The Renewed Discussion of HGH

We all hear about the medical effects of steriods (acne, loss of testosterone, etc), but the negative effects of HGH are always kind of hushed down.

Isn’t HGH used mainly for growth enhancement, how would that be fair to the other players that don’t get injured and build their bodies naturally.
What about the side effects latter on in live by use of a steriods such as organ failure, loss of sexual performance.

http://www.antiaginginfo.net/hgh-side-effects.htm

From 3rd paragraph

Long-term abuse, as seen in athletic use, can lead to more pronounced, and sometimes deadly, side effects such as irregular heart rhythms, increased risk of diabetes, joint and facial deformities, and a shut down of the pituitary glands.

it’s called cheating, it increases the performance in everyway. it increases hand-eye coordination, physicla strength, speed, reaction timing, all of these are keys in contact sports. and people are always injured and they have been getting injured since sports sports started, what makes them so special that they can cheat and recover faster. it’s like calling a cheat sheet a study guide

I appreciate the argument that it’s only fair to let athletes have access to treatments that might ease the physical abuse on their bodies. But there are two problems:

First, as many others have pointed out, the long-term side effects of treatments like HGH are not well understood even when administered with great care by licensed doctors.

Second, the incentives to over-use and abuse these treatments make it impossible for the athletes themselves to make a fair choice. The incentive of millions of dollars basically amounts to economic coercion. If you’re a talented kid who grew up dirt poor (as many NFL players did) and you’ve got this one chance to take care of yourself and your family for life, how much are you going to think about your quality of life at age 40? An employer who holds out that kind of incentive has an extra obligation to ensure that you’re not going to life out the rest of your life in pain (as many NFL ex-players do). That includes proper safety procedures, protective gear, and making sure that questionable chemical enhancement is not an option.

There’s never going to be a hard-and-fast answer to what is acceptable for injury treatment. Individual cases should be evaluated repeatedly as the state of the art evolves. Some people have considered Tommy John surgery an unfair performance enhancement because some high-profile MLB pitchers actually threw harder after coming back from the surgery than they had before their injuries. Then there was the question of whether androstenedione is a “performance enhancer” or a “dietary supplement”. Questions like those will always keep coming up.

We examine the evidence case by case and we try to make the best choice at any given time. But it’s never bad to err on the side of caution, even for players who we really want to see on the field. Their bodies are on the line, not just during their careers, but for decades afterward.

are already being used by doctors on people in the real world for injuries and treatment. I see no reason why an athlete shouldn’t be allowed to use a treatment recommended by a doctor and supervised by a doctor.

However, I think that any player who decides to use this treatment should have to sign a waiver/statement indicating that and that once the treatment regiment is complete I will continue to take drug tests for such a period to prove I am no longer receiving said treatment.

I have no complaint with anyone, average person or athlete, taking every opportunity within reason to assist in recovery from an injury. People go to other states and countries to receive treatment that they cannot get at home due to lack of doctors, availability, or even money…

Anyone who denies that has no concept of realistic human anatomy.

Is a joke….

First and foremost, you cannot prove that half of those guys died as a direct result of steroid use, let alone prove that half of them even used steroids at all.

Secondly, we’ve all heard of perfectly healthy people dropping dead without a single explanation.

Lastly, how is it that a guy like Keith Richards, who’s probably done more illegal drugs in his lifetime than some of us have taken breaths, isn’t dead himself at roughly 70? Because drugs can CREATE problems doesn’t mean they always do.

Most of these guys lived fast, partied hard, and abused drugs and alcohol anyways…… not to mention constantly being on the road.