Top 10 Performance-Enhancing Drugs In Sports: 2025 Guide

Questionable use of medications and supplements have also been reported in the U.S. armed forces, fire and police departments, amateur athletics, and even high schools. Andro is legal to use only if a health care provider prescribes it. Androstenedione, also called andro, is a hormone everyone’s body makes. The body turns andro into the hormone testosterone and a form of the hormone estrogen. Seven major thematic clusters of research were detected in the DCA network.

Performance-enhancing substance

• The legal challenges arise from the need to balance the rights of athletes with the imperative to uphold the principles of fair play and sportsmanship.
• That means providers can prescribe only limited amounts at a time and all refills require written approval.
• Most side effects are reversible if you stop taking the drugs, but others may be permanent.
• The intention behind using these drugs is to gain a competitive edge or enhance one’s physical appearance.

Greek athletes in the Olympic Games were known to consume special diets and herbal concoctions to enhance their performance2. However, the modern era of PEDs began in the 1950s with the development of anabolic steroids. These synthetic substances, which mimic the effects of testosterone, were initially used for medical purposes but quickly found their way into the world of sports. With all the information, attention, and debate over performance-enhancing drugs (or PEDs), many people want to further understand how performance-enhancing drugs affect one’s body.

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• Large doses of the male hormone cause the body to produce additional estrogen.
• Misuse of certain drugs, supplements, and practices can give athletes an unfair advantage.
• Most professional sports organizations, including the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and major leagues like the NFL or MLB, have strict bans on the use of performance-enhancing drugs.
• It represents a complex negotiation between human potential, technological innovation, ethical considerations, and the fundamental spirit of athletic competition29.

This is why the side effects are usually more Performance Enhancing Drugs severe than the side effects of prescribed anabolic steroid use. Anabolic steroids are medications that are manufactured forms of testosterone. The technical term for these compounds is “anabolic-androgenic steroids” (AAS). “Anabolic” refers to tissue building (mainly muscle), and “androgenic” refers to a group of sex hormones called androgens. Many of the side effects are the same for men and women, Smit says. Men on anabolic steroids may experience baldness, breast growth, and shrinking testicles, according to MedlinePlus.

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In the NBA, all players are subject to four random tests per season, and the league conducts reasonable-cause testing. Similarly, in the NFL, players are tested up to three times per year at random. Surprisingly, in the MLB, players are only subject to the test within five days of reporting for spring training and one other test on a randomly selected date, in addition to random tests in and out of season. The frequency with which players are tested https://ecosoberhouse.com/ also varies greatly among professional leagues.

PED use poses widespread physical risks

Manipulation of blood is often called “blood doping.” Blood doping can take many forms, such as storing blood and then reinjecting it later to improve the amount of oxygen that can be carried. Beta-blockers are banned during the competition period in all WADA-monitored sports. They are also banned year-round in certain sports that require precise eye-hand coordination due to their anti-tremor effects. Cannabis and related substances are banned during the competition Sober living home period.

The concept of fair play lies at the heart of the performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) debate. Sports are fundamentally built on the principles of equal opportunity, where athletes compete based on their natural talents, training, and dedication. Performance-enhancing drugs create an uneven playing field, undermining the core ethical foundations of athletic competition23. The use of anabolic steroids increases irritability and aggression, often referred to as «roid rage.» This can lead to violent behavior and mood swings. Diabetics need to take insulin because their bodies don’t produce enough (or any) of it, but it’s also used by bodybuilders to facilitate protein synthesis (i.e., muscle growth) by enhancing nutrient storage and inhibiting protein breakdown.

By comparison, only 3 games have been missed by Pittsburgh Steelers players due to suspension, while the Indianapolis Colts dwarf that number with 54 games missed. Suspensions related to substance abuse saw a sharp uptick in the NFL beginning in 2012, jumping to 82 suspensions in 2012 from 21 suspensions in 2011. Note that, in the map below, ‘third strikes’ are calculated as 16-game bans. This represents the minimum term for a third offense under the NFL’s old policy, which was replaced in 2014. Notice that roughly half of these suspensions are attributed to “undisclosed” substances. For first offenses, the Commissioner’s Office often keeps the substance involved undisclosed, putting the onus on the player to withhold or share that information with fans.

Even if you’re not a competitive athlete, it’s a good idea to be careful about taking PEDs since there may be legal and health risks. There’s no precise definition of which drugs are considered PEDs, but the term is often used specifically to refer to drugs that appear on the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA)’s banned substance list. Most major sports federations ban medications that appear on this list. Some athletes may seem to get an edge from performance-enhancing drugs. Diuretics are drugs that change the body’s balance of fluids and salts. They can cause the body to lose water, which can lower an athlete’s weight.

• These drugs might lower the damage that happens to muscles during a hard workout.
• Utilizing medical screenings, longitudinal studies, and collaboration between sports organizations and healthcare professionals are crucial for early detection and intervention to safeguard athletes’ health.
• Research has not found either substance to be effective for the enhancement of athletic abilities, and both decrease the high-density lipoproteins in the blood, which increases the risk of cardiovascular disease.
• Athletes looking to gain an edge may misuse this drug to achieve it.
• Such was the case in the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games, when sprinter Ben Johnson set a world record in the 100m dash but was stripped of his gold medal after testing positive for stanozolol.

The global fight against performance-enhancing drugs is led by several key organizations. The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), established in 1999, serves as the primary international body responsible for coordinating and monitoring the global anti-doping effort19. WADA works closely with international sports federations, national anti-doping organizations, and governments to develop and implement comprehensive anti-doping policies.