Steroids And Other Performance Enhancing Drugs - 1407 Words

Steroids in Sports Introduction The debate over athletes using steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs has always been a hot-button issue in the sports world. From major league athletes in baseball and football; to track stars and bicyclist in the Olympics, the use of steroids in sports has been a wide-range problem. Those who disagree with the use of steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs say that the athletes who use them are breaking the rules and getting an unfair advantage over others. Opponents of steroids say the athletes are endangering not only their own health, but also indirectly encouraging youngsters to do the same (Katz, 2008). On the opposite side, supporters of steroids say that the risk to athletes using†¦show more content†¦What are Steroids / Are they Addictive? To begin, I would like to explain what steroids are and why they are so appealing to athletes. Steroids are a type of drug that increases the body’s mass and ability to perform well in certain things. According to an ESPN article, Drugs and Sports, anabolic steroids -- or more precisely, anabolic-androgenic steroids -- are the synthetic derivatives of the naturally occurring male anabolic hormone testosterone. Both anabolic and androgenic have origins from the Greek: anabolic, meaning to build, and androgenic, meaning masculinizing. The need and drive to be the very best at your sport, is a craving (like a drug). Some athletes think that using steroids helps them to perform better than the other person. The harms of using steroids are bad and could get you kicked out the sporting league you are in or worst According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, individuals who abuse steroids can experience withdrawal symptoms when they stop taking them—including mood swings, fatigue, rest-lessness, loss of appetite, insomnia, reduced sex drive, and steroid cravings, all of which may contribute to continued abuse. One of the most dangerous withdrawal symptoms is depression—when persistent, it can sometimes lead to suicide attempts. Research has found that some