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Why Do Professional Athletes Use Performance Enhancing Drugs In Sports

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Over the years, sports have changed dramatically. One major change has been the use of performance enhancing drugs (PED’s). This is a very controversial issue in all levels of sports today. Some people think this is a good thing to allow, while some think the complete opposite. Whenever sports were first becoming very popular, the use of PED’s were not available. There were no drugs to alter an athlete's performance on the field or court because the technology was simply not available to produce these. Although the drugs were not available, the sports were still interesting to watch and the athletes still played at a very high level. They did not need drugs to make themselves better because no one was using them which made the playing field …show more content…

Not only do they create an unlevel playing field, they are also cheating. The drugs are considered cheating because the athletes are not using their own abilities but are relying on a drug to help them. If one athlete uses PED’s and another athlete does not, the athlete who uses the drug has a clear advantage over the person who does not. No one should be able to use PED’s and this would not be a problem. "Distance runners have been using anabolics and growth hormones in very small doses for years," he says. "Not to build muscle. But to help recuperate” (Hruby 3). PED’s are used for many reasons in sports that try to make the players a step higher. Everyone would have a fair chance to win and no one would have an advantages over another athlete if nobody could take steroids. Also, spectators will find out which athletes are really the best and not whose body can respond best to a drug. As games go on athletes get tired, but if one athlete has been taking steroids and their opponent has not they have an advantage over them which creates an unfair playing field. “In basketball, you might not see the effect as much in the first and second quarter, but by the fourth quarter there's a huge edge. One guy has a body full of toxins that have built up” (Hruby 3). Cheating is a very big issue in sports and using steroids that create an unfair playing field goes hand in hand with …show more content…

Many good things could come out of making doping illegal. This will bring the traditional values of sports back, and will make the sport more fair throughout. With the ban of PED’s the sport will be more liked by the youth, because they can end up being more like their “heroes”. Everyone would know just how good athletes really are and not how good a drug works. Athletes who don’t depend on the drugs will have to work harder to be more successful. Sports will become much more competitive and more fun to watch as a fan. As a whole, making performance enhancing drugs illegal will make sports better for the athletes and the

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