Should Athletes Be Allowed To Use Steroids

Users have different reasons for doping and, subsequently, steroids have different health consequences. Some common side effects from steroid use are the following: acne, genital changes, water retention, yellowing of the eyes and skin; women may experience: male-pattern baldness, decreased breast size, deeper voices, hairy bodies, and menstrual irregularities; men may experience: reduced sperm production, shrinking of the testicles, impotence, difficulty or pain in urinating, baldness, and irreversible breast enlargement. But these are just minor setbacks right? One could say that, like those aren’t bad, but researchers have also linked steroid abuse to much more serious risks such as: fatal liver cysts, liver cancer, blood clotting, cholesterol changes, hypertension, stroke, and even heart attack. Despite all these potential problems, many still choose to take steroids.

The Intelligence Square U.S. held a debate about whether or not the government’s rules on performance enhancing drugs should be ban in professional sports. For the debate they had Radley Balko, Investigative Journalist, Norman Fost, Professor of Pediatrics and Bioethics at the University of Wisconsin, and Julian Savulescu, Uehiro Professor of Practical Ethics at the University of Oxford argue for the motion. They argue the fact that the medicines we take on a daily basis from the pharmacy are also performance enhancers. This goes back all the way to the Romans who once used herbs to improve themselves for battle, making them believe that the only exception that separates this from steroids is that it is illegal. On the other hand, you have

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…).

Steroids and PED’s are used today in sports to help athletes gain muscle mass and strength. Other athletes use them to boost their athletic performance. Today, about 30 percent of college and professional athletes still use anabolic steroids, 10 to 20 percent of high school athletes use them (Lewis). There are many reasons why steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs shouldn’t be allowed in sports.

Unfortunately, the use of steroids can easily lead to many major health problems. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse “Steroids abuse may lead to serious, even irreversible, health problems. Some of the most dangerous consequences…kidney impairment or failure; damage to the liver; and cardiovascular problems…leading to an increased risk of stroke and heart attack (even in young people)” (NIH). Steroids can affect an athlete by increasing the heart rate and decreasing the stamina, a fact that can lead to heart failure. Steroids can also affect the body with acne, abdominal pains, insomnia, and anaphylactic shock. When men use steroids the consequences are more crucial than women. For example, men may experience falling sperm count, shrinking testicles, and increased risk of fertility. On the other hand, women may show signs of masculinity (male type musculature) but also an increased risk of certain illnesses such as breast cancer. In general, steroids affect both of women and men by leading to terrible health problems. Dr. Larry Creswell, a well-known heart surgeon who studied the abuse of steroids, estimates that approximately 3 million Americans use steroids and he supports that the 70% of the athletes in the bodybuilding area, are steroid users. In addition, it is well known that steroids can also cause sudden deaths, sometimes in young athletes but most often occur within the ages of 35-50. In addition, Dr. Dickerman, a professor in the department of

Steroids can cause serious harm to the human body. They're really bad for the mental health of a person. Steroids are addictive if abused in the body. Gaining muscle can occur through using steroids but medical use should be the only reason for their intake because of the harmful effects on the human body, the mental health of the user and the fact that they are addictive. Steroids should be used with precaution since they so easily cause so much damage to

Many professional athletes in this era rely on performance-enhancing drugs, such as steroids, to take their athletic abilities to the next level. Over the years, steroid abuse in sports has only gotten worse. This is where the controversy occurs because some people think that the usage of steroids should be legalized in sports, while others do not like that idea. The National Institute on Drug Abuse stated that, “Anabolic steroids are related to the male sex hormones such as testosterone. They promote the growth of skeletal muscle and the development of male sexual characteristics in both males and females” (NIDA). This is a brief definition explaining what anabolic steroids are and what they do. Anabolic steroids were first developed in the 1930’s in order to treat a condition in which the testes produced an insufficient amount of testosterone for normal growth and development. Shortly after, lab tests revealed that steroids were very helpful in the growth of muscle tissue. This lead bodybuilders and athletes to use steroids. Steroids are used by athletes in order to improve performance, build lean muscle mass, and increase strength and speed. There are many opinions on whether steroids should be legalized in sports or not. Some people argue that they provide an unfair advantage between athletes, stating that they should be banned. Others argue that steroids don’t provide athletes with skills, emphasizing that athletes achieve them on their own and not with the help of

Besides the long list of negative side effects that steroids bring, they also ruin the integrity of sports. Sports are all about working hard and striving through adversity in order to reach a goal. Steroids only give athletes a shortcut that is an easy way out to reaching that goal. Before performance enhancing drugs became a world wide phenomenon athletes were forced to use their only option of working out naturally and pushing themselves beyond their limits in order to be the best that they can be. Now a day’s, many athletes do not have the same dedication and work ethic to earn their results the old fashion and natural way. Whether or not the use of performance enhancing drugs should be allowed in sports should depend on the purpose and intentions of their use.

Steroids can make a person stronger, but the long and short term effects are not worth the risk. Steroids are becoming more of a problem in the United States. There are over 100 varieties of steroids in the U. S. and black market. The oral steroids are Anadrol, Oxandrin, Dianabol, and Winstrol. Injectable steroids are Deca- Durabolin, Durabolin, Depo- Testosterone, and Equipoise (Steroid Abuse in Today’s Society). Steroids can be helpful if people use them the right way, such as in the medical field. The people that abuse them have given steroids the bad background. People look at steroids as if it has caused so many deaths, but it’s actually the people who take big doses of the drug. If people would not abuse steroids, they would be a big help in a medical field. Steroids can change a nice caring person into a roid raging monster that can cause harm to you and your family. For the people abusing steroids, is that what you want to possibly harm yourself or your family? People need to realize that steroids are becoming an uprising drug to not just bodybuilders and pro athletes; it’s become more and more used by teens in high

A lot people take steroids for baseball,soccer,football the list goes on and they should be banned.First there cheating if you're going to play a sport just be yourself don't take drugs to do it.If famous football players do it and there fans want to be just like them they might take it to.So This is why they should not take steroids,or be banned.

30 percent of college and professional athletes use anabolic steroids, as do 10 to 20 percent of high school athletes. Among U.S. bodybuilders, studies show that steroid use exceeds 80 percent. (Lewis n.pag.) Steroids have become a huge problem in the sports world. Athletes use steroids as a way to build their body and endurance to beat out the competition. Steroids have a huge effect on the spirit of the sport; by causing unfairness and cheating. Steroids also have major effects of athletes bodies. Steroids are not beneficial for athletes because they ruin the spirit of the sports, there cause many health risks, and they hurt the overall performance of athletes that use them

Having sports enhancing drugs in sports ruins the sporting experience for everyone. Taking away the fairness and competitiveness from sports is really taking away what sports have to offer. Steroids should not be allowed in sports because it creates unfair competition, it creates health issues, and it creates a bad influence. To begin, steroids should not be allowed in sports because it creates unfair competition.

Using Steroids to build muscle mass in athletes is illegal, and dangerous. Athletes have lost world records, and Olympic medals due to the use of steroids. Although steroids are used to enhance performance in athletes, they are also used to help treat cancer patients. Steroids are needed for some patients, but for most the negative effects outweigh the positive. Athletes that use steroids are trying to increase their muscle mass quickly, they do not take into consideration the effects it will have on their body's later in life. Not only is using steroids cheating it also has negative effects on one's body causing long term damage. The use of steroids increased in the 1960s when athletes from East Germany received steroids to help increase their

Professional athletes are role models to the younger generation. Younger athletes look up to the professionals as motivation and inspiration. They pick styles and even numbers to reflect who they are inspired by. This can be seen when a basketball player wears 23. The number 23 represents one of the greatest basketball players of all time Michael Jordan. I believe steroids should be banned from professional sports because they give the younger generation the wrong message. Young high schoolers that are athletes will see the open usage of steroids and start to use them themselves. As Greg Schwab said in the hearing for "Steroid Use in Professional Baseball and Anti-Doping Issues in Amateur Sports" and before the US Senate Committee on Commerce,

The use of steroids in sports should be outlawed because they are illegal, harmful to one’s body, extremely costly, could damage an athletes’ career as well as become quite addictive.