This text presents research findings on the use and abuse of steroids in sports and exercise, and information on steroid use within professional sports and among Olympic athletes. In addition, information on drug use among international student athletes, adolescents and body builders is explored.

Anabolic steroids have traditionally been controversial in the sporting arena. Today, research indicates a dramatic increase in the use of anabolic steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs outside of competitive sports. With evidence of widespread steroid abuse among the general population, health professionals are citing the emergence of an

The first edition of this work, published in 1982, concentrated on the athlete's use of and the physician's knowledge of, anabolic steroids. This fully updated second edition discusses the continuing controversy over their use in competitive sports. An introduction of the use and abuse of anabolic steroids is followed by chapters on such topics as anabolic steroid compounds, the anabolic-to-androgen ratio, basic principles of muscle building, current anabolic steroid preparations, anabolic steroid regimes used by athletes, the enhancement of athletic performance, adverse physical effects and mental health risks, the classification of anabolic steroids as controlled substances, growth hormones and other anabolic hormones, the limits of urine drug testing, medical applications of anabolic steroids, muscle building and ergogenic supplements, and addictions.

Doping, Performance-Enhancing Drugs, and Hormones in Sport: Mechanisms of Action and Methods of Detection examines the biochemistry and bioanalytical aspects of performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) and other questionable procedures used by athletes to enhance performance. The book informs the specialist of emerging knowledge and techniques and allows the non-specialist to grasp the underlying science and current practice of the discipline. With clear and compelling language appropriate for a broad spectrum of readers, this book provides background on prevalence, types of agents, their actual or supposed benefits, and their negative effects on health. The technical aspects of detection are discussed, followed by a discussion of why detection is a problematic and still-evolving science. To facilitate comprehension, each chapter is organized in a uniform way with six sections: (1) standard medical uses, (2) why the drugs are used by athletes, (3) biological mechanism of action, (4) what research says about efficacy in improving performance, (5) major health side effects from use and abuse in sport, and 6) concluding key points. - Presents the scientific concepts of how performance enhancers work, how they are used, and how they are detected and masked from detection - Features language that is neither simplistic to scientists nor too sophisticated for a large, diverse global audience - Provides a short "close-up in each chapter to illustrate key topics that engage, entertain, and create a novel synthesis of thought

"This thin volume will be well used by students, coaches, parents, and educators who want to build up their knowledge of the issues surrounding steroids."WILSON LIBRARY BULLETIN

Anabolic steroids are powerful drugs that can increase strength and body weight quickly. They are illegal without a doctor's prescription and are banned from athletics. Steroid use puts athletes at risk of being thrown out of competition, and it can cause a multitude of health problems -- even death. Despite the dangers, many people -- both men and women -- use steroids to achieve an ideal body or success in sports. In Steroids, Sports, and Body Image: The Risks of Performance-Enhancing Drugs, author Judy Monroe describes what steroids are, how they work, and why people misuse them. She highlights the disastrous effects of steroid use and steps that have been taken to curb it. And she offers an alternative for young people -- drug-free training tips to help them achieve athletic success in a healthy way. Book jacket.

Anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS) remain the most used/abused drugs in the athlete and recreational gym user. However, there are some new drugs such as human growth hormone and insulin that are being used by athletes in order to gain a competitive advantage. This book presents separate and multi-disciplinary perspectives of anabolic androgenic steroids and other current drugs of use in sport. The perspectives discussed in this book range from those of sports medicine research scientists, a medical practitioner and sports physician, behavioural scientists and molecular physiologists. There are further contributions from experts in the sociology and ethics of sports doping.

This book brings together an interdisciplinary group of experts in bioethics, sports, law, and philosophy to examine the need for regulating such athletic performance-enhancing technologies as steroids and gene doping. The use of performance-improving drugs in sports dates back to the early Olympians, who took an herbal tonic before competitions to augment athletic prowess. But the permissibility of doing so came into question only in the twentieth century as the popularity of anabolic steroid use and blood doping among athletes grew. Sports officials and others—aided by the development of technologies to test participants for proscribed substances—became concerned over the physical safety of athletes and competitive fairness in sporting events. In exploring the culture, ethics, and policy issues surrounding doping in competitive athletics, the contributors to this volume detail the history and current state of drug use in sports, analyze the distinctions between acceptable and unacceptable usages, evaluate the ethical arguments for and against permitting athletes to avail themselves of new means of improving athleticism, and discuss possible future doping technologies and the issues that they are likely to raise. They explain how and why some athletes resort to doping and assess what the fair opportunity principle means in theory and practice and how it relates to the concept of an equal opportunity to perform. This frank discussion of doping in sports includes accounts by former elite athletes and offers an illuminating exchange over the meaning and value of natural talents and genetic hierarchies and the essence of fair competition.