Methods used to research long-term effects of drug use in sport

Discovering Society – Formative assignment

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Describe and evaluate the methods that have been used to research the long-term effects of performance enhancing drugs in sport

In this essay I will look not only at the methods that have been used to research performance enhancing drugs, but firstly at the main reason for athletes feeling the ‘need’ to take these drugs. Secondly, I would like to give a brief overview of the drugs that have been banned by the world anti doping agency.

In my opinion the main reason for athletes taking such measures is all to do with the commercialisation of sport, and the extreme pressures put on athletes to perform and win; hence the term ‘win at all costs’ Vince Lombardi famously quotes ‘Winning is not a sometime thing; it's an all the time thing. You don't win once in a while; you don't do things right once in a while; you do them right all the time. Winning is a habit. Unfortunately, so is losing’. It is this ethic combined with commercialisation that makes the pressure so great, and therefore performers use drugs. Coakley (1994) refers to commercialization in sport as ‘a social process in the course of which a field of activity, for example, sport, becomes monetarised and dominated more and more by the search for profit.

The world anti-doping agency (2004) compiled a list of banned substances, which they divided into categories. For my essay I am going to look specifically at only a few of these categories.

Anabolic agents: Anabolic Androgenic Steroids (AAS) are synthetic versions of the hormone testosterone. Testosterone is a male sex hormone found in large quantities in most males and in some females. Anabolic Androgenic Steroids fall into one of two categories: 1) exogenous steroids are those substances that are not capable of being produced by the body naturally, and 2) endogenous steroids are those substances that are capable of being produced by the body naturally). Athletes use them to increase muscle size and strength, reduce the amount of time required to recover after exercise, and to train harder and for a longer period of time.

Now I will describe and evaluate some of the methods used in researching drug use.

This is a preview of the whole essay

Now I will describe and evaluate some of the methods used in researching drug use.

There have been various studies concerned with the use of anabolic steroids particularly with Russian and American athletes. Dr. John Ziegler an American physician was a medical officer at the 1956 Moscow world games and first witnessed the first clues that soviet athletes were using testosterone. He then returned to America and informed various sports and medical organisations about the soviets use of steroids, and believed them to be gaining an unfair advantage. To understand some of the benefits Dr. Ziegler obtained some testosterone and used it on himself, a US weightlifting coach Bob Hoffman, and on several east coast weightlifters. Ziegler noted the increase in muscle build, and the anabolic effects as ‘impressive’. However, he was concerned about side effects. According to Voy (1991), Ziegler aided a leading pharmaceutical company (CIBA) in the development of dianobol or (methandrostenolone), an anabolic drug. This drug reduced the common side effects of testosterone use, namely: acne, hair loss, prostate enlargement, and shrinkage of the testicles. Dianobol was initially intended for aiding patients recovering from severe burns, but what Ziegler did with dianobol was ‘critical in the spread of anabolic drugs in sport’ (Todd 1987). Ziegler began to administer the drug to 3 weightlifters. The gains in muscle mass and strength were rapid, and they soon began to approach world record level. Other lifters soon began to crave information about the sudden improvement that had been made, and it soon became known that the lifters success was associated with the use of dianobol, and according to Voy (1991), anabolic androgenic steroids became very popular, quickly. So much so, that Todd (1987) estimated that by one third of the American track and field team had used steroids prior to the Mexico Olympics. Ziegler could not have imagined that his methods in producing a performance-enhancing drug would have such unprecedented long-term consequences. His actions, like all human actions were constrained by a complex network of relationships of which they are likely to have at best, only a limited awareness. When Dianobol hit the global market, athletes were known to be taking high doses. It was only then that Ziegler ‘realised the mistake he had made introducing the drug to the athletic community’, and it dawned on him that he had ‘created a monster. A fact he regretted for the rest of his life’. (Voy, 1991)

Blood doping is also a very common performance-enhancing drug. According to Gledhill & Norman (1982), The intent of blood doping is to increase maximal aerobic power by increasing the capacity of blood to carry oxygen. This manipulation gained notoriety in the sports world because of rumors of blood doping by competitors in endurance events. Kalinski et al. (May 2003) found evidence of a state-sponsored blood doping programme in the former Soviet Union. They found information regarding the development and use of blood doping in the former USSR, which was previously unknown in the west. They found that both the Department of Biochemistry and the Division of Bioenergetics of the Central State Institute of Physical Culture in Moscow (USSR) had carried out research programs devoted to the application of ergogenic aids in the training of top athletes. According to Volkov (1990), all the work was ordered and sponsored by the USSR's State Sport Committee and the procedures involving blood withdrawal, storage, and preparation for transfusion were performed at the Central State Institute of Hematology and Transfusiology. It was found that Aerobic and anaerobic powers were assessed before and after blood letting as well as after blood reinfusion. Volkov (1990) observed a dramatic increase in maximal oxygen consumption (VO2max) during a training season in swimmers undergoing blood doping, when compared with the control group. Kalinski et al. (2003) concludes the evidence revealed that the practice of blood doping was pervasive in the USSR. Middle and long distance swimmers, cyclists, rowers, skiers, biathlon athletes, and skaters used this procedure in the 1976 and 1980 Olympic games. The methods used to obtain this data I believe are quite conspicuous. Firstly, how was the data suddenly obtained, when it was previously unknown in the west for years? Information of this importance is not suddenly released ‘off the cuff’. Secondly how can kalinski et al. (2003) be so sure that this programme was in use at the 1976 and 1980 Olympics? Therefore is the evidence completely reliable?

Another popular method of performance enhancing involves diuretics. According to Goebel (2003), Diuretics are pharmaceutical drugs, which are used to increase urine flow by promoting the excretion of water by the kidneys. Their potent ability to remove water has caused diuretics to be misused in sport where rapid weight loss is required to meet a weight category. For example in Weightlifting and Horse Racing.

Diuretics are often used as part of weight-loss diets, particularly in women. Cole (1993) highlights the growing emphasis on cosmetic fitness and thinness among women, and the need for displaying ‘heterosexualised hard bodies’. This emphasis relates to the long-term effects on participation in sports by women. Many women who do participate in sport combine physical activity with weight-control behaviour that produces the desired effect of a lower body fat, but deprives them of nutrients, and increases the likelihood of injuries. Studies by Barr (1987) have shown numerous accounts of women using diuretics in conjunction with their training. Reents (2002), explains that some diuretics have very adverse effects in themselves. Furosemide can cause quite large changes in electrolyte balance and impairment of the body’s cooling mechanisms. Obviously the long-term effects are not good, but such is the pressure to obtain that ‘slimline’ body, that people, (mostly women) use drugs to get it. The methods used are particularly valid, and shows that not all drugs are ‘performance enhancing’, but actually have the complete opposite effect.

Reference List

Gledhill, Norman (1982) – Medicine and science in sports & exercise

Goebel et al. (2003) – Rapid screening methof for diuretics in doping control using automated solid phase extraction & liquid chromatography.

Official journal of the Amercian college of sports medicine (Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins)

Sport & exercise Pharmacology – (Reents 1999)

Sport, Health & Drugs – A critical sociological perspective – Ivan Waddington (2000)

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