Performance Enhancing Drugs in Sports

Performance Enhancing Drugs in Sports

Performance Enhancing Drugs are a big temptation in any athlete's life. Are performance enhancers as bad as they are made out to be? Melissa Winkller, and author of the Vegetarian Times in New York states, "Sport supplements are at best a waste of time." Agree or not, the history and facts of performance enhancers will tell you what these drugs can do to your body; the good, the bad and the ugly. Ant decision a person makes that warrants putting a substance into their bodies can destroy not only your reputation, but your life as well.

Performance enhancers have been a major part of any athlete's life since the early Greek times. According to Wikipedia.com, the first recorded attempt for athletes to increase their performance was during the 8th century BC Greek Olympics. During that time, it was documented that Greek Olympians ate sheep testicles. This act gave athletes a boost in energy to compete. Later, scientists have said that this strange feast was a good source for a testosterone boost in early Olympic games.

In 1904 Thomas Hicks won the marathon at the St. Louis Olympics and collapsed at the finish of the race. It was later found that the had mixed brandy with Strychnine to get his gold medal.

The first recorded fatality of enhancers was in 1967. Tom Simpson died during the Tour de France. During the doctor's examination of the athlete, 2 tubes of amphetamines were found in the rear pocket of his racing jersey.

The 1988 Olympics marked the first time an athlete was stripped of his gold medal. This occurred when sprinter Ben Johnson tested positive for anabolic steroids.

His gold medal was given to silver medal winner Carl Lewis who, ironically, was later found to also using enhancers during his Olympic career.

Perhaps the most significant downfall of American athletes occurred in July of 2005 when the California's Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative pleaded guilty to steroid distribution and money laundering. The list of athletes on the Co-Operative was even more damning than the guilty plea. These athletes included Barry Bonds, Jason Giambi, and several members of the Oakland Raiders.

There are many different performance enhancers that are taken for various reasons by athletes. According to an article by Craig Freudenrich, PHD called "How