Hormones Doping in Sports - Article Example

HORMONES DOPING IN SPORTS Abstract Hormones are the essential chemical elements in the body. The blood is the reservoir of the hormones that run through our body and our responsible for many changes that occur in the body because of the many hormonal actions. The changes include increase in growth, height, neural responses, changes in the behavior and many other changes related to the body functions. The functioning of the hormones is age related. As the age increases the functioning and effectiveness of the hormones decreases, as it occurs in the aging process. In the modern age of biotechnology, the hormones, proteins, are being produced in the labs as they are produced in the human body. These natural products in many cases are the drugs to many diseases. These are thereby available over the counters easily. There is a human urge of keeping on the top and keeping young and active for life. This urge is specifically higher in sportspersons. We are very well aware of the doping in the sportspersons. The term doping means the intake of the medicines or the drugs that enhance their bodily functions as strength, stamina, energy and growth of the muscles. The increase in the strength, stamina and the muscular strength gives an advantage to the doping sportsperson over the other sportsperson. Therefore it is considered to be illegal for use. There is a list of doping substances that has been issued and particularly banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). This list is published annually and is being distributed all around the world to the sports doctor to be updated. Keywords: hormones; doping; World Anti-Doping Agency. THE WORLD ANTI-DOPING AGENCY (WADA) Doping is one problem that is uprising as the time passes in the sportsperson. It has been there in the field d of sports since many years. It is being tried to control since years but the race does not seem to stop. It seems to increase day by day (1). The increase in the strength, stamina and the muscular strength are the factors that make the sportspersons survive the competition that they have to face on the daily basis. But as far as the hormones are concerned there efficiency dies with the increase in age. It worries the sportspersons. Additionally the hormones work in a limited way. The hormones will increase the strength of the body to the limit to which it is required; the muscular strength will be increased to the limit to which is required. However in the filed of sports, constant strength is required as the sportspersons have to compete and the workout for longer periods of times as compared to the normal people. For that, the hormones do not seem to help the sport persons. Extreme levels of strength are required in the case of the sportspersons and that is gained by in taking the artificially prepared medicines or hormones for gaining of strength (2). HISTORICAL ASPECT OF DOPING The Olympics first started in Greece and than continued to make the progress in the whole world. Inviting more and more sportspersons from all over the world to compete in more than hundred kinds of games. Since the Olympics have come known to the people, since than the doping is going on (1). The sports persons are looking for ways to increase the strength in artificial ways. The history shows that the pre historic sportsperson were used to eating figs to increase there artificial strength in the Greco roman times. It took years for the sports organizations and the sports authorities to realize that the doping is illegal. The reason of illegality falls in many prospects. The illegal doping leads to medical complications in the sports persons and in the end as a result of the side effects the sportspersons depend on the doping and there performance is affected (3). STEP AGAINST THE DOPING The step was taken in 1967. The international Olympic committee (OIC) took a step against the doping by making the medical commission. This medical commission started the introduction of rules related to anti doping. All the rules were properly made. It was made sure that the rules are properly circulated among the doctors who are in the fields of sports as well as the sports persons show that they are aware of the fact that the doping is considered illegal (2). The first list of all the prohibited drugs and t he doped was also released in the same year so as to increase the awareness. INTRODUCTION OF OFFICIAL MEDICAL DOPE TESTS The first medical tests that were carried out for the dope testing was in the year 1972 during the Munich Olympic Games. In the year 1983, during the Caracas Pan-American Games, the screening and testing of the sportspersons urine samples was introduced to the world. The blood tests for the presence of dopes were introduced in the years 1994 during the Lillehammer Winter Olympics (1). BEGINNING OF WADA The WADA (World Anti-Doping Agency) first stepped on the map on the word, in the year 1999. The idea emerged on the papers during the IOC conference that was basically held on the issue of the use of dopes by the sports persons in the sports. In this very conference the IOC and the related countries’ governments agreed to create and establish an independent agency that promotes and makes the people around the world aware of the fight against the dope in sports on the international scale (4). WADA is also responsible for the development of World Anti Doping Code and all the standards that are related to the code. It is included in one of the main responsibilities of WADA. The World Anti Doping Code is the code that constitutes the foundation for coordination of anti doping rules and regulations across all sports and on the level of all countries (3). THE DOPES IN SPORTS When it comes to using the illegal substances or medicines in the field of sports to gain strength to increase the muscular strength to have an advantage over the other opponent; it comes in the definition of doping. For the sports organizations and the authorities the knowledge of identification and the ways of using the doping substances is becoming a challenge. As the time passes the use of the doping in the sports field is increasing and the challenge that is faced by the sports organizations is also increasing. By the time and the development of the technology the world of sports has seen the development of more and more sophisticated drugs and dopes for the sportspersons. The developments have also lead to the making and designing of the drugs that are undetectable by the detectors . For a substance to be in the anti doping list, going by the code of WADA, there is a criteria set and the substance has to fall in those particular three categories. The two particular categories that the substance has to meet are; the substance must be having the property of enhancing the sports performance, it should be risky for the health of the sports person. More importantly the code gives the idea and the principle of the strict accountability which holds the sports person is held responsible for the presence of the illegal substance in the blood and that also makes the sportsperson violate rule of anti doping (3). If the sportsperson, according to the rules laid down by the WADA is found to be guilty of violating the rules set out by the IOC than the person is to be held responsible and guilty of such an act and that is irrespective of the intention of the person (4). EFFECTS OF DOPING SUBSTANCES In the case of the substances that are related to be in the list of doping they are those substances that are directly related to increasing the strength, higher energy production, and better recovery from the fatigue. It is also related to the increased protein synthesis in the body which is indirectly related to the energy production in the body, especially in muscles, and increased attention or the feeling of courage and confidence and loss of fear against any opponent. All these are the properties that count to adding up to the competitive advantage to sportspersons (5,6). KINDS OF PROHIBITED SUBSTANCES The substances that are included in the prohibited list by IOC are divided in two origins. The first origin that has been defined by the IOC is the exogenous origin which includes the substances that are not naturally produced by the human body. The second category is the endogenous substances that include those doping substances that are produced in the natural mechanisms by the human body. The examples of the exogenous substances include the Synthetic anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS) that include the steroids as methyl testosterone and nandrolone. The examples of the endogenous hormones that are produced by the human body and are misused by the sportspersons include the human growth hormone (hGH), erythropoietin which is released from the kidney and helps in making the red blood cells, testosterone which helps in the sexual maturation, and insulin which is responsible for the control of the glucose levels in the blood (4). MIRRORS TO ENDOGENOUS HORMONES The mentioned endogenous hormones that are naturally produced by the body, there are many other products that are produced in the labs. The potent and the effectiveness of these artificially produced endogenous product is more. The greatest advantage of the artificially produced products is that they are undetectable by the various kinds of tests that the sportspersons have to go through (6). The artificially produced endogenous products are very much related to the natural hormones. Now we will see as to which substances are considered to be the potent doping substances (3). USE OF ANDROGENS IN SPORTS Androgens are the widely misused drugs in the sports. The androgens are also hormones that are misused in the sports for the purpose of growth and muscular strength. The androgen is considered illegal to be used in sports since a period of three years. The tests that are considered is used to test the presence of androgens in the blood. The days and the time we live in is the time of fast technology. The technologies have far improved than they were 3 decades ago. There was a time when sportspersons were openly using the designer androgens as they were undetectable but now advancements have made this kind detectable and they are added in the prohibited list as well (2). Still many ways are being discovered to design new androgens that can successfully escape the detection procedures of the tests. To make all these discoveries impossible, the scientists have to work on knowing the structure and composition of the androgens that is detected by the tests. ANABLOIC ANDROGENIC STEROIDS These are the class of steroid hormones which are related to the male hormone commonly known as the testosterone. These are the hormones that are known to increase the sports performance by increasing the muscle mass and the muscle strength in many ways. These hormones are used in combination with the growth hormones by the sports person for the purpose mentioned (5). SIDE EFFECTS There are always some side effects that are associated with the over use of any drug, especially when it comes to the hormones being used in combination and in abnormally higher doses. The abnormal use of the AAS is linked with reduced fertility in males. In the women it has been associated with the development of manly characters or the development of masculinization in women, various heart complications, cancer, liver toxicity, related behavioral disorders and if the drug is used in very high dosage than it may lead to irreversible organ damage (3, 4). PROTEIN HORMONES The hormones that by nature, proteins are naturally produced by the body. There are some categories of these kinds of hormones that include erythropoietin, growth hormone; insulin-like growth factors; sex hormones which help in the regulation of the reproductive cycle in men and women (3). Conclusion Hormones are the essential chemical elements in the body. The blood is the reservoir of the hormones that run through our body and our responsible for many changes that occur in the body because of the many hormonal actions. As the age increases the functioning and effectiveness of the hormones decreases, as it occurs in the aging process. There is a human urge of keeping on the top and keeping young and active for life. This urge is specifically higher in sportspersons. We are very well aware of the doping in the sportspersons. Doping is one problem that is uprising as the time passes in the sportsperson. It has been there in the field d of sports since many years. It is being tried to control since years but the race does not seem to stop. constant strength is required as the sportspersons have to compete and the workout for longer periods of times as compared to the normal people. Extreme levels of strength are required in the case of the sportspersons and that is gained by in taking the artificially prepared medicines or hormones for gaining of strength. The WADA (World Anti-Doping Agency) first stepped on the map on the word, in the year 1999. The idea emerged on the papers during the IOC conference that was basically held on the issue of the use of dopes by the sports persons in the sports. Doping substances are directly related to increasing the strength, higher energy production, and better recovery from the fatigue. It is also related to the increased protein synthesis in the body which is indirectly related to the energy production in the body, especially in muscles, and increased attention or the feeling of courage and confidence and loss of fear against any opponent. These are the class of steroid hormones which are related to the male hormone commonly known as the testosterone. The hormones that by nature, proteins are naturally produced by the body. There are some categories of these kinds of hormones that include erythropoietin. References 1. Barroso, O. Mazzoni, I. & Rabin, O. Hormone abuse in sports: the anti doping perspective. Asian J Androl. 10: 391-402. 2008. 2. Choong, K. Lakshman,. K. & Bhasin, S. The physiological and pharmacological basis for the ergogenic effects of androgens in elite sports. Asian Journal of Andrology. 10: 351–363. 2008. 3. Handelsman, J. D. Testosterone: use, misuse and abuse. MJA. 10: 436-439. 2006. 4. Handelsman, J. D. & Heather. A. Hormone Doping: Detection and Deterrence Androgen abuse in sports. Asian Journal of Andrology. 10: 403–415. 2008. 5. Liu, C. & Bowers, L. D. Immunoaffinity trapping of urinary human chorionic gonadotropin and its high-performance liquid chromatographic-mass spectrometric confirmation. J Chromatogr B Biomed Appl. 687: 213–20. 2006.  6. Parkinson, A. B. & Evans, N. A. Anabolic androgenic steroids: a survey of 500 users. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 38: 644–51. 2006. Read More