Essay about The Effects of Anabolic Steroids

From amateurs to pros, from body builders to football players and every sport in between, Steriods, or "roids" as they are referred to, have been in the circle of athletes since the 1950's. Is it vanity that drives athletes to use steriods? Do they understand the end results from the abuse of "roids"? What psychological effects do steriods have on users?In order to understand the psychological effects of steriods, you must first understand what steriods are and where they come from. The natural form of steriods is the hormone testosterone, which is produced in males by the testes and adrenal glands and by the adrenal glands in females.

The market for top performing athletes in sports in the 21st century is a competitive one. Athletes are pushed to, be stronger, an heal from injuries faster. With the pressure to do well and get picked up by a professional team of sorts goes without saying that hard work is a must to elevate ones professional athletic career, but what if one has reached a plateau or hit a wall in a training regimen and just can not seem to push through? When some athletes hit the proverbial wall when training they turn to steroids. Ruth Wood in an article titled Anabolic Steroids: A Fatal Attraction? Writes, “Anabolic-androgenic steroids (AAS) are drugs of abuse. Despite bans on steroid use, Olympic

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, anabolic steroids are synthetic variations of the male sex hormone testosterone. The article claims that healthcare providers can prescribe steroids for treating hormonal problems, such as late puberty. Also, steroids can also treat diseases that cause muscle losses, such as cancer and AIDS. But some athletes and bodybuilders abuse these drugs to increase performance or improve their physical appearance.

Throughout the history of athletics, humans have pursued new and innovative ways to construct better, faster, stronger athletes. Steroid use is one of the most popular choices among these athletes. Steroids, first created in the 1930s, are synthetic hormones that produce specific physiological effects on one's body (Center for Substance Abuse Research). Although the German scientists who discovered steroids did not intend its use for body building or creating better athletes, steroid use has developed into a controversial subject concerning the health of users and other moral issues. Overall, the use of steroids in athletics is physically and morally wrong because it essentially promotes the deterioration of the health of athletes and

One of the most-treasured items a person can have is their health. Consequently, a great deal of money is spent on healthcare on account of people want to be healthy to do the things they enjoy in life. In the article “Steroid Abuse in Today’s Society,” states “There is increasing concern regarding possible serious health problems that are associated with the abuse of steroids, including both short-term and long-term side effects.” ("Steroid Abuse in Today's Society" 3). Unfortunately, there are side effects that will accompany someone who takes steroids. For women and men, steroids can cause masculinizing effects. These symptoms can cause fertility problems in both genders. Fortunately, by stopping the use of drugs can cause a shift in changing men’s health for the better, but for women the symptoms may never go away. Studies have not concluded the long-term effects of steroids, but in the worst cases, death can occur. Performance enhancement drugs are dangerous to an athlete’s

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.

Currently it is an estimated that at least 6.67 percent of high school seniors in the United States have tried steroids, which is 500,000 males between the ages of 17 and 18 (Anabolic Steroids). The pressure of steroids on teenagers is constantly drilled into their heads because they associate increased strength with perfection. Teenagers are under immense pressure to be perfect. Kids are pressured to do well in school, sports, and any other activities that they are participating in. Anything other than the best is unacceptable and failure which strikes and leads to disrespect. Failure has the sole purpose of tearing people from their self confidence and lending them to be insecure, questioning their abilities and themselves. It does

Respectively, there are many effects from steroid use. First of all, increase in steroid use is the main effect when steroids are easy to obtain. Students wanted to try more in steroid when it is inexpensive and easy to obtain in the gymnasium, chat rooms, and workout center (Lipsyte 2). Therefore, the percentage of steroid use had been increased from 3% in 1995 to about 5% in 2001; as well as 43% of 12th graders said steroids were readily available, as did 30% of 10th graders, and 20% of eight graders ("Steroid Use"). They keep increasing every year even though there are some warns about that. Even though it increased a couple years ago, steroid use seemed to declined and limited more nowadays.

Steroid use in today’s youth is also becoming a large problem. With an ever- increasing pressure to “make it big” high school athletes are succumbing to the temptation of steroids and by taking that path, they risk injury. High school athletes are not physically mature enough to handle the impressive transformations that steroids could bring. Bones can only hold so much lean muscle mass and once that point is reached the muscle can only tear. This is one of the large negatives involved with steroids and is an increasing problem in today’s

In today’s society, athletes are revered as heroes. There is immense pressure to be the best. Athletes are willing to do whatever it takes to gain an edge, even if it means compromising their health. For almost three decades, athletes have been supplementing their strength program with anabolic steroids to enhance their performance. To be sure, anabolic steroids are effective supplements to strength training programs, but there is no doubt that the consequences can be deleterious.

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

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.

Anabolic steroid is widely being used by young teens throughout middle school and high school. Studies reveal that children in fifth, sixth, and seventh grade, aging from 9-13 are using anabolic steroids.(isteroids) Think of a number that would represent the percentage of middle school students that have taken an anabolic steroid at least once. “According to steroid stats of various studies, 5.4% of all middle school students are reported using steroids. This includes 2.6% male students, and 2.8% female students.”(isteroids) “Steroid use is growing among 12-17 year old males, and the average adolescent begins

Statistics show that “ over one million American children between the ages of twelve and seventeen have used some form of supplement in most cases with their parents full consent.” (MacCloskey & Baileys , 2005, para. 1).

From make-up and fashion choices to cosmetic and plastic surgery, adolescents will go to great lengths to change aspects of their appearance they do not like. One aspect of appearance which is crucial to teens is their figure, and one of the most severe ways to change ones physique is through the use of anabolic androgenic steroids. AASs, herinafter referred to as steroids, are used by teens for performance-enhancing, as well as cosmetic purposes. The use of hazards present several hazards to the individual, especially to their psychological and physiological health. The abuse of anabolic androgens for athletic or hypertrophic gains by adolescents is not worth the physiological, developmental and psychological hazards which it entails.