Anabolic Steroids In Professional Sports

The most critical part of playing a sport is being healthy. However, many athletes choose to use an unhealthy drug, called Anabolic Steroids. Anabolic Steroids increase testosterone production in the body and can lead to increased muscle mass and more masculine physical characteristics. Most athletes use them knowing that the drug could terminate their career and cause them bodily harm. Good coaches would warn their players about the use of performance enhancing drugs. Bans on illegal drugs in sports are the rules of the game that need to be enforced by required drug screenings and need to have strict penalties for failing the tests. Under a 1988 government law, it is unlawful to convey anabolic steroids for non-therapeutic uses. (Quezzaire, 2) Knowing the punishment, athletes still use performance enhancing drugs, such as steroids. Professional athletic organizations began to ban steroids in the early 1990’s. The ban is known as the Anabolic Steroids Control Act of 1990, which made the
First time offenders in the NFL are suspended for a quarter of the regular season. (“Bad Sports,” 2) In the NBA for your first offense, you would get suspended for five games. (“Bad Sports,” 2) And in the MLB you would get suspended for 10 days. (“Bad Sports,” 2) In 2012, legendary cyclist Lance Armstrong was stripped of his professional wins, including seven Tour de France championships, amid accusations that he used performance-enhancing drugs throughout the peak of his career. (Quezzaire, 3) The penalties for cheating are small. A five game or 10 day suspension from competition is a small penalty to pay for multimillion dollar success. Many athletes who continue to use steroids, even after the first offense, have been banned from competition for good. (Lee,2) Playing a sport competitively is not mandatory until you have signed and agreed to participate in the sport, after that you are agreeing to obey the rules. (Lee,