SEMI OT - Athletes dying prematurely

[PromisedLand]

There is a lot of evidence, unfortunately, although, as you will see from this story, there is a lot of reluctance to acknowledge it. It isn't "athletes die young" but "NFL athletes die young", by the way.


http://www.cbc.ca/story/sports/national/2006/02/02/Sports/scripps_football_study060202.html

There is a lot of scientific evidence to support the thesis that obesity is a major contributor to early death. The fact that many NFL players are large men no doubt contributes to the mortality rate of NFL players. It seems that people here are looking for other reasons. I am saying I have not seen any scientific evidence that athletes, NFL or otherwise, have any shorter lifespans than the general population other than would be explained by their body mass.

 

[smg93]

Yes, you're right, many people here are looking for other reasons. All I am asking is if you are of the opinion that steroids maybe a culprit. It's a simple topic that only gets complicated when people bring other possible causes of death.

The question once again is do you think steroids is playing a part in the untimely death of athletes. That's it.

 

[DaBruinz]

Yes, you're right, many people here are looking for other reasons. All I am asking is if you are of the opinion that steroids maybe a culprit. It's a simple topic that only gets complicated when people bring other possible causes of death.

The question once again is do you think steroids is playing a part in the untimely death of athletes. That's it.

SMG -
Which is it? Steroids or Performance Enhancing Drugs? There is a major difference between the two.

Do I think that steroids is killing players early? Some, yes. Some of the major ones were named. But, this is nothing new. Its also why Congress stuck its nose in and is forcing harsher punishments for Steroids.

 

[smg93]

Actually, there isn't a major difference when it comes to IOC definitions. Steroids are considered performance enhancing drugs. I believe the reason they expanded the term from just steroids in the 70s, 80's, and 90's is that there were many drugs or paraphernelia that were developed that weren't based on products like stanozolol or other types of growth hormones which were big in the 70's especially because of its use by the then East German Sports Ministry. If you would rather I use more inclusive terminology then let's just call it "doping."

Honestly, I brought up this topic because it's interesting to me that there are many in this world who still see doping as bad because you could get caught. I find it extremely appropriate that the name of Barry Bonds comes up again. If you go to a site like si.com they have a poll that asks whether or not you would consider Bonds' record legitimate if he was caught doping. In other words, one could infer in some ways that doping was only bad for Bonds because he got caught.

What I'd like to see. is more people campaigning against doping not because it's cheating but because it has major effects on health. Honestly I'm surprised that there weren't more people on this board who spoke up against steroids because of this.

One of you mentioned earlier that these early deaths could be because of increased stress levels to the heart. While I casually joked that maybe it would be better if none of us exercised so we would live longer, if you looked at the idea of higher heart stress levels, there is a lot of merit to it.

Some forms of doping in humans and racehorses for that matter, do affect the heart's ability to pump out blood and oxygen to the bloodstream. That's why there are drugs that are banned in horse racing too because it could kill a horse instantly. That's a big concern for me because I don't want to see my kids if I had any, or my nephews using any performance enhancing drugs just so they could get better in sports. I think there should be a greater uproar amongst us as regular individuals over doping because of these health risks and not just because it is against the rules.

 

[shakadave]

Perhaps I should have been clearer about the premise of the question.

What I'm after are your opinions on whether or not the increased use of performance enhancing drugs is having an effect on the overall life span of steroids using athletes.

I've said it for years, Yes, this is exactly what's happening! It's clear as day to me, even without "scientific evidence".