Use of Steroids and Performance Enhancement Drugs

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Use of Steroids and Performance Enhancement Drugs
In predicting the integrity of sports, it is normally assumed that all the players/athletes are competing on a level playing field. However, the use of steroid and performance enhancement drugs has become common among many players, creating sophisticated challenges for the governing bodies of the individual sports. This paper examines the use of steroids and performance-enhancing drugs at both college, and professional levels, while citing the advantages and the disadvantages associated with these drugs.
Use of performance-enhancing drugs among players/athletes dates back to the ancient Maya and Greeks. Greeks used performance portions to increase their abilities while the ancient Maya where thought to have been using cocoa leaves to boost their abilities. Nowadays, athletes have extended the trend to the use of various enhancement substances such as Amphetamines, HGH, and steroids. According to many young athletes, winning a competitive drive can be very intense, and they are forced to boost their abilities with the use of various performance-enhancing drugs. Most the players who adopt the use of these drugs aim at making it to the Olympics, securing a place in a professional team or a college scholarship (Lardon 1).
Some athletes use anaerobic steroids to increase their muscle strength and mass. Testosterone is the only main anaerobic hormone produced by the body. Therefore, when the artificial anaerobic steroid boosts it, a player gains a competitive edge in various sports. Testosterone performs two functions in the body. It promotes muscle building and it is responsible for various male traits, which include deep voice and facial hair. The various anaerobic steroids, which athletes use, are synthetic modifications of testosterone. These hormones have been medically approved although their use in increasing athlete’s performance is not recommended. Athletes adopt the use of anaerobic steroids because apart from muscle building they help them recover from strenuous work more quickly. As a result, an athlete can work continuously without overstraining. Another class of anaerobic steroids is the designer steroids. This are considered dangerous because they are illicitly manufactured so that they are undetectable during drug tests. They are a health threat to those who use them because they have not been tested or approved (Aretha 74).
Some people view the use of performance-enhancing drugs as substitute for hard work while others consider it as a necessary adjunct to hard work. From the user’s point of view, the hopes and anticipation for success in sports often outweigh any serious medical complication that can result due to the use of these drugs. The appealing salaries paid to athletes across different countries are a powerful inducement for anyone participating in sports to try anything that will pave way for a continued athletic success. In colleges, many students are mostly preoccupied with body image. They are usually motivated by personal rewards derived from enhancing strength, size, and stamina. As a result, many adolescents who do not participate in athletes engage in the use of performance-enhancing drugs (Bello 1).
The strategies adopted to prevent the use of performance-enhancing drugs are generally punitive. These strategies include enforcement of drug bans, which entails carrying out drug testing among the participating athletes. Positive results of drug use can cause an athlete serious penalties such as losing playing privileges, disqualification from var...