Steroid Drug Test example essay topic

He is at the 40, the 30, the 20, the 10, the 5, TOUCHDOWN! Can you imagine the joy of having 100,000 people shouting your name and cheering as loud as they could just for you? The adrenaline rush one receives when playing in front of large crowds is an irreplaceable feeling that only popular athletes experience. Nearly 200 American athletes who were aspiring for the Olympics were asked if they would take a banned substance that would guarantee them victory in every competition for the next five years, but at the end of those five years it would cause their death. More than half said they would take it. (Hens lin).

Over years with the evolution of football, the pressure on athletes has grown to its highest level ever. The public eye is on these athletes all hours of the day, which creates such an intense atmosphere never seen before. The feeling of satisfying those thousands of fans is becoming more and more addicting. Because of this phenomenon, "natural" athletes are being cheated because other athletes are using performance-enhancing drugs, like anabolic / androgenic steroids that would help them greatly to improve their performance.

The increase in the number of athletes using these drugs is inversely proportional to my personal interest and involvement in football. Since the competition is getting more and more unfair for those "natural" competitors, I declare myself against those cheaters that are degrading such of beautiful sport by taking performance-enhancing drugs. Athletic competition has been part of society since the early beginnings of man. Gladiators, wrestlers, and sprinters are some the early types of athletes that competed. Mankind seems to have been born with a desire to compete; every man feels the need to have dominance over other men. Football gives individuals that chance to be better than another person, just as the earlier sports did.

The inbred desire to dominate will lead football players to do almost anything for victory. This is good in many cases because it shows courage and perseverance. On the other hand, many have taken it to the extreme of using outside agents to better their chances for dominance, like performance-enhancing drugs. Traditionally, football has been associated with integrity, honor and honest effort; however, the changing face of today's contemporary society's attitude, morals, and standards existing within it has brought with it many changes to this sport. Today's athletes have a constant drive to be the best and to win. They would do anything to succeed in their athletic journey, because in our times nobody cheers for losers.

It is in our nature to try and to cheer for the best. The fear that athletes have of loosing that God-like status has pushed a couple of friends into this world of unethical rules. In professional and collegiate football leagues, the use of performance-enhancing drugs is looked upon as a serious problem. It is given that these drugs are dangerous for the athlete's health, but the usage is also very discrete and low key.

The use of performance-enhancing drugs, in an attempt to enhance sporting performance, is often referred to as doping. It is thought that the word 'dope' originated from the South African language. Dope referred to a primitive alcoholic drink that was used as a stimulant in ceremonial dances. Gradually, the term adopted a wider usage and in reference to sport, it became known as 'doping'.

In today's sporting context, doping refers to the use by athletes of banned substances or methods that may enhance performance (Poison Control). Anabolic / androgenic steroids are by far the performance-enhancing drugs most used by football players, and it has been around for quite a while; first in the military usage and later on in the civil usage. Anabolic / androgenic steroids were first used in World War II. Anabolic steroids were reportedly given to Hitler's troops to increase their aggression. The illegal use of drugs to enhance athletic ability had been made since the 1950's. The Russian athletes were the first to use anabolic / androgenic steroids in official competitions and in 1960's Olympics Games, for the first time, The IOC (International Olympic Committee) detected a case of doping, when a cyclist using amphetamine collapse and died during a race (Sports Medicine).

The list of athletes that have died from the consumption of steroids is extensive, but out of the entire list I would like to point out Professional football star Lyle Alzado. Lyle Alzado suffered an agonizing brain cancer death as a result of years of steroid abuse. Mr. Alzado confessed the same year he died (1998) that he had been abusing of steroids since 1969. He admitted during his pain-racked final days, "It was addicting, mentally addicting. Now I'm sick, and I'm scared. Ninety per cent of the athletes I know are on the stuff.

We " re not born to be 300 lbs or jump 30 ft. But all the time I was taking steroids, I knew they were making me play better. I became very violent on the field and off it. I did things only crazy people do. Once a guy sideswiped my car and I beat the hell out of him. Now look at me.

My hair's gone, I wobble when I walk and have to hold on to someone for support, and I have trouble remembering things. My last wish? That no one else ever dies this way". (Memorial to Lyle Alzado) Why do athletes risk chronic debilitating diseases and death by taking steroids? These drugs have immediate results. You may have heard them called 'roads, juice, hype, or pump.

Anabolic steroids are powerful drugs that many athletes take in high doses to boost their athletic performance. Anabolic means, "Building body tissue". Anabolic steroids help build muscle tissue and increase body mass by acting like the body's natural male hormone, testosterone. In a relatively short time, athletes would pack on pounds of muscle and increase strength dramatically. Weight training and using steroids maximizes their gains.

There are two ways for Anabolic Steroids administration: Oral, in the form of pills, and injected with a needle. Oral steroids are the first choice for athletes who want to rapidly improve their performance and try to escape from the drug test. Unhappily, these drugs are the most toxic and which have more side effects. Injectable steroids are less potent and generally exhibit delayed uptake into the body, especially if they are oil-based diluent's. They have less liver toxicity than oral steroids, but they are easier to find in urine drug testing. Some athletes take higher doses, called "mega doses", to produce faster results.

Others gradually increase the amount they take over time, which is called "pyramiding". Taking different kinds of anabolic steroids, possibly along with other drugs, is a particularly dangerous practice known as "stacking". There are several side effects of steroids, high blood pressure and heart disease, liver damage and cancers, stroke and blood clots, urinary and bowel problems, such as diarrhea, headaches, aching joints, and muscle cramps, nausea and vomiting, sleep problems, increased risk of ligament and tendon injuries, severe acne, especially on face and back, and baldness. In males, one of the more disturbing effects of steroid use for males is that the body begins to produce less of its own testosterone. As a result of producing less self-testosterone males will experience a reduction of the size of their testicles, reduced sperm count, impotence, increase in nipple and breast size, and an enlargement of the prostate. Females will suffer of a reduction of breast size, enlarged clitoris, an increase in facial and body hair, deepened voice, and menstrual problems (Sports Medicine).

Knowing the high risk of suffering chronic debilitating diseases and death, the National College Athlete Association (NCAA), for the safety and fairness of their competitors, has been testing their athletes for the past couple decades, but drug tests haven't been enough to stop athletes to stop taking these drugs. Athletes have found ways to pass the test. According to various reports prepared by known steroid experts, it is possible to pass a steroid drug test. The theory behind successfully passing a steroid drug test revolves around the management of anabolic steroid metabolites. Cycling the steroid stack with use of certain anabolic steroids that have short half-lives may control steroid metabolites, meaning their detection time in the body is extremely short.

Additionally, choosing to use anabolic steroids in small amounts may keep the metabolite levels below the cutoff levels used in a steroid drug test. This once noble sport, based on hard work, individual achievement and sportsmanship has been degraded into a sport of greed and winning at all costs due to these cheaters. The increase in the number of athletes using these drugs is inversely proportional to my personal interest and participation in the sport, because the competition is getting unfair for those natural competitors. These contemporary heroes are not setting a good example for future generations. This last paragraph accurately summarizes athletics current state and the opinion held by a lot of member of the general public.