Draft Two

The pursuit of the perfect physical form and proportions has been a goal that man has pursued for thousands of years. Examples of humankind's pursuit for a perfect physique can be traced back to some of the earliest civilizations with depictions of the human body in sculptures, painting, on ceramic pots, and all kinds of other forms of art. However, this sculpting of the body into its perfect form, also known as bodybuilding, has been difficult to achieve until the advent of science provided us with the means to achieve that ideal with the use of performance enhancing drugs. But when these new tools became available, there were many who disavowed them, pointing out how their use in sports such as bodybuilding was akin to cheating, and limitations and restrictions on steroid use in bodybuilding quickly sprung up. Personally, I believe that steroid use in bodybuilding shouldn't be out right banned from the sport, but should rather be permitted but controlled and regulated. For this research essay I chose to examine the two sides to the argument over steroids found in this community, and asked the question of whether or not steroids should continue to be banned in the sport of bodybuilding.

To understand the debate over the use of performance enhancing drugs and other sports, one must first know a little bit about the development of steroids into their modern form and history of their use. The development of steroids can be traced back to the 1950, when Dr. John Ziegler, the physician for the U.S olympic weightlifting team, heard of the Soviet weightlifting team injecting their athletes with testosterone to enhance their performance in the 1954 World Weightlifting Championships in Vienna.(Butt) Dr. Ziegler proceeded to test the effectiveness of testosterone on several of the Olympic lifters, but was disappointed by the lack of any clear improvements or results, and therefore stopped any further experiments for the duration of the 1950’s. However, in 1955 Dr. Ziegler partnered with the company CIBA pharmaceuticals on the development of a testosterone derivative that would produce beneficial results without the negative results. After some testing the first “modern” steroid was released to the prescription drug market in 1958.(Butt) Then,in 1959 Dr. Ziegler resumed his efforts of improving the Olympic team, and had several more athletes try out the new Dianabol, with much more promising results. (Butt) Through the efforts of Dr. Ziegler, the first effective steroids were created, and their use became widespread throughout the bodybuilding community.

With the creation of these new performance enhancing drugs, the sport of bodybuilding entered new era. Athletes like Lou Ferrigno and Arnold Schwarzenegger rose to prominence at this time, and are considered to be the alpha and omega of the sport due to their incredible physiques, popularity, and charisma.(Bateman) For some time, it was thought that these athletes had reached the peak of human performance, until the arrival Dorian Yates, who “Though only five-foot-nine, Yates competed at a lean 270 pounds through the combination of a maniacal training program with precise steroid usage that was stacked with growth hormone” (Bateman) This is a far cry from the earlier days of the sport when anabolic steroids were first introduced, when Arnold Schwarzenegger never exceeded a competition weight of 235 lbs. Although these increases in the size and lean mass obtained by athletes is seen as a boon for the sport, there are those who are quick to point out the health risks that go along with such heavy substance use and high levels of training.

Doctor Gholamreza Sepehri recently conducted a study in Kerman City, Iran to see what percentage of the population of bodybuilders abused anabolic steroids. They conducted this study to get a grasp of just how much of an issue steroid abuse was in their area, but mainly so that they could then inform the public of the potential health risks involved in abusing anabolic steroids. In the study, the researchers qualify and quantify what counts as an anabolic steroid, as well as what is considered to be high enough doses to warrant concerns for user’s health and wellbeing. The study also not only provides statistics for steroid abuse in the city of Kerman, but also in other places around the world such as the United States. For example, in the study the researcher point out that in the United states, “Nelson et al reported that 11% of American high school students abused anabolic steroid drugs and the rate of abuse was higher among students who were active in bodybuilding, weight lifting or other sports” This study not only provides insight into how many people in a population make use of anabolic steroids, but also provides an argument against their legalization, citing how their use, “causes hormonal disorder and other complications on the other hand. Long term use of anabolic steroid drugs may lead to various complications including high risk of heart attack, cardiac arrest, sudden death, behavioral disorders such as aggressiveness, paranoid psychosis, prostate hypertrophy, liver cancer, and elevated hepatic enzymes.”

While the long-standing opinion is that the use of steroids in competition provides an unfair advantage and is often immoral, there are those who argue for their legalization. Smith provides a legitimate argument for steroid use, arguing that it makes sense from a business perspective since it would increase athletes’ performances and therefore make the sport that they are a part of more interesting. The author also argues against the proposed health concerns involved with steroid use, citing how athletes are already putting themselves in harms way just by stepping out onto the field, providing a specific example with, “Just last year, a media car ran Johnny Hoogerland off the road during the Tour de France, sending him headlong into barbed wire”

Mr. Smith isn't the only one who believes that the current ban of anabolic steroids is antiquated and unnecessary,

While both sides of the argument for and against the use of anabolic steroids provide strong reasoning for their views, I believe that the use of steroids should no longer be outright banned from bodybuilding and other competitive sports, but should rather be controlled and regulated.