Should performance enhancing drugs be accepted

You needed — or at least you thought you did — an extra kick to boost performance when the going got tough.

Both sides to this debate put up a good argument but in the end I think it all comes down to health. International Society of Sports Psychiatry. In reality, these bans have done less to protect fairness and punish rule-breakers and more to discourage athletes from reaching the highest levels of success.

To do so, not only must the physiologic and psychotropic properties of each drug be considered, but also the individual characteristics of each sport and, more important, the individual biology of each athlete. When we see an exceptional performance, when we experience one of those moments of grace and excellence in ourselves, what makes it so special?

So how is this advantage different from the advantage that an athlete would get from drugs.

This figure is disconcerting when juxtaposed with the 26 therapeutic exemptions given just one year earlier in However, with the continuing advancement of medicine and particularly the application of psychotropic medicines, the sports psychiatrist will need to become an integral player in this complex social, moral, and medical drama.

Athletes take to drug to get a competitive advantage.

Advantages and disadvantages of performance enhancing drugs

When it comes down to it I believe that non-harmful performance enhancing drugs should be allowed in the Olympic games. This figure is disconcerting when juxtaposed with the 26 therapeutic exemptions given just one year earlier in The time has come for these agencies to develop a published, standardized policy that clearly and fairly defines which athletes meet criteria for psychiatric disorders and what drugs provide psychoactive properties that enhance performance. A medical system for athletes that ensures a fair and accepted standard for all individuals in a given sport needs to be established. On average there is a 1 in chance of making it onto the team. When I first asked elite athletes more than 30 years ago why drugs were being used, the answer was unequivocal: Whatever reservations you might have, no one wants to give up a competitive advantage, especially to someone who might not be as talented or dedicated as you but can get enough of an edge from drugs to beat you. The PGA Tough needs drug testing now. And according to one legend, cultivating power has become the most guaranteed route to a meal ticket in baseball. In contrast, the center player with ADHD who has difficulty disciplining him- or herself to stay near the basket may find that he or she is often out of position unless his or her ADHD symptoms are treated with medication. Pound RW. It will be extremely difficult for these players stay playing their sport until that age with the risks of damage it does to them. Principles for the psychiatrically aware sports medicine physician. Blood doping: Infusions, erythropoietin and artificial blood. Although sport psychiatrists are now finally being consulted, it is disconcerting that they do not sit on any major sports medical advisory boards. However, with the continuing advancement of medicine and particularly the application of psychotropic medicines, the sports psychiatrist will need to become an integral player in this complex social, moral, and medical drama. Download