Should performance enhancing drugs (such as steroids) be accepted in sports? Standard Site Proponents of accepting performance enhancing drugs (PEDs) in sports argue that their harmful health effects have been overstated, that health risks are an athlete’s decision to make, that using drugs is part of the evolution of sports much like improved training techniques and new technologies, and that efforts to keep athletes from using PEDs are overzealous, unproductive, unfairly administered, and bound to fail. Oponents argue that PEDs are harmful and potentially fatal, that athletes who use them are cheaters who gain an unfair advantage, violate the spirit of competition, and send the wrong message to children. They say PED users unfairly diminish the historic achievements of clean athletes, and that efforts to stop PED use in sports should remain strong. Core Question Top 10 Pros & Cons Did You Know? Historical Timeline Comments

Sports and Drugs ProCon.org is a nonpartisan, nonprofit website that presents facts, studies, and pro and con statements on questions related to the use of performance enhancing drugs in sports. This website uses the term "performance enhancing drugs" to mean legal and illegal drugs that are considered to enhance performance in sports. The term "performance enhancing" is sometimes spelled with a hyphen and sometimes without. We have opted for the unhyphenated spelling.

Pros & Cons by Category CORE QUESTION   Should performance enhancing drugs (such as steroids) be accepted in sports? Performance Enhancing Drugs   What are performance enhancing drugs?   Why are some performance enhancing drugs legal while others are banned?   What are some examples of legal performance enhancing substances that athletes are allowed to use?   Is a potential negative impact on the athlete's health a valid reason to ban performance enhancing drugs in sports? Steroids   What are steroids?   Should steroid use be accepted in sports? "Blood Doping" and Erythropoietin (EPO)   What are "blood doping" and erythropoietin (EPO)?   Should "blood doping" and erythropoietin (EPO) use be accepted in sports? Stimulants   What are stimulants?   Should stimulants use be accepted in sports? Human Growth Hormone (HGH)   What is human growth hormone (HGH)?   Should human growth hormone (HGH) use be accepted in sports? Hall of Fame   Should baseball players who have used banned substances be voted into the Hall of Fame? Drug Testing   Drug Tests Used in Sports   Are the laboratories used to test athletes for performance enhancing drugs credible and reliable?   Are existing testing efforts effective in detecting the use of performance enhancing drugs?   What are the 19 known methods of cheating to pass performance enhancing drug tests?   Is the 2009 WADA "whereabouts" rule (requiring professional athletes to report three months in advance where they will be for one hour every day) an unfair invasion of athletes' privacy? Moral and Ethical Issues   Does the use of illegal performance enhancing drugs by some athletes coerce other athletes to also use them to remain competitive?   Does the use of performance enhancing drugs violate the "spirit of sport"?   Is there an ethical difference between using performance enhancing drugs and using performing enhancing technologies in nutrition, training, and equipment?   Do athletes gain an unfair advantage by using performance enhancing drugs? Olympics   How many athletes have committed doping violations at the Olympics?   Is there widespread systemic use of banned performance-enhancing drugs by Olympic athletes?   What performance enhancing drugs have been or are banned in the Olympics?   Should the teammates of athletes who are found guilty of using performance enhancing drugs in the Olympics also return their medals? Public Policy   Should the use of performance enhancing drugs in sports be legalized?   Should the US Congress be involved in setting drug policies for professional sports?   Would allowing performance enhancing drugs in sports decrease fan turnout, revenue, and corporate sponsorship? Athletes as Role Models   Do teens use performance enhancing drugs to emulate their professional athlete role models?

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