Lucas Hernandez
English 102 -1:00 p.m. Section
Dr. Sonia Apgar Begert
18 March, 2014
Anabolic Steroids in Youth and Sports
Steroids
(specifically anabolic steroids) are generally used for their muscle gaining
properties and increase in testosterone levels. Anabolic steroids are used for
their beneficial properties of increasing the athlete’s strength, speed, and
endurance. Sports such as Baseball, Bodybuilding, and Track and Field have
records of athletes using steroids illegally. Steroids are far to abused in our
sports industry. Athletes are pushed to their absolute level in competition and
will do anything in order to gain the edge on their particular sport, including
using illegal performance enhancing drugs such as anabolic steroids. Steroids should
continue to be banned from sports and athletes, including bodybuilders, should
be penalized when tested positive for the drug. The best action we can take is
to educate parents, primary care physicians, coaches, and kids of the drastic,
long term side effects of steroid use. This paper will be underlining the
serious issues with steroid use in athletes and young adults.
Steroids have drastic effects on both genders, male and female, but the effects of the drug vary; my research tells me that females suffer far greater repercussions than males when using anabolic steroids. According to Fred Hartgens article "Effects of Androgenic-Anabolic Steroids in Athletes." from Sports Medicine, In females using steroids, adverse effects include a deepened voice, acne, male pattern hair loss, clitoral enlargement, and increased facial and body hair. Other long-term risks include liver cancer, depression, and birth defects in children of mothers who once used steroids. Fred Hartgens explains that steroids have a drastic toll on the female reproductive system, causing an increased number of miscarriages along with growth retardation of the fetus (Hartgens, Fred). These side effects are considered irreversible, even after steroid use stops. Majority of females who use anabolic steroids explain that they had little or no knowledge of the drug beforehand. An anonymous female bodybuilder, from Anabolic Steroids.com, confessed her use of steroids explaining that she had no knowledge of the drug beforehand, “During and after 2 cycles of these drugs I experienced mood changes, dramatic fat loss, increased lean body mass, and indescribable pumps in the gym. I didn't notice any negative side effects until....” long term side effects take a while to kick in, but when activated are irreversible. “I noticed my voice started cracking during conversation. The sound of my voice was inconsistent and unpredictable.” Deepening of voice is one of the permanent side effects of anabolic steroids, “the decision I made two years ago haunts me every day of my life.” Unfortunately for this anonymous bodybuilder she was not informed of the drastic side effects of anabolic steroids (Anabolicsteroids.com). Her, along with countless others have stories of the effects of steroids overtaking their body and mind. Candice Armstrong a female bodybuilder from Walthamstow London steroid abuse went so far as to effectively turn her into a fully functioning man. Like many other female bodybuilders, she began taking the drug without the intention of becoming masculine but explains that she’s too far in to stop. “You could argue that when I wanted big arms and broad shoulders, a bigger back and small hips, that that was a masculine look but I didn't consciously decide I want to change from a woman into a man.” The side effects that Candice is currently suffering includes, excess body hair, acne, and the growth of a 1-inch ‘male part’. Candice has no intention of stopping her steroid use, “I think it would do more harm than good,” she explains. “I’d lose all the muscles but I wouldn't lose all the masculine qualities like the facial hair and the deep voice... It doesn't really go back. If I was to try and reverse that, I'd need the same sort of procedures as a male becoming a woman.” Once the long term side effect kick in there is no reversal of these conditions. Candice, along with majority of steroid users, has to learn to deal with these side effects and make the best of what they have. “It's opened doors and enabled me to develop myself the way I want to,” she says. “It's given the opportunity to live out one of my dreams. I've started doing a bit of drag and I love it. I've always wanted to do a bit of drag!” (Ruth, Styles) Clearly Candice is a very acceptable person when it comes to conditions that not everyone would deem favorable, but not everyone has the same outlook. Majority of female steroid users who were unfortunate enough to have taken the drug without knowledge of the side effects will have to deal with them, knowing that there is no going back.
When the thought of steroids comes into mind
people create this image of hulking male bodybuilders such as Arnold
Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone, and Ronnie Coleman. Rarely does the image
of a female com into mind. This is because men, on average, take four to five times more
steroids than women according to major league test results. A possible reason
for this is that the physical side effects such as increase of facial hair,
acne, deepening voice and muscle mass are all masculine qualities that would be
difficult for females to hide. This is because steroids cause increase of
testosterone and other derivatives that give women these secondary sex
characteristics. Female users only have to take a tenth as much testosterone as
males; this is because males naturally have more testosterone than women and
their bodies can accommodate a larger amount.
Anabolic steroids are not
only abused by older athletic adults but by young teen individuals. According
to Anne E. Stein’s article “Girls Using Steroids” from Lifestyles Magazine Researchers have found that up to 5 percent of
high school girls and 7 percent of middle-school girls have acknowledged using
anabolic steroids at least once (Stein, Anne). Some use steroids in the hope of
becoming thin; others use steroids to push themselves beyond their athletic
limits in sports. Adverse effects of
young teen girls using steroids mirror the effects of adults using the drug,
but also include disruption of menstrual periods and the closing off of growth
plates, causing stunted growth. Though steroids do have medicinal purposes on
young growing teens, such as a ‘jump start’ to puberty, but when administered
without the consent and guidance of a doctor the side effects greatly outweigh
the benefits.
The issue with steroid use
in young athletes is education. Our youth lack the knowledge of steroids’ side
effects, and because of this they fall victim to the long term consequences.
According to Jon Buzby’s article, “Delaware: DIAA Opts To EducateOn Steroids”
from CBS Sports.com Delaware, along
with New Mexico and Oregon, is beginning to educate their student on the long
term drastic side effects on steroids abuse. Many states, such as California
and Texas, are beginning mandatory drug tests on their student athletes which
is a very successful in the prevention of further steroid use. The only issue
with mandatory steroid testing is the cost. In Texas,
according to a June 30 story published in the Houston Chronicle,
only 2 of the 10,000 students tested came back with positive results. The
testing cost of $3 million means that each student caught cost the state $1.5
million. Michael Valania, a sophomore varsity wrestler at St. Mark’s High
School in Wilmington, Delaware, agrees testing is not a good use of money. “To
waste money and find just a couple of users instead of further
developing an education program to impact hundreds would seem foolish,”
Valania says. Though legislators at St. Marks have not yet mandated an official
education program they have strongly urged coaches and staff to educate
athletes on the dangers of anabolic steroids (Buzby, Jon). According to the 2007
National Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 3.9 percent of high school students in the
nation have used anabolic steroids without a prescription. Don Hooton, whose
son committed suicide after becoming depressed from steroid use runs the Taylor Hooton Foundation, which
focuses on trying to prevent steroid use among youth through education. Parents
and teachers often leave out steroids from the picture when talking to kids
about dangerous drugs. When asked about youth and steroids, Don Hooton
explained, “No one is
talking to teens about steroids. So, if all they know is that it makes you
bigger, faster and stronger, why are we surprised that we have a group of kids
motivated to do this stuff,” Research from a nationwide study being conducted
by the Taylor Hooton Foundation found that 84 percent of high school students
have never had anyone, not even a parent or coach, talk to them about the
dangers of steroids. According to
Hooton, similar to prescription drugs, kids don’t equate steroid use with drug
use and instead see it as a supplement. Hooton said most students
are surprised to learn that using steroids without a prescription is a felony.
“They are completely unaware that there are any real risks associated with
using things like steroids--that it’s a schedule 3 controlled substance that is
illegal, and is extremely dangerous and can cause both physical and
psychological effects,” (CADCA). For the first time, Little League, with a membership of more than 2.4
million boys and girls around the world, will develop an education program
about the dangers of steroid use for young baseball and softball players.
Because of the Major League Baseball’s most recent drug suspensions of a total
of 14 players tied to the Biogenesis scandal, Little League has decided to
partner with the Taylor Hooton Foundation to develop an online education
program for the organization’s thousands of coaches and volunteers. The program aims to educate
children, their parents, and their coaches about the dangers of steroid use,
especially after recent polls showed that few American adults viewed steroid
use among teenagers as a serious problem (Waldron, Travis). We must make it clear to our young athletes
that steroids have serious side effects and can’t be used as a supplement to
simply become bigger and stronger. Former athletes who previously used steroids
and are now suffering the consequences and experts on the drugs should teach
students and educators that steroids are a big deal and should not be used
unless prescribed.
Steroids are a very controversial
subject when it comes to sports, especially the sport of body building. When
the subject of steroids comes into mind body building judges seem to turn a
blind eye. The question is should Anabolic Steroids be legal in the sport of
bodybuilding? An anonymous interview between a pro IFBB body builder and a
representative of Bodybuilding.com Steve Holeman brought a lot of controversial
subjects out of the dark. When asked how much he spent on drugs per year, the nameless
bodybuilder responder with “Well, growth hormone alone costs you $30,000 a
year” when asked about his total drug bill, the response was ridiculous, “About
$60,000, but it's going to be higher next year. Just this last year I had to
add [blank]. Right now it's the number-one bodybuilding "supplement"
in the competition ring. All these guys you see getting bigger, it's that.” So,
it’s not just steroids that give bodybuilders the competitive edge, new
supplements are constantly being implemented into the sport, and every one of
them has drastic effect on health. The anonymous bodybuilder was asked if he
had anything else he wanted to get off of his chest, he told the interviewer to
brace himself, and responded with one last comment, “They don't talk about how much drug [abuse]
there is. And it's not just the steroids. We've got to use speed and stuff like
that. We have to use a lot of diuretics, things that aren't too healthy, and
they don't feel good. Lots of guys are using cocaine-not just because they like
it, but it helps you get cut up, it helps you not eat. With drugs there's use
and abuse. But at our level I feel we're getting exploited, you know? They pump
us full of drugs...” Besides the steroids, bodybuilders are abusing countless
drugs. It’s astonishing what risks they’ll take in order to gain the
competitive edge. Because of steroids, bodybuilder’s have resorted to using
larger amounts of equally dangerous drugs, you could call it a gateway drug.
100% of pro bodybuilders use steroids simply because they have to in order to
compete. Without steroids or the Human Growth Hormone IFBB pro bodybuilder’s
wouldn’t be nearly the size they are today. When youth, or aspiring
bodybuilders look at the massive pros they think that it’s all hard work and
dedication and that someday they could possibly become their size without the
use of performance enhancing drugs. The bodybuilding and supplement
corporations are causing youth to aspire to create a body which would not be
possible without the use of steroids, and are contributing to the rapid use of
steroids in armature bodybuilding. “At our level I feel we're getting
exploited, you know? They pump us full of drugs...or we pump ourselves full of
drugs to make ourselves look like freaks, and we get on stage and that's our
job. But we don't get paid hardly anything. The guy who uses our pictures, the
supplement companies, make all the money, and they don't give us nothing. If it
wasn't for our picture, they wouldn't have nothing to promote.” It really is
sad how a corporation could be more concerned about money than the health of
their athletes (Holeman, Steve).
Steroids could possibly make our sports industry much more
exciting, but at what cost? Daniel Gordon’s documentary “Ben Johnson – The Race
That Shocked the World” underlines the key points of numerous steroid abuses in
the 1988 Olympic Games. In the film, Angella Issajenko, a former Canadian 100
meter record holder explained, “I remember Charley (Angella’s coach) saying
‘you know they’re all on performance enhancing drugs’ and I’m thinking oh my
god, if this is what my competitors are doing then I have to do this to.”
Similar to bodybuilding, steroids play a large role in our Olympic sports,
especially those that require a large amount of muscle mass. When your
competitor’s are using a performance enhancing drug that gives them a drastic
edge on the sport, it is difficult to keep yourself from abusing the same
substance. Charlie Francis, Ben Johnson’s coach explains the reason behind
turning to anabolic steroids, “Sooner or later your ability to succeed on
natural talent runs out when you run against the chemical barrier. The question
became, you know, do you take drugs and try to win or do you content yourself
with losing forever by staying away from them.” As an Olympic athlete, where
the sport is the most important thing in your life it’s difficult to accept the
fact that without the use of illegal drugs there’s no possible way of winning,
or getting close to winning. Robson Da Silva, a 100 meter sprinter in the 1988
Olympic games was one of the few athletes who wasn’t tested positive for
anabolic steroids, “I decided to not take it and lose, but those guys, during
the 80’s, they must have taken something! I just had to think about how hard it
was for me to be at practice every day and to run ten flat and those guys run
it easily. That’s the question that I need the answer for.” For players like
Robson, who prefer to compete clean and work harder for their results, it’s
unfair to compete with athletes who chose to use the drug. In the Olympic games
of 1988, nearly every single one hundred meter sprinter was tested positive for
steroid abuse (Gordon, Daniel). With this in mind, should steroids be illegal? The primary
reason why performance enhancing drugs are outlawed in professional sports is
that they give users an unfair advantage over the rest of the field. But, If each individual athlete is
administered the drug, with the same dosage and same frequency, is any
particular athlete gaining the edge? It’s a hard debate to take into mind and a
very controversial topic at the moment. Julian Savulescu, an
Australian philosopher and Bioethicists and Professor of Uehiro Practical Ethics at the University of Oxford, when
asked in a recent debate regarding the legalization of steroids in sports
responded with “To say that we should reduce drugs in
sport or eliminate them because they increase performance, is simply like
saying that we should eliminate alcohol from parties because it increases
sociability.” In Julian’s view, he believes that since steroids have been a
part of our sport industry for so long, they might as well be legalized. Arguing
against Julian was Dale Murphy, a former Major League Baseball outfielder who started the iWon't
Cheat Foundation to help rid sports of drugs, says: "We need better testing; harsher
punishments and people will decide not to get involved with
performance-enhancing drugs, if you gamble on the game in any way, shape or
form your career will be over." There are many different outlooks on the
use of anabolic steroids in sports and a few different believed solutions to
the problem (NPR). This is a difficult topic that is still being debated in out
sports industry.
It’s hard for our clean athletes to compete against athletes
with an unfair advantage. The sport industry is full of competitive players,
dying to gain the edge on their particular sport and many turn to steroids
without the knowledge or the care of the drug’s negative side effects. It is
obvious that steroids are a dangerous drug with a large amount of consequences.
Though the legalization of steroids could increase popularity and excitement in
our sports industry, the long term side effects on our athletes is not worth
the risk. If our athletes, students,
teachers and coaches are educated on the serious side effects of anabolic
steroids we could greatly reduce the risk of people unintentionally using them
without knowledge of the drug.
Works Cited
Hartgens,
Fred, and Harm Kuipers "Effects of Androgenic-Anabolic
Steroids
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13 Feb, 2014.
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Holman,
Steve “The Most Shocking Bodybuilder Interview Ever” Trulyhuge.com.
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Gordon,
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Stein,
Ann “Girls Using Steroids Should be Aware of the Adverse Side Effects” Lifestyles magazine. Lifestyles
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