Paper Example - Should Performance Enhancing Drugs Be Acceptable in Sports?

The use of drugs to enhance sports performance has been a topic of great debate in the current world of sports. Their usage is associated with many risks and a lack of fairness. The use of drugs in sports should be done away with in sports. The drugs are associated with various disadvantages such as health risks, lack of fairness in sports, and encouraging the younger generation to use the drugs in sports. This paper focuses on the usage of performance-enhancing drugs in sports.

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Study shows that allowing drugs to enhance performance in sports will cause a deterioration of the health status of a person under use since drugs such as steroids are only prescribed to people with health issues under supervision by medical professionals. Medical staff in the sporting sector should find ways to counter doping tests. They should rather discuss better ways to be followed by the players, which would lead to greater performance. Without medical supervision, the players work out by themselves; this can pose an increased risk to their health (Loland, 2018). The associated medical staff would rather be present to specifically administer drugs to the players, which would improve their performance safely. The players' health risks will be reduced by putting more rules for the medical staff concerning performance-enhancing drugs.

Doping in sports is the action of taking drugs to enhance performance by players, drugs such as testosterone and anabolic drugs are taken by players by players to increase the mass of their body and enhance performance, which is associated with several side effects risking their health, which in some cases may cause death. The drugs have some side effects on both genders, which are considered irreversible. According to a certain health clinic, the side effects on women and men can be hair loss, severe acne, rupture of the tendons, tendinitis problems, and problems in blood circulation and heart circulation. The above effects for starters, can further cause mental problems and changes of behavior. Cases of aggression and depression have been reported by people who have ever been under steroids. Reports from the Institute of national drug abuse show that those abusing performance drugs have been violent to other people by physical and verbal aggression. The drugs have a list of health problems like behavior and mental problems, but there are several issues concerning drug-enhancing performance in sports (Loland, 2018).

Drugs enhancing performance create room for unfair advantage in sports. Some may think of it as a level ground for those without the natural ability to be okay at a certain sporting field such as athletics, but the case is not true. Sports such as football, cycling, baseball, athletics, and others should be relied on practice and natural talent. Natural abilities for those born with talent are taken away by unfairness in sports. The use of drugs in athletics makes the athletes gain a level playing ground and be more advantageous. In the future, if the usage of drugs in sports is legalized, those without money to purchase them will suffer an unfair advantage but would rather be available for those with money.

Drugs enhancing performance in the modern world of sports raise an issue of major concern whether their use should be acceptable in sports as their use is questioned. Using drugs in sports as a player encourages the youth to consider their usage instead of progressing their career naturally or even motivating them against their usage. To consider whether the use of performance-enhancing drugs in sports should be allowed, all the concerns and risks associated with them should be considered. Generally, the use of drugs in sports puts the players' health at risk, mental state, and behavior, and creates room for unfairness in sports.

References

Loland, S. (2018). Performance-enhancing drugs, sport, and the ideal of natural athletic performance. The American journal of bioethics, 18(6), 8-15. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/15265161.2018.1459934

Loland, S. (2018). Response to open peer commentaries on "performance-enhancing drugs, sport, and the ideal of natural athletic performance." The American Journal of Bioethics, 18(7), W1-W3. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/15265161.2018.1474963