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Issue date: 11/8/07 Section: Campus Life

Facts about steroids [Click to enlarge]

The world of sports has constantly demonstrated the tests of human strength, endurance and attaining personal goals.

Anabolic steroid and drug use in sports, however, has long created controversy and has also destroyed the careers of well known athletes like track star Marion Jones, who tested positive last year for the performance enhancing drug erythropoietin, or EPO.

If athletes are well aware of the repercussions — both physical and ethical — of steroid and drug abuse, why do they continue to use them?

"Most of them know that the damage is, for the most part somewhat minimal, and they know the performance improvements are significant. Most athletes, even if they think it will affect them, if they know that this is their way to the gold medal, they'll still use it," said Dan Wathen, head trainer of YSU's athletic department.

YSU junior Shawn Schumaker, Andrews Student Recreation and Wellness Center trainer, said that college athletes might use steroids because it gives them a competitive edge. If they see their professional sports idols using them, they too will be inclined to use, he said.

Wathen explained that while steroid use isn't as rampant at the college level it is more apparent in professional sports. He also said that even in the past, there has never been a great deal of steroid use at YSU.

Anabolic steroids are types of steroid hormones, like testosterone, that contribute to the process of protein synthesis in muscle mass production.

Wathen said that anabolic steroids, which are synthetic, are mainly used in power sports that require a significant amount of training and speed, but Schumaker estimates that most sports have some amount of steroid use in them and it's mainly just a matter of how effectively usage is hidden.

Although the likelihood of injury is increased while training and using steroids, Wathen said recovery time and physical endurance are also increased, thus giving athletes further reason to continue abuse.

Athlete or not, there are many risk factors involved with steroid abuse. For the less detrimental, abusers might begin to notice the appearance of acne, body hair growth/loss, clitoral enlargement, testicular shrinkage or increased blood pressure.

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