What do athletes Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire and Rafael Palmeiro have in common? Aside from the fact that they are all-star baseball players, they have all used steroids in their baseball careers(Barousse). Steroids have been a developing problem in sports today. More and more athletes are resorting to using anabolic steroids to get that edge in their respective sport. Anabolic steroids are harmful to the body, and they should not be used in sports.
What are Anabolic Steroids? Many people ponder this question everyday because not everyone knows what anabolic steroids are. Anabolic steroids are man-made forms of male sex hormones called androgens(Gavin). These substances act like testosterone, the most potent and common hormone in men(Adler). Anabolic steroids have several effects on the body including: increases in muscle mass, bone growth, strength, protein synthesis, and appetite(Anabolic Steroids). Although anabolic steroids are effective in doing what they intend, they are extremely dangerous to the body and produce numerous side effects.
The history of anabolic steroids dates back all the way to ancient Greece where the athletes were known to use natural steroid substances to increase growth and size of the body. During the early 1930's, German scientists accidentally found steroids in today’s pharmaceutical form, but because of a lack of interest, there’s wasn’t any further research done(Anabolic Steroids).Additionally, anabolic steroids were used to aid both lack of testosterone and premature testes(Lewis). After a pause of approximately twenty years, anabolic steroids were given their first attention scientifically since methandrostenolone or dianabol was permitted by the Food and Drug Administration(FDA) to be used in the United States following positive trials in other countries. Because of inconsistencies of usage of anabolic steroids through the 1960's and 1980's, people began to question whether or not the steroids had any real effect. Some years...