Josh Hivner

English 1201

Professor Snell

25 October 2020

Performance Enhancing Drugs

There are many different types of performance enhancing drugs, also known as PED’s,

that are commonly used today. Performance enhancing drugs are used by competitors in almost

every athletic event or sport. I will dig into the evidence of what performance enhancing drugs

can do to your body after extended usage. I will discuss the different types of PED’s and their

differences. I will look at the effects of PED use in athletic competitions, but specifically in

respects to bodybuilding. There are more and more PED’s available today, to the average person,

than there were in the past. I will also research the percentage of bodybuilders who use PED’s.

Do the benefits of using PED’s in bodybuilding outweigh the adverse effects that come with

them? Performance enhancing drugs, specifically anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS), are

currently not safe for human consumption because their production isn't controlled, and they

haven't been around long enough to see long term health effects.

Performance enhancing drugs were not commonly misused when they were first created.

The first PED to be misused was testosterone, and it is recorded that Olympic weight lifters were

using testosterone in 1954 (National). It wasn’t until almost thirty years later when more people

began to take advantage of the benefits of using PED’s. In 80’s many more people, typically

young males, began to use PED’s to improve their physiques and gain strength and or mass. In

1988 6.6 percent of male high school seniors reported having used steroids (Pope).
 Contrary to common knowledge performance enhancing drug use is far more prevalent in

non-competitor bodybuilders than top tier athletes. Most people hear about the use of PED’s

among elite level athletes on the news, but elite athletes are in the minority when it comes to

PED use. Many bodybuilders use PED’s to improve their physique and strength. The most

common type of steroid used by bodybuilders are AAS, also known as anabolic androgenic

steroids. SARMs are becoming a popular drug among bodybuilders in today’s society. SARM

stands for Selective Androgen Receptor Modulator. Anabolic steroids such as testosterone bind

to androgen receptors in tissues all over the body, whereas SARMs only bind to androgen

receptors in specific tissues. For example, SARMs bind to androgen receptors in the muscle

tissue specifically stimulating muscle growth, seemingly having less side effects.

The negative effects of PED’s are numerous, and a point of agreement for most experts

on the topic. For example, steroid misuse can cause high blood pressure, strokes, and heart

attacks. Steroid use also can have different effects on males and females. Some side effects

specific to males are balding, shrunken testicles, enlarged breasts, and infertility. Some effects

specific to females are deepening voices, increased body hair, decreased breast size, and more.

The effects of steroid use are not limited to physical changes but also mental changes. Studies

have proven increased aggression because of steroid use (Pope et al.) Steroid use typically causes

acne as well.

The biggest misconception about PED’s is that they are used exclusively by professional

athletes. In reality they are used by recreational bodybuilders to improve their physique than by

anyone else. Research shows that PED’s and AAS are not safe for human consumption and that

the adverse effects far outweigh the benefits. One big issue with most AAS is that there isn’t

enough research and data on their use. Most studies are performed on animals, and the studies
that do use humans have far too many variables to provide quality results. Another issue is that

PED use wasn’t mainstream until the 80’s and 90’s, so many users are still relatively young.

PED’s are not made for recreational use, and most are not even approved by the FDA.

Since most AAS are not approved by the FDA, and they are illegal there is no way to regulate

how the product is made and prepared. The companies that produce PED’s have no

accountability to produce a quality product that contains what they claim it does. They have no

standards to maintain the purity of their product. Greg Doucette talks about SARMs in a youtube

video and how over two thirds of the product you buy contains less substance than what the

dosage is supposed to be and might not even contain the active ingredients on the label

(Doucette).

In the article written by Sepehri it is stated that there is not a direct and obvious

correlation between age and steroid use in bodybuilders. Although there was a fairly even

number of steroid users from each age group in the study performed, most start steroid use in the

low twenties. In the other article written by Tayebi the author discusses the differences in the

available types of creatine and the effect it has on performance. The study concluded that the

difference in performance when using creatine monohydrate and creatine hydrochloride was

negligible (Tayebi).
 Works Cited

Chen, Jiyun, et al. “Discovery and Therapeutic Promise of Selective Androgen Receptor

Modulators.” Molecular Interventions, U.S. National Library of Medicine, June 2005,

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2072877/. 

Doucette, Greg, director. SARMS || 20 Supplement Labs Tested! THE RESULTS!!! Youtube, 14

Sept. 2020, www.youtube.com/watch?v=JcFrjMeHBO4. 

Mayo Clinic Staff. “Understanding the Risks of Performance-Enhancing Drugs.” Mayo Clinic,

Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research, 18 May 2019,

www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/fitness/in-depth/performance-enhancing-drugs/art-

20046134. 

National Institute on Drug Abuse. “Introduction.” National Institute on Drug Abuse, 25 June

2020, www.drugabuse.gov/publications/research-reports/steroids-other-appearance-

performance-enhancing-drugs-apeds/introduction. 

Pope, Harrison G, et al. “Adverse Health Consequences of Performance-Enhancing Drugs: An

Endocrine Society Scientific Statement.” Validate User, 1 June 2014,

academic.oup.com/edrv/article/35/3/341/2354633. 

Sepehri, Gholamreza, et al. “Frequency of Anabolic Steroids Abuse in Bodybuilder Athletes in

Kerman City†This Article Has Been Published in the Journal of Rafsanjan University of

Medical Sciences in Persian Language.” Addiction & Health, Kerman University of

 Medical Sciences, 2009, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3905495/. Accessed 9

November 2020.

Tayebi, M, and H Arazi. “Is Creatine Hydrochloride Better than Creatine Monohydrate for the

Improvement of Physical Performance and Hormonal Changes in Young Trained

Men?” Shibboleth Authentication Request, 2020, www-sciencedirect-

com.sinclair.ohionet.org/science/article/pii/S0765159719302011?via=ihub. Accessed 9

November 2020.