The Use of Supplements by Athletes

Paper Summary:

This paper relates that the use of supplements by sports athletes is only viewed as an ethical problem when the supplement becomes illicit or banned or when an athlete dies and focuses most of the time on the competitive advantage instead of the ethical question. The author presents a classical discussion of ethics and concludes that the use of performance-enhancing drugs and supplements by sports players is clearly a violation of ethical behavior. The paper states that no supplement or drug should be used or should be advised by the educator or coach to the athlete without being approved by the FDA, the sports league in question and prescribed by the attending physician of the athlete. The paper includes a table and many embedded quotations.

Table of Contents:
Objective
Introduction
Ethics - Theoretical Framework
Ethics - Differentiation among Theorists
Discussion
Responsibility of Educators and Coaches of Athletes
Summary and Conclusion

From the Paper:

"Milton's ethics principle was based on the 'end result' or the moral rightness of an action being determined based upon consequences having been considered. Kant believed that ethics were based upon 'rules' and that the moral rightness of an action is based upon laws and standards within society and business. Rousseau held to the social contract theory in ethics believing that the moral rightness of an action is determined through the norms and customs in the existing community and Ruber held a personalistic notion of ethics believing that the moral rightness of ones' actions can only be determined through ones' conscience."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Boone, Tommy (2003) Dietary "Sports" Supplements: The University Teacher's Role in Teaching Values? Professionalization of Exercise Physiology ISSN:1099-5682 Vol. 6 NO. 7 July 2003.Available Online at: http://faculty.css.edu/tboone2/asep/TeachingVALUES.html.
• Flanagan, Kelly E. (2005) Can Sports Management Stop Steroid Use? The Sport Supplement - A Supplement of the Sport Journal. United States Sports Academy Online available at: http://www.thesportjournal.org/sport-supplement/vol13no4/flanagan.asp.
• Teen Athletes and Performance-Enhancing Substances: What Parents Can Do (2006) Mayo Clinic CNN Special Online available at: http://www.cnn.com/HEALTH/library/SM/00045.html/.
• Hitt, William D. (nd) Ethics and Leadership: Putting Theory Into Practice Online available at: http://www.msu.edu/course/prr/370/HittIV.htm.

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