Should athletes be allowed to take drugs to enhance their performance, providing the drugs do no long- term damage to their bodies. Athletes are willing to pay a heavy price to achieve their ultimate goal in their chosen sport. They put in a lot of time, dedication, and practice to be the best in their field. Many modern day athletes are seen as celebrities as they reach the peak of their sporting career, but if they use performance enhancing drugs to get to this level it is frowned upon by society. This essay examines performance enhancing drugs and should they be allowed in sports.
Casual Argument Comp. II February 25, 2012 Legalizing Steroids In life people want quick results no matter what they are doing. One of the most frustrating things is spending so much time on something and not getting the results you want. Steroids are a supplement that raises the testosterone levels in a person’s body and in result builds muscle quickly. People will get quick results when using properly.
This research studies the pros and cons of using steroids. Then, it weighs out the pros and cons and talks about which outweighs the other and why. Finally, this leads to the decision that steroids are way too dangerous and risky for any athlete to even consider about taking them. Money, fame, success, pressure, or just plain stupid: why do athletes take steroids? We have all heard of famous athletes having their career and life jeopardized because of taking steroids.
Steroids are abused, often by athletes, to enhance athletic performance and to improve physical appearance” (“Steroids fast facts” 1). In sports, using any type of strength enhancer is illegal. But the controversy mainly encircles the steroid using athlete’s, and where they might stand in the Hall of Fame. If it is stated that using steroids in sports is unfair, then the reality of sports has not been seen. Generally stating, sports is unfair and it always has been.
It is known that not all males are aggressive and some females can be aggressive. This is because people find different ways to channel their aggression positively, such as through sport or exercise. Beeman showed that castration reduces aggression levels whilst injecting them with testosterone increases aggression levels. It demonstrates that testosterone has two roles within the body; to prime the individual and to initiate the aggressive response. Therefore, it shows an association with aggression.
Therefore, many athletes are willing to risk it all by taking performance enhancing drugs to be the best in their profession mainly for three reasons: the pressure to perform, the life style, and the desire to be the best. Athletes have to deal with pressure to perform by their coaches, owners, and by others playing his or her position. Coaches want the athletes to do well because more Johnson 2 than likely if the athletes do well, the team will win. Coaches are under more pressure to win than players because their jobs depend on winning games. If the players don’t perform well; coaches will look at other players to help the team win.
So of course people are going to think Gatorade is better than water. There are facts that stat Gatorade is better than water when it comes to replenishing the body during workouts or even after workouts. Some not all American have sought the media to think that sports drinks are for everyone. Sports drink are really for athletes. Not saying that non-athletes can’t drink a sports, but sports drinks work better on athletes.
Steroids should be banned in sports Would you agree that having natural talents is a virtue? In my opinion steroids abuse people’s natural talents. This is one of the many reasons why steroids should be banned from sports. Steroids are used everywhere, from high school to professional sports; they not only ruin your image, they also have negative side effects, and can lead to serious medical problems or even death if you abuse them. One good reason why steroids should not be allowed in sports is that they ruin a players image.
The key distinction between mind expanding drugs and mind constricting drugs should be based off how it affects intellectual stimulation and growth. Mind expanding drugs should widen the range knowledge and perception as well educate the user in the ‘expansion’ of his/her mind. Mind constricting drugs on the other hand prevent the user from learning. The general belief that the use of drugs (expanding or constricting) except in the case of medical need is ethically unacceptable is ignorant and cowardly. The prevention of mind constricting drugs is in fact correct and must be enforced to maintain liberty for people.
The line between using a performance enhancing drug and an acceptable supplement itself is hazier than people are generally willing to admit. Indeed, sports are made to be a competition, where each person stretches the limits of his or her abilities to achieve victory. On the surface then, it does not appear that performance enhancing drugs are in conflict with that objective. After all, as Thomas H. Murray pointed out in his essay, The Coercive Power of Drugs in Sports: “Caffeine can be considered a performance enhancing drug, even though it is used widely by Americans, be as it is in coffee, tea, cola or in an energy drink like Red Bull.” (Murray). Would anyone feel betrayed if his or her favorite baseball player confessed to drinking a pot of coffee before every game?