remain too weak to support the newly developed muscles. This can cause injuries that are more severe and take more time to heal (Silverstein 45).
Many problems due to steroid use affect only males. High doses of steroids can cause shrinking of the testicles, reduced sperm count, impotence, baldness, development of breasts, and an enlarged prostate (Yesalis 115). The impotence and reduced sperm count are only temporary, but the other problems will plague the user for the rest of his life.
There are also side-effects which only affect the female. Although testosterone is produced in the female body in very small amounts, it is the male sex hormone; therefore, when it is given to a female in high doses, she will develop male characteristics. Female steroid users will develop facial hair, a deepened voice, and changes in menstrual cycle, and breast reduction (NIDA 6). These masculinizing effects can be very drastic. In the 1950s, Russian female athletes often had to submit to chromosome tests to verify that they were really women (Silverstein 21). All the problems mentioned have affected the user, but one problem affects outside individuals. This problem is what is known as "roid rage." "Roid rages" are uncontrollable periods of aggression due to the high levels of testosterone (NIDA 7). This aggression can lead users to commit violent crimes because of their frenzied state. Criminals charged with violent crimes are often tested for steroids because crimes related to steroid-induced "roid rages" are becoming more common (Silverstein 46). This may be the most severe side-effect of steroid use because it puts innocent people at risk.
When it was first introduced, the use of testosterone by weight lifters was thought to be a miracle, not the disaster we now know it to be. The first recorded use of steroids was in the late 1940s when Russian weight lifters used pure testosterone to train for the 1952 Olympics (NIDA 4). The 1952 Olympics were surprisingly dominated by the Russians, so other countries felt they needed to use steroids to keep up with these Russian monsters. Dr. John Ziegler developed a synthetic form of testosterone that he introduced to American Olympic weight lifters in 1960. The synthetic testosterone possessed the same anabolic qualities as pure testosterone but without excessively severe masculinizing side effects (Silverstein 21).
By 1963, Alvin Roy, strength coach of the San Diego Chargers, made the inevitable introduction of steroids into the National Football League (Yesalis 40). Steroids seemed to be a perfect fit because of the need for football players to be big, strong, fast, and mean. Football would never again be the same. Soon, many of the athletes that impressionable adolescents idolize were using anabolic steroids to get bigger, faster, and more aggressive. Steroids made their way into every NFL training room and locker room; they were as common as candy. Lyle Alzado, now dead due to a brain tumor linked to steroid use, said, "About 75 percent of the NFL players I faced were on steroids" (O'Brien 1).
Steroids are not limited to sports requiring huge muscles and superhuman strength, though. They also increase speed and endurance, so athletes participating in sports requiring these qualities have turned to steroids to improve. They have been detected in track, WWF wrestling, swimming,
basketball, and even baseball. In 1988 Canadian sprinter Ben Johnson was stripped of his world record and gold medal in the 100 meter dash because steroids were detected in his urine (Silverstein 7). This incident exposed the problem of steroids in international athletics to the world.
Adolescents, especially males, love sports and worship their favorite athletes. They work long and hard at reaching their goals of being professional sports stars. They emulate their favorite baseball player's swing or their favorite basketball player's jump shot, but now, with the help of the heartless steroid distributors, they can emulate their favorite athlete's steroid use. A 1988 survey by Penn State researchers estimated that 500,000 high school students had or were currently using steroids (Silverstein 24). Though great measures are being taken by the government and schools to educate and prevent, the use continues to grow because of our society's infatuation with the "perfect" body.
The medical field, until recently, had not helped the problem. Until 1985, the American College of Sports Medicine had held the opinion that anabolic steroids did not work. They said that steroids were nothing more than a placebo (James 5). Athletes on steroids worked harder and longer, and this extra work, not the dangerous levels of steroids, was causing the incredible muscle growth and strength increase. Whether it was ignorance or a simple denial to admit the truth, this "placebo opinion" obviously caused steroid users to lose faith in the medical field.
This loss of faith came back to haunt the medical field once they confirmed the benefits of steroids and also introduced the side effects. They had been wrong about the benefits for so long, so why should the users believe the side effects? They did not. This led to many users forming their own faulty theories on usage. Jim, a 19-year-old body builder from Ohio, represents part of this warped populace, "My philosophy is you can take them your whole life if you use them carefully. They're as good for you as aspirin as long as you don't stack six drugs at once" (James 3). Jim will soon realize that aspirin does not shrink your testicles, give you acne, and cause your liver to stop functioning. A drastic effort is needed to educate these oblivious users because in 15 or 20 years they will no longer be able to maintain their ignorant opinions; they will be dead.
If they are not dead, they may still be using steroids because of addiction. This issue has been the object of much debate in the steroid world. Charles Yesalis, widely regarded as a leader in steroid research, believes steroids produce a type of psychological dependence rather than an actual addiction (Silverstein 29). Other advocates of the non-addictive theory believe steroid users develop a disorder similar to anorexia, only reversed. This reverse anorexia is a belief by the user that no matter how big they get, they still appear small (Goldman 269). But most experts now believe that steroids are addictive. When use is stopped, the user experiences withdrawal symptoms similar to those of addictive drug users. The user will experience cravings, withdrawal symptoms, and depression (NIDA 8). This withdrawal can actually lead to schizophrenia and manic depression (Yesalis 167).
Another problem with steroids is that they are purchased on the black market. Steroids were very easy to get, often by a doctor, until 1990 when Congress passed the Anabolic Steroid Control Act of 1990. This made 27 anabolic steroids controlled substances (Silverstein 54). Controlled substances carry stiff penalties, so most doctors will no longer prescribe steroids to the average high school football player. The only place left to obtain them is the hazardous black market. The black market for steroids in the U.S. is estimated to bring in 100 to 400 million dollars annually (James 8). This makes steroids even more dangerous because black market drugs do not need to meet any regulations or standards. This can lead to harmful impurities. In some instances, people have used cortisone, a different type of steroid, or animal steroids instead of the anabolic steroids they thought they had received (Silverstein 44). This contamination can lead to deadly allergic reactions, in some instances. If the simple medical effects of steroid use aren't enough to deter a potential user, this black market contamination should make it a clear decision. It's not that simple, though.
One thing hindering the removal of steroids from major athletics is the fact that the users are one step ahead of the testers. Steroid tests can cost as much as $240, so these tests cannot be given often enough (James 6). The NFL tests for steroids randomly, but most other steroid-filled sports, such as weight-lifting and track and field, test only before major competitions. Oral steroids are water-based. This allows them to be out of the urine, the fluid used for steroid tests, in 10 to 14 days. So two weeks before a major competition, the athlete can temporarily discontinue the use to avoid detection. There are also masking drugs, like probenecid, that can stop the steroids from even entering the urine, and there are no tests for these masking drugs (Silverstein 68).
These techniques and drugs for hiding steroid use are very effective, but this behind-closed-doors steroid use poses an ethical dilemma: is it fair? Most athletes choose to train and compete with nothing more than hard work and determination, and that is the way sports were meant to be. Some athletes, though, choose to put their lives in danger to gain an unfair and unnatural advantage. The users do not see their use as morally wrong because steroids are available to just about everyone, so the other athletes can use them, too. But should other athletes feel the need to use steroids to keep up with the ignorant users? No. All health risks aside, steroids simply have no place in sports. They pose unnecessary problems and produce unfair benefits that most athletes would rather avoid.
It is obvious that anabolic steroid use in sports has become a severe epidemic, and it is growing everyday. It is, by far, the biggest problem in higher level, organized sports, but it does not receive adequate attention. The government has tried to stop the spread of steroid use with a multitude of programs, but these programs have done little. The government programs have not worked because steroids tempt ignorant or uncaring athletes everywhere. Their obsession with the short-term goal of excelling in athletics takes precedent over their long-term health. The proliferation of steroid use persists even with the long list of health, legal, and ethical dilemmas because of this faulty priority list. Steroid use in sports will remain a major problem as long as athletes everywhere put winning ahead of living.
"Anything of worth or value in life must be worked for." -Ralph Waldo Emerson
Works Cited
Goldman, Bob, and Ronald Klatz. Death In The Locker Room II: Drugs and Sports. Chicago: Elite Sports Medicine, 1992.
James, Michael. "Steroids: Bulk Up, Up." High School Sports Feb. 1989: 18- 22. SIRS "Sports", vol. 3, article 64.
National Institute on Drug Abuse. "Anabolic Steroids: A Threat to Body and Mind." NIDA: Research Paper Series 1991: 1-9. SIRS "Drugs", vol. 5, article 21.
"O'Brien, David, and Robbie Andreu. Rx for Disaster." Sun-Sentinel (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.) 14 July 1991: 1C+. SIRS "Drugs", vol. 5, article 31.
Schrof, Joannie M. "Pumped Up." U.S. News and World Report 1 June 1992: 54+. SIRS "Drugs", vol. 5, article 52.
Silverstein, Robert, et al. Steroids: Big Muscles, Big Problems. Hillside, NJ: Enslow, 1992.
Yesalis, Charles, ed. Anabolic Steroids In Sport and Exercise. Pennsylvania State University: Human Kinetics, 1993
