Anabolic Steroids

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Anabolic Steroids: Article Summary
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Summary:
In the eyes of the sports community, athletes who use hormones to enhance their performance
are doing irreparable harm to themselves and the sport as a whole. Academics haven't spoken
much about athletes' drug use in the past, and that's not likely to change anytime soon. Even
while there are now a lot of popular pieces on athletes who use steroids, the background of this
problem is seldom examined, nor is any substantial proof provided. This article is an attempt to
shed light on the history of this heinous component of modern sports and to explain why it exists.
Athletic use of ergogenic performance-enhancing drugs is not a new phenomenon. Many sports
fans are surprised and dismayed by the fact that anabolic steroids, a relatively new addition to
athletes' arsenals, may increase performance in contexts beyond a single competition. They may
potentially alter the athlete's body for good.
Many sports fans worry that anabolic steroids have ruined the industry and that the current
efforts to combat them are too little, too late. In addition to tainting justice and jeopardizing
sportsmen's health, the major problem with these chemicals is that they deny the audience. They
want us to infuse the arenas with a healthy dose of cynicism and provide a new rationale for
attending games. Nowadays, it's not enough to just watch a world record and marvel at the
incredible achievement the athlete can accomplish through the unification of ability and will.
Ultimately, these rumors may cause people to lose interest in watching sports. Because the
struggle in sports is so clearly between reality and perspective, rather than man vs man or
woman, it has always been fascinating.
In other words, what is realistic? To begin, testing is useful if it is done appropriately and the
results are used to motivate change. Studies show that testing reduces performance levels,
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leveling the playing field for those who choose not to cheat. Recent legislation in places like
California and Florida prohibiting the prescription of steroids for any reason other than medically
approved therapy will also have an impact on the use of these steroids.
The Key Passage:
“The use of ergogenic performance enhancing-drugs by athletes is certainly not a new
phenomenon. What is new, and distressing to many who observe sport, is that these more recent
additions to the athletes’ bag of tricks anabolic steroids-have the power to do more than simply
enhance an athlete for a single, isolated athletic event. They can physically alter the athlete,
sometimes permanently. Tam’s use of steroids, for instance, left her with noticeable hair on her
chest, enough facial hair to produce a beard and mustache, the beginnings of male pattern
baldness, clitoral enlargement and a significantly lowered voice. Whether she also suffered
internal side-effects is unclear. She did not get her drugs from a doctor and she had no tests
made. But she knows, just as the many thousands of other athletes who regularly take steroids
know, that liver dysfunction and an increased susceptibility to cancer, cardiovascular disease,
prostatic enlargement, and infertility are also all associated with the use of steroids.”
I feel that this is the most essential part of the article as it gives a well accounted summary of the
effects of doping on one of the interviewed user. This makes the article more informative and
delivers on its main role which is to give information in a warning fashion against the use of
steroids. This part of the article also elaborates clearly on the topic and I feel that if one would
read just this part they would gain a great understanding of what the entire article contains.
Strength/weakness:
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In terms of strength, I feel that the writers of the article really nailed the point home by providing
a well-researched write up. The article contains a lot of information that is in flow and accurate
to the tip. The use of interviews in the article and personal examples sparked life into the article
and made me feel as if the article was more human and less robotic in the sense that it did not
just issue a list of don’ts and do’s when it comes to the subject matter, but provided authentic
examples and evidences to drive its point home.
The weakness I would like to highlight is that the article did not have a conclusive remark or
statement. It ended in an unclear portion that left me as a reader without closure especially as to
what is the best alternative to the growing menace of doping.
Personal response:
In my personal response I have learnt that a wide range of adverse health effects has been
connected to athletes' use of anabolic steroids in performance-enhancing drugs. Some authorities
believe that the primary advantage of using anabolic steroids for athletes is not the increase in
muscle mass that the medicines cause, but rather the stimulation of the central nervous system,
which may result in a more aggressive performance in both training and competition. This view
is supported by the fact that the most common side effect of using anabolic steroids for athletes
is an increased risk of developing liver cancer.
I was also shocked to find out that a lengthy history of drug usage has been prevalent in the
athletic community dating back to the ancient Greek periods, and anabolic steroids are only one
example. In addition to their moral uprightness, the ancient Greeks were well-paid professionals
who experimented with a variety of "medical" procedures to improve their performance in
Olympia, which is the location of the modern Olympic Games. As much as 10 pounds of lamb
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was consumed daily by wrestlers in ancient Greece, which may have contributed to the term
"high protein diet" becoming increasingly widespread.
I also enjoyed the lively way the authors included the real world interviews into the article
making me feel that I was actually reading a topic that had relevance and relatable to this century
especially with the recent sporting and doping allegations. I have understood deeply the side
effects of this drugs and will always champion against them.

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Anabolic Steroids: Article Summary

potentially alter the athlete's body for good.

woman, it has always been fascinating.

The Key Passage:

“The use of ergogenic performance enhancing-drugs by athletes is certainly not a new

examples and evidences to drive its point home.

what is the best alternative to the growing menace of doping.

connected to athletes' use of anabolic steroids in performance-enhancing drugs. Some authorities

is an increased risk of developing liver cancer.

who experimented with a variety of "medical" procedures to improve their performance in

"high protein diet" becoming increasingly widespread.

effects of this drugs and will always champion against them.

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