A Rod and steroids

A Rod admitted today that he had taken steroids while he was with the Rangers.   This came as no suprise to me.    

I am not a doctor but there are a lot of misconceptions  about "steroids" and other "performance enhancing drugs"  I think this all started with Lyle Alzado who died of a brain tumor that people thought was caused by doing "too many steroids"  But what are steroids?  They are a synthesized version of a chemical hormone which occurs naturally.  They can be used to break muscle down "cortico steroid"  or cortisone shot, or enhance muscle mass.  Human Growth Hormone is used for cancer patients and is the secret sauce of every "anti aging" clinic you see in your yellow pages.   Anyways.....

As a fan of pretty much all major sports I know there is a widespread use of all sorts of major and minor chemicals to enhance performance...and guess what folks, nothing could be more American!!!   What?  You ask?

 The movie "Bigger, Stronger, Faster"  details the fact that our fighter pilots are ordered to use powerful "Dextro Amphetamines" to give them a chemical edge....musicians in a symphony orchestra have one shot to audition for a 250K per year seat at a major symphony use powerful beta blockers to inhibit all sorts of anxiety and nervousness.....I would be willing to bet that there is a good chance that public speakers in an effort to combat this have used these chemicals as well, or used them to get a "leg up" on a co-worker who was competing for their job....or how bout the college student who uses perscription drugs that make them focus laserlike attention for hours on a term paper.  Or anti-psychotics like Prozac and lithium?  

Yes what A Rod and all the others did is disappointing but it does zero to diminish my love for the game, in fact since McGwire/Sosa and onwards, the game has never been as popular, attendance is way up, and tv revenues and salarys are astronomical.  I disagree with the sportswriters who say that A Rod has "instantly lost all crediblility and lost his chances for the Hall"

Things other than hard work that baseball players do other than Steroids and HGH to "get an advantage"

....pop amphetamines like tic tacs

....chug massive amounts of red bull

....pop sudafed tabs

....drink beer during games

....take beta blockers to calm their nerves

....chew NSAIDS like tic tacs

.....have laser eye surgery performed to improve vision

Before 2004 there was no rule against steroids and other performance enhancing drugs in baseball, it was not illegal, Doctors would write the stuff.