Prescription Drug Abuse In Sports

According to Calfee, Fadale "Research indicates that younger athletes are increasingly experimenting with these drugs to improve both appearance and athletic abilities…the consensus today is that these drugs do increase athletic measures with objective gains in strength and fat-free mass." So, these player uses the drug so that their performance and appearance are the best so that they can have scholarships and so that they can win their games and get drafted by the National Football League. The athletes use many kinds of drugs but two of the most popular is Anabolic-androgenic Steroid and Ephedra. Athletes uses “Anabolic-androgenic steroids because it is good for gaining muscle mass, strength, increasing muscle mass, but the side effects that this drug have is connected to multiple organ systems: infertility, gynecomastia, female virilization, hypertension, atherosclerosis, physeal closure, aggression, depression.” The other drug they used is “Ephedra alkaloids is used as a possible nutritional supplement it increases weight loss, delay fatigue, increases metabolism, but it has no clear performance benefit, the side effects of this drug are cerebral vascular accident, arrhythmia, myocardial infarction, seizure, psychosis, hypertension, death.” (Calfee, Fadale) Yes, some of the drugs

Many High School students have started to use these dangerous drugs; this is starting to become a major problem because athletes are just cheating themselves and are not becoming better. Professional athletes are setting very bad examples for high school students. Something every student has to deal with no matter if you play a varsity sport or is just a normal student is the pressure to do well and succeed. Some school districts have even been contemplating to add drug testing to high school athletes. This will eventually stop people from cheating to become professional athletes. Students also need to know what they are doing is wrong and could dangerously affect their long term health and could possibly lead to death. One statistic that may not seem extreme is that 2.3 percent of all high school students have used some type of performance enhancing drug. This is a dangerous statistic that no one is really addressing. If a young student wants to become pro they need to work hard and

A number of prominent athletes have recently experienced a 'fall from grace,' because of the revelation that they used performance-enhancing drugs. Perhaps the most famous example of this phenomenon is Lance Armstrong. In an advertisement for Nike that his former sponsor now no doubt regrets, Armstrong is shown asking the viewer "what am I on? I'm on my bike, busting my ass six hours a day." Professional cycling is often cited as one of the sports in which doping is most endemic to its subculture, however a number of professional sports have been embroiled in drug scandals. Because of the many revelations about the number of baseball players who used steroids to get their record-breaking statistics, the 1990s are often called the 'steroid' era of baseball. The Olympic track and field star Marian Jones was stripped of her medals, after finally admitting to the use of performance-enhancing drugs (Lardon 2008). "Despite the health risks, and despite the regulating bodies' attempts to eliminate drugs from sport, the use of illegal substances is widely known to be rife. It hardly raises an eyebrow now when some famous athlete fails a dope test" (Savulescu, Foddy, & Clayton 2004).

Many athletes take drugs either for the feeling or for enhancement of their sport. What athletes may not take into much consideration is the health effects that enhancement and recreational drugs do to the human body. Many athletes

Steroids not only affect the body but also the mind too. It is proven that when an athlete takes steroids they tend to be more of an aggressive person in society’s eyes. The advantage of having an aggressive behavior is that the abuser is more focused and trains more intensely. The bad part about taking steroids is that the person becomes easily irritated and impatient. Even after an athlete stops using steroids they seem to develop depression because they experience withdraw symptoms. It is against federal law to use steroids without a prescription. Professional athletes usually do not think about how much trouble steroids can give them. In 1990, President George W. Bush signed a bill to put steroids in the category of methamphetamines, opium and morphine. If someone would get caught using steroids they could be punished up to one year in prison, a twenty thousand dollar fine, and a year of drug classes (New Law…).

The effect the drug has on the player consuming it may only be temporary, but the injuries caused by that drug may never be recovered from. In fact, they can not only be prone to injuries themselves, but injuring others as well. Athletes on drugs are more vulnerable to sustaining a concussion, bruise, or laceration than any other (Ablow). They may think they took just the right amount to push them through a game or two however, the power of these substances should never be underestimated. Overdose of drugs, especially illegal ones, can lead to unusual behavior and little self-awareness, therefore causing injuries (Ablow). The fogginess of the brain and “little self-awareness” it causes means they are easily susceptible to running into something or someone without noticing. No player should have to be concerned about their safety because of another’s poor

If you look into the way the athletes are protected by their organizations you will feel silly to think that Advil is something that should go un-monitored. Advil is something pitchers take in order for their arm to feel fresh and to be able to compete and preform at a level you as well as your team knows you are capable of. Major League Baseball teams have screenings for those individuals who use any sort of anti-inflammatory or pain killer to monitor their liver and make sure it is not dealing with side effects. With this being done they are monitoring the health and effects on the body so if an incident comes up they can treat it quickly and correct the first time. For many athletes and people they do not know that professionals are very aware of the possibilities to come with Advil and they don’t take Advil when not necessary, there is a difference between needing it and wanting it and I think that is what most college athletes fail to

As the use of performance enhancing drugs is becoming more popular amongst athletes, many of them do not understand the risks involved in taking these drugs. Many people are looking for a quick way to build muscles, or to get stronger the fastest way possible. Using these performance aids may very well be a quick fix for many athletes, but taking the drugs is unethical and dangerous. Using special drugs to boost an athlete’s performance is degrading to sports and to the athlete, but after they stop using the drugs and lose some strength, you become

One cause of professional football player’s painkiller addictions is that Doctors feel pushed to have the players continue playing. Some doctors believe that if they do not load up their players with heavy drugs to be able to play, they will be let go from their

D’s should be allowed is because of the healing factor they can provide to the players. When a player is injured it not only hurts the injured person, but also the organization. With steroids, it can increase the rate of recovery to the injured person. As stated by Richard Salcido, MD, Professor and Chairman of the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania Health System said “…steroid use may aid in the healing of experimentally derived muscle contusion and injury…” (Salcido, "Anabolic Steroids and Wound Healing"). If this does in fact increase the healing of injured athletes, then it allows for them to be out for a shorter amount of time, which again ties into more revenue coming into these organizations because the best of the best athletes is not staying injured for very long. Using these drugs even has the chance to prevent injuries. As stated in “Steroids” by David J. Segarnick. PhD, “The most widely exploited property of corticosteroids is their ability to reduce localized swelling, redness and " tenderness - aspects of inflammation. With its ability to do these things injuries could be prevented which helps the athletes to continue

The main belief among young athletes is that by using drugs (especially performance-enhancing drugs), they will gain a competitive advantage among the competition. However, no matter the purpose, taking steroids or other drugs not prescribed by a physician is illegal and needs to be closely monitored at all levels of athletics. Some people might believe that mandatory drug testing would cause turmoil

Many former and current NFL players have faced many issues because of painkillers.    “52 percent of the retired players said they used prescription pain medication during their playing days. Of those, 71 percent said they misused the drugs then, and 15 percent of the misusers acknowledged misusing the medication within the past 30 days.” (Barr).  Many professional football players are prescribes highly addictive painkillers by team doctors.  A lawsuit against the NFL had been filed for abusing the use of painkillers and anti-inflammatory drugs.  Jeremy Newberry former player of the 49er’s states “Some games, I’m taking two, three Vicodin before the game, two or three Vicodin at halftime, taking a shot of Toradol before the game,”.  Toradol is an anti-inflammatory drug that reduces the hormones that cause inflammation and pain.  The potency of this drug is equivalent to morphine.   For now the NFL continues to deny all  allegations.  Athletes start using drugs to be able to perform with untreated injuries.  They later realize that they are unable to function without the use of those drugs.  Dan Johnson of the Miami Dolphins became addicted to painkillers after undergoing two back surgeries for injuries he acquired while playing.  “He broke so many bones during his playing days that teammates called him "The King of Pain." Yet his addiction to painkillers had him contemplating suicide.” (Barr).  Johnson was taking nearly a thousand vicodin pills a month.  Many former players are no facing long term side effects from long term use of these drugs.  Some have commit suicide, and some are still battling their addiction today.

Athletes use substances before or during their performance to increase their ability (Marzilli 12-13). Student athletes will use steroids to increase their strength for a better outcome in their competition. Testosterone is a common hormone in the body that most athletes abuse (Marzilli 12). Testosterone is produced naturally in the body of any animal (“Steroids in Sports”). It creates alertness and aggressiveness to improve performance (“Steroids in Sports”). That is why early athletes used to take some form of medication to boost the production of testosterone in their body. Both males and females will consume steroids to increase testosterone in their body. Due to all the medical advantages that steroids have to an individual, athletes use them to achieve and to sharpen their performance. Apart from fatigue and letting athletes train for hours, steroids also act as a compound to lactic acid which causes muscle pain during physical struggles (“Steroids in Sports”). Steroids also contain the hormones that can increase quickly to recover from injuries (“Steroids in Sports”). Since steroids can increase endurance levels several times, athletes find it simple to run faster and improve their performance in sports. According to Gary Becker, performance enhancers, like steroids and other types of doping, have a negative effect on long-term health ( “Top 10 Pros and Cons”). Athletes will hurt themselves in the long run. Competitors dope and consume steroids to achieve the short term rewards in their teenage years of competitions (Becker). It is not worth achieving something that is temporary than living with a long-term health condition. Student athletes are not educated enough of the effects that drugs have on a

Drugs should be banned in all sports. They have been a problem for a long time. Athletes use them to enhance their body and for simply just the edge. There is nothing wrong with using some drugs to enhance your body as long as they are legal. The problems that come with drugs in sports are how to detect them. Some professional sports, such as the NHL, do not even use drug tests. The only sports that test for everything are the NBA and NFL. The Major League Baseball only tests for illegal drugs such as marijuana and cocaine. They do not test for steroids or any other kind of pill. The reason for this is because the player’s union will not allow these tests. They are currently voting to reconsider this idea. The other problem is that drug

More and more, of our society views winning more important than itself. Success in competition brings status, popularity, and fame, not to mention college scholarships. Today’s athletes are looking for an advantage over the competition that will make them winners. Unfortunately, the drugs of today are caught up in the high stakes competition frenzy. Of this reality, teenage use of performance improved drugs is growing ever more popular. In colleges and in the professional league a lot of people are doing drugs and its ruining their health and life. Also, if some teenagers take performance drugs they are making them better than everyone else giving themselves an advantage over everyone else which is cheating, so why should they get money