuilders like Phil Heath and Kai Greene. Their impeccable physiques attained from their hours of strenuous lifting and strict diets allowed them to be adored and looked up to by many. Surrounding this aurora is the controversial use of steroids. Steriods can cause permanent damage to the human body.

Why do athletes get so hooked on this so called “Steroid” ? I’m interested in this question, because that’s the question that truly caught my attention the most and, also keeps me wondering. If people who use it have seen improvement, why do they keep using it. The anabolic steroid also known as the anabolic-androgenic steroid is a drug that athletes use to give more muscle mass to the body and create more testosterone in the body. If traced back to the 1940’s steroids first appeared in Germany. Athletes had begun to use this substance as early as 1950 at the olympic games during the Cold war. Website http://Cesar.com states, “ From that point until the early 1970 's, steroids became increasingly popular among not just Olympic athletes, but also professional sports players and high school athletes (Cesar). Steroids truly have developed into something that everyone wants to get to achieve the perfect body or create a better physique.

Steroids are synthetic materials of the male sex chromosome, testosterone, that lead to addiction, mental abuse and physical harm. They are banned by many sports leagues, but some athletes do not take that into consideration. Many athletes use steroids illegally, for a multiple of reasons. Athletes use steroids in order to gain better physical body shape and game play. In reality they are only cheating the game and themselves, slowly breaking their bodies down. The steroid use has greatly increased from the past. An M.D named Dan Gwartney announces, “Currently, body builders are using much higher doses of anabolic steroids…” and “…body builders do not go ‘off-cycle’ at all.”(Gwartney), which adds even more risk to the human body because of the higher and more frequent use rate. Our bodies are not made to take in that much extra testosterone, but the increased want of money in America has now taken over a multiple of people to choose the looks and money over their own personal health. There are different types of steroids, all having negative effects, but the most commonly used and known steroid is an anabolic androgenic steroid. The effects of steroids vary from a man to a woman. For example, men begin to have the reduction of sperm, damage to the heart and the liver, pain while urinating, breast development, and a reduction to their testicles. Women begin to lose their breast, grow

Muscle magazines touting images of freakishly muscled bodybuilders have undoubtedly succeeded in tempting their share of weight training patrons at athletic clubs into experimenting with steroids. These people get a visual of what is possible, try these substances with little knowledge, and may make some gains in muscle size. Instead of seeking a healthy way to develop muscle, they pursue the quick attainment of a well-muscled physique via pharmacology. But what is the long term cost to their body for this short term gain? In gyms that I have belonged to, it was often not a difficult task determining when a member would begin an anabolic steroid cycle. These people would make impressive gains in strength and muscle size in a short time, their face would get bloated from water retention, and they would often develop acne. Some long term gym rats that I know would venture a guess with good confidence as to which steroid was being taken by its specific effects on the user. This activity is not unique to gyms and there are sure to be other non-professional sports where this type of behavior plays out as well.

An anabolic steroid is the name that is associated with the male sex hormones. Anabolic steroids promote the development of male sexual characteristics in both males and females, and also promote the growth of the skeletal muscle (drugabuse.gov). In the late 1930s, anabolic steroids were developed. The primary reason for their creation was to treat a certain condition called hypogonadism in which the testes do not create an ample amount of testosterone for sexual functioning, normal growth, and development. Many people associate anabolic steroids with regular steroids; however, they are not the same. Anabolic steroids have a few ways that they can be taken. According to the “National Institute on Drug Abuse” anabolic steroids are normally either injected into the muscles or taken orally and some can be applied to the skin as a cream or a gel. There is a great risk in taking the anabolic steroid through injections. Injecting this steroid can lead to HIV and AIDs if not done in a clean environment and with the sharing of needles. Taking these steroids orally is the safest way, but some could argue that taking steroids at all is not good for you. So why is it that so many athletes use anabolic steroids? There are many causes and reasons as to why athletes use anabolic steroids. A major cause for athletes using anabolic steroids is to excel

Overall steroids are illegal, and dangerous, but they are still used by many people. Steroids go straight to the bloodstream, quicker if they are injected. When taken orally they first go through the liver. Basically steroids work like this: "A steroid enters the bloodstream and is carried into the muscle cell by diffusion then it binds to a receptor site. (These are certain areas in a cell that are receptive to free-floating molecules in the blood). The connection formed lets the steroid send a message to the receptor site to have some sort of a metabolic change in the cell. This is primarily increased protein synthesis and nitrogen retention" (Taylor 143-145). This leads to increased size and strength in the muscle cell.

The effects of steroids are more serious than people think. Steroids can effect the human body by stopping the human functions. There are too many to list, but one of them is that it can make humans look more masculine. People that take steroids are risking their bodies in ways that can leave permanent damage to the body. The steroid can stay in the body for a long time, so it effect the body even weeks after you take the steroid. Pills will stay in the body up to a couple of weeks, while injections can stay in the body for as long as a couple of mouths. If the steroid stays in body that long, the effect from it can get worse and could seriously injury the person using them. Steroids are unhealthy for the body and could lead to

In the past three decades, steroids has been becoming a serious problem more than ever in the athletic field. Steroids are anabolic drug "to 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. They're used in controlling inflammation, strengthening weakened hearts, preventing conception, and alleviating symptoms of arthritis and asthma. 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.