PED use in Athletics
Performance enhancing drugs have been used by athletes for decades. In ancient Greece, some of the earliest Olympians used substances in an attempt to gain a competitive advantage. The drugs that they would use would either be plant seeds or extracts of mushrooms. Later in Rome, gladiators were known to have turned to drugs. The gladiators would dope for many different reasons, from dulling pain to creating a bloodier spectacle for viewers. In professional baseball, players like Barry Bonds and Jason Giambi were called in front of Congress to discuss steroid use in baseball for two weeks. Congress insisted that steroids were ruining the sport and needed to be banned when, in reality, reported revenues were vastly increased during the steroid era. Congress also preached about a level playing field, but the New York Yankees have a payroll three times that of average teams so how fair can the league really be without a salary cap. This research paper is not on the fairness of baseball though; it is about why a person would choose to do PEDs and how it affects society. Looking at some of the influences presented; it is shown that winning is a major force, a motive and drive; going deeper into winning we conclude that money is one of the major rewards for winning. These are seen as endorsements, contracts, and advertisement opportunities that are very profitable and also sponsor individual players and teams in sports. These revenues influence and encourage individuals in sports to preform or use enhancements, these revenues give a higher social status in society’s class system known as “social Stratification” that would give the individuals power property and prestige (Weber’s theory). This is the dominant force that makes individual achieve on the bases of winning. You look at the people over in third world countries especially who can go to the states and make millions of dollars for playing baseball or any sport for that matter and be able to feed their family and get out of survival mode, that’s why I understand why people do use PEDs but that doesn’t mean I agree with them, it just means I understand why. Another highly controversial issue with PED’s in sports is the fact that many athletes who have stand out seasons or put up higher than usual numbers, or record faster than usual times are often accused of achieving these feats by using PED’s. This causes the athletes who do achieve these feats to be unfairly associated with the use of PED’s.
Have you ever wondered what happens to athletes who are caught using steroids? It makes the news, the athlete is criticized by the world, but what punishments do they actually receive? Rafael Palmeiro, a baseball great, was given a ten-day suspension after testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs. What kind of example are we setting for our young athletes? Pete Rose made a mistake by gambling on baseball and he was given a lifetime suspension and a ban from the baseball Hall of Fame (Michael Jordan, 2006). This gives the impression that steroid use is not necessarily a big deal. Who cares about a ten-day suspension? You still get to continue playing with your team and still have an opportunity to “earn” your way into the Hall of Fame. We need to have stronger punishments for athletes caught using performance-enhancing drugs. These drugs are bad for the body, for the team, and for the family. Performance-enhancing drug use has extreme negative effects on the body. Many common side effects and psychological symptoms occur from their use. Just a few of the side effects include: liver tumors, kidney tumors, jaundice, fluid retention, hypertension, increases in LDL (bad cholesterol), decreases in HDL (good cholesterol), severe acne, trembling, enlarged facial bones, nausea, vomiting, bone pain, and muscle cramps. Psychological effects include, but are not limited to, depression, irritability, inability to concentrate, forgetfulness, lack of interest or energy for everyday life, aggressiveness, violent behavior, paranoia, and manic episodes

The only way to remove the PED abuse problem from athletics starts by changing the attitudes of the nation as a whole. Society must rid itself of the preconceived notion that bigger, stronger, and faster at any cost is better. Becoming the best should be just as important as the way in which it was achieved. People must have a no tolerance rule when it comes to PED use in sports. In the incident of catching an athlete abusing this drug the sporting world should shun him denying him of all his accomplishments, and banning him from competing again. Until society takes a tough stand like this; the lives of good athletes and good people will remain in the balance.