Performance Enhancing Drugs By: Ethan Scherer, Wade Rothermich and Emily Caise

What are performance enhancing drugs? They are substances taken to make athletes perform better. They are used primarily to gain excess muscle mass, cut weight, or gain alertness/energy. They are looked down on especially in NCAA sports and Olympic events.

Different types of performance enhancing drugs Lean Mass builders (anabolic steroids, Human Growth Hormone) Stimulants (amphetamine,caffeine) Diuretics Blood doping agents (erythropoietin)

Lean Mass Builders Anabolic Steroids- anabolic steroids mirror the effects of testosterone in the body. -Steroids rapidly increase protein synthesis and cellular tissue in muscle cells (this causes muscles to grow and repair faster) Steroids can be taken by method of: injection, orally (pills), skin patches and creams and gels.

How to spot someone on Steroids Increased aggression Severe acne Rapid changes in muscular growth. http://www.healthandsuppliments.com

Human Growth Hormone (HGH) Human Growth Hormone- Is a Hormone that stimulates growth, cell reproduction, and regeneration in humans. -Human growth Hormone is only attainable through Pharmacies in the United States. -Commonly used in infants and younger children to promote growth and size.

HGH continued It also increases protein synthesis just like an anabolic steroid does. HGH is most commonly taken through injection and can be seen being used in sports such as: football, baseball, ice hockey, MMA, and other sports where physical strength and endurance are key components of the sport.

Creatine Creatine- Creatine is not a vitamin, whole food, Herb, or hormone. Creatine is a naturally occuring Amino acid that is found in the human body. Creatine can be naturally consumed by eating meats, fish, as well as eggs and dairy products. Taken by mouth, pills, powders, liquids.

Purpose of Creatine Creatine aids the production of energy in the human body. Creatine helps replenish ATP (adenosine triphosphate) which is diminished during physical activity. Creatine is common in the sports of- Ice hockey, football, lifting, sprinting, wrestling and many others to name.

Erythropoietin Erythropoietin is a hormone that is generated by the kidneys. Erythropoietin helps in the formation of red blood cells in bone marrow. Kidney cells that produce Erythropoietin are tuned to respond to low oxygen levels in the blood.

Erythropoietin Continued Once red blood cells are produced by the bone marrow, hemoglobin synthesis occurs which helps transport the new large amounts of red blood cells. Also referred to as “Blood doping” More common in Cardio Athletes- Cyclists, Runners etc.

Stimulants Stimulants- Are drugs that temporarily increase mental and physical functions and focus. They make the athlete feel more awake or alert. Three major types of stimulants used in sports are: Amphetamine, caffeine, and cocaine.

Stimulants continued Amphetamine is commonly taken by mouth and is known by its slang name “speed”.

Diuretics Diuretics keep the body from reabsorbing sodium, which makes urination occur more frequently. Medically diuretics have been used for heart failure, liver cirrhosis, kidney disease, and hypertension. In the world of sports diuretics have been used to quickly expel the body of its liquids so the athlete can cut excess weight needed to compete. Commonly used in MMA, Wrestling, boxing.

Why do athletes use performance enhancers?

#1 Reason Athletes use Performance Enhancers COMPETITIVE EDGE OVER OTHER ATHLETES. Athletes are extremely competitive and will do anything possible to be better than someone else. If they stay better than other athletes they will always have a spot on the team. Athletes have a desire to be one of the top players in their sport They want to be in the spotlight They strive to be a well known athlete throughout their sport

SKILL DEVELOPMENT Athletes use performance enhancers so they will prolong their careers. Athletes sometimes feel as if they plateau in their skill so they will take the drugs to keep improving. Athletes normally do the same type of training all the time so in order to increase the intensity of it they use performance enhancers. Athletes never stay the same, you are either getting better or getting worse.

PRESSURE FROM COACHES Once athletes get to higher levels in their sport their coaches get more and more serious and demanding. Coaches will do anything they have to in order to win. Athletes look to use steroids so they will perform at a high level and impress their coach. Some athletes want to impress their coach too much so they set their expectations too high and pressure themselves into using the drugs. Sometimes the coaches expectations may be too high and they put the athlete through so much that the athlete feels that it is the only possible way to succeed for the coach.

STRESS OF BEING AN ATHLETE Athletes are under an enormous amount of pressure which may cause them to make rash decisions. They have to be able to handle all of the training they have to go through. An athlete may not be playing well and begin to doubt their skill so they turn to alternatives. During the course of a season an athlete’s mind may play all sorts of different games with itself and force quick decisions. Athlete’s are always in danger of being replaced so they look for any way possible to keep their skills at a high enough level.

Media/fans No matter what happens an athlete is always being criticized by either media or fans. On and off the playing field an athlete is watched for just one little mistake. They are always told that they are not good enough and never will be so they do whatever they can to try to free themselves from all of the pressure. Through all of the criticism an athlete may begin to doubt his real talent and turn to alternatives to prove himself to his fans. Some athletes desire the media to talk about them so they take steroids to increase their game and be more noticed. www.eulex-kosovo.com

FAMILY/FRIENDS Some athletes think that if they are an amazing player in their sport they will get all sorts of friends and be popular so they do whatever it takes to get to that level. Some athletes may not be very good so they use performance enhancers to become better and more well known. Most athletes have families that have extremely high expectations so the athlete does what he feels he has to in order to achieve them. Also, athletes do not want to feel as if they let someone down if they do not make it to the pros so they use steroids to insure that they will become a pro.

Role models All athletes have role models; someone that they want to be like. Well if an athlete sees that his role model took steroids and it helped him than that athlete will most likely take them as well. If an athlete feels he/she will never be like their role model by their own skill that athlete will look to use steroids to help reach that level. Athletes do whatever it will take in order to be like their role model; no matter what the cost.

Curiosity There are some athletes that take steroids because they are wondering what it feels like. If they know someone who took them and became a better athlete than the other athlete will begin to wonder… What would happen to me if I took steroids? They want to be able to answer the question; Do steroids really work? They wonder about how good they could really become if they would take steroids. Many people use them so why not How bad can the side effects really be?

Performance Enhancing Drugs and Their Side Effects http://www.etalaze.net/news.php?newsid=185

Anabolic Steroids: Common in Men: Prominent breasts Shrunken testicles Infertility Common in Women: A deeper voice An enlarged clitoris Increased body hair Promotes muscle building and is responsible for male traits such as facial hair and a deeper voice. http://www.isteroids.com/Anabolic_Steroids/Anabolic_Steroids.html

Anabolic Steroids (cont) Common in Men/Women: Severe acne Baldness Increased risk of tendinitis and tendon rupture Liver abnormalities and tumors Increased LDL cholesterol (the "bad" cholesterol) Decreased HDL cholesterol (the "good" cholesterol) Hypertension Heart and circulatory problems Prostate gland enlargement

Androstenedione (Andro) Common in Men: Acne Diminished sperm production Shrinking of the testicles Enlargement of the breasts Common in Women: Masculinization, such as deepening of the voice and male-pattern baldness In Men and Women: Decrease HDL cholesterol (the "good" cholesterol) which puts you at greater risk of heart attack and stroke.

Human Growth Hormone Joint pain Muscle weakness Fluid retention Carpal tunnel syndrome Impaired glucose regulation Cardiomyopathy Hyperlipidemia

Diuretics Dehydration Muscle cramps Exhaustion Dizziness Potassium deficiency Heart arrhythmias Drop in blood pressure Heatstroke Death

Creatine Stomach cramps Muscle cramps Nausea Diarrhea Weight gain Damage to kidneys or liver

Stimulants Nervousness and irritability make it hard to concentrate on the game. Insomnia can prevent an athlete from getting needed sleep. Dehydration Heatstroke Athletes may become psychologically addicted or develop a tolerance so that they need greater amounts to achieve the desired effect, meaning they'll take doses that are much higher than the intended medical dose. Other side effects include: Heart palpitations Heart rhythm abnormalities Weight loss Tremors Mild hypertension Hallucinations Convulsions Stroke Heart attack and other circulatory problems

Is it worth it?

Works Cited Creatine.com. What purpose does creatine serve exactly?.  MMUSA 1993-2012. Medicinenet.com. What is erythropoietin?. 1996-2012 MedicineNet, Inc. www.nlm.nih.gov. medlineplus. Anabolic steroids. September 2011. http://www.mayoclinic.com. Mayo Clinic. “Performance Enhancing Drugs: Know the Risks.” December 23, 2010. Web. 10 January 2012.