Cause and Effect- Steroids

Cause and Effect Analysis 1

A Cause and Effect Metacognative Analysis

Bryan J.
Critical Reading and Thinking, Section 409
March 11, 2010
Cause and Effect Analysis 2
Casual Metacognitive Analysis

Introduction
I am focusing on the cause and effect genre in this paper to inform the reader about steroids and how they have become a common phenomenon among athletes. What some people may not know are the negative effects steroids have on a person’s intellectual/spiritual, social-emotion, and physical appearance. For instance, a person on steroids may have an effected social- emotional relationship with others due to the increase in testosterone, causing many users to lash out with violence and rage, a term that has been coined “roid rage.” My purpose in writing this essay is to shed light on the negative effects of steroids. By using cause and effect you will be able to determine the cause, which is steroids, and the many different effects they have. This is an important tool to really show just how a substance like anabolic steroids can affect someone. It is also important for my field of study, exercise science, to teach people about the negative side effects. Cause and effect analysis has taught me how to become a better reader, and writer, by showing me exactly how to analyze what I’m reading, and have it sink it, rather than go in one ear and out the other. The use of cause and effect in this essay will give the reader a more in depth perspective of the effects steroids have on the human body.
Audit Awaareness
For this essay I chose two articles to compare and contrast. The first article I chose was “Performance enhancement is not the only effect of androgenic-anabolic steroids in athletes.” The first article by ADIS International Limited did an excellent job giving us an in depth look on the ins and outs of steroid use. The second article I chose was titled “High-Dose Anabolic Cause and Effect Analysis 3
Steroids in Strength Athletes: Effects upon Hostility and Aggression”, written by P. Y. L. Choi, A. C. Parrott, and D. Cowan. This article is an account of tests that P. Y. L. Choi et al. constructed while testing the effects that steroid use has on strength athletes. It used a control group, that contained non users, and a group of three subjects on steroids. Both articles spoke of the negative side effects that steroids have, and described their uses. The second article, however, had more detail and provided real life examples of how far steroids could affect someone, negatively. FOR INSTANCE…While evaluating both articles I noticed that the evidence provided was relevant to the claim each was trying to make, that steroids generally provide more negative effects than good ones. The second article provided graphs to show the different levels of aggression and hostility in the subjects being tested, and the first article did not. Both articles had contradictions that could sway a reader away from believing that steroids were a negative alternative to supplementing. In the second article P. Y. L Choi et al. discuss how their study could be weak, “It was ‘open’ rather than ‘blind’. Drug conditions varied widely between subjects.” Over all, each article provided substantial evidence leading a reader to believe steroid use provides more negative effects than positive. I believe the authors in article one and two had the purpose of showing how steroids work, and to show how using them could lead to serious health risks and emotional instabilities, which could damage relationships you have with others.
Nature of Casual Argument
There was one cause for this subject: steroids. However, it had multiple effects, such as performance enhancement, and the bad side effects including increased aggression, hostility, decreased sex drive, weight gain, infertility, cardiovascular risks, and interfered with personal Cause and Effect Analysis 4 relationships. The author for this article used a chart that gave a description of how steroids affected both male and females. In males it had acne, increased facial and body hair, increased aggressive behavior, increased appetite, and balding. In females it reduced breast size, menstrual irregularities, deepening of the voice, and enlarging the clitoris. While stating the negative side effects this article also included legitimate purposes for using steroids. Steroids can treat growth retardation, breast carcinoma, osteoporosis, edema, and anemia. What this article is trying to state, however, is that when used improperly, such as using more than the recommended dose, generally for enhancement purposes, the effects can be negative.
Informative Article Summary
The article comes from a textbook entitled “Drugs & Therapy Perspective,” the title of the article is “Performance enhancement is not the only effect of androgenic-anabolic steroids in athletes.” The article talks about effects other than just performance enhancement when using steroids. The author’s opinion appears to be that steroids are not the way to go for enhancing performance athletically. This article first talks about how steroids work. Anabolic steroids are understood and almost guaranteed in all cases to create a deepened voice, increasing the user’s power, and creating more hair on your body. There are two different ways steroids can be used: through necessary doctor prescribed means, or by personal use, normally involving higher doses of the drug. While steroids can be beneficial in treating certain conditions dealing with its therapeutic use, it can also be used in frowned upon ways such as increased doses for personal use, in hopes of seeing results whether it is in competition or for muscle mass. Some of the main, and most common side effects steroids have, are an increase in the user’s weight, power gains, Cause and Effect Analysis 5 and problems with their physical and emotional well being. While stating that it does make some people stronger, it gives information from studies to show that anabolic steroids provide no long term energy. Most athletes have adverse effects when abusing steroids. Steroid abuse can also lead to infertility, cardiomyopathy, atrial fibrillation, heart attacks, heart failure, and even mortality. Towards the end of the article it talks about the effects that a person’s mental state goes through, such as increased rage, and lack of patience or short fuse. It ends off by including more effects to the many we now know, by adding in that if taken during your adolescent stages, your growth plates close up and your growth may be stunted
Authorial Purpose
The author’s main point in writing this essay is to inform his audience which may consist of athletes, any people currently on steroids, or even people just thinking about them. This gives detailed accounts of effects that steroids have, and the adverse side effects. The article responds to any arguments that the readers may have by suggesting positive steroid use, and goes on to say that when abusing them, just like any other drug, you would more often than not receive adverse effects from anabolic steroids.
Read Like a Writer
When stating the positive uses for steroids, such as therapeutic reasons, it provides an answer for anyone who has an argument for steroids. It reaches common ground with the readers by providing several different side effects rather than just one. For instance, in (para. 7) “The abuse of AASs in healthy young athletes has been associated with serious cardiovascular events (e.g. cardiomyopathy, atrial fibrillation, QT dispersion…acute heart failure and sudden cardiac Cause and Effect Analysis 6 death.” The cause and effect argument is made by informing the reader of the many dangerous side effects that relates to steroid abuse, as seen in the previous sentence. The author incorporates counter arguing by information relevant to both males and females, rather than just one sex. By doing this he has now expanded his argument to a more vast audience. The author is not one-hundred percent against steroids, just the abuse of them, and it is not biased in doing so. This provides for a well written article, and one that anyone could read and leave being well informed of the adverse side effects of steroids, and not have much of an argument for them. Before reading this article I was not aware of over half of the effects steroids have on the human body and thought taking them in the offseason for baseball wouldn’t be such a bad idea. After reading this article and making a cause and effect essay on it, I was really able to clearly see that the side effects outweigh any achievable goal in which one may meet.
Information Literacy
The author for this article is unknown, but it comes from an accredited journal titled “Drugs & Therapy Perspective” and was written in 2005. It is a rather recent article, and provides accurate information on the use, and abuse of steroids. It provides information from different studies, and self-reports to show the adverse effects of steroid abuse. In (para. 4) The author goes into the legitimate therapeutic reasons one may consider in taking steroids “AASs have a number of legitimate therapeutic uses including the treatment of male hypogonadism and growth retardation….and some forms of anemia.” The author’s objective is not only having one side on steroids, but showing the positive with the negative. They presents the subject in a way that anyone could read and understand just what would happen if they were to abuse steroids. Cause and Effect Analysis 7
Professional Scenario
After reading this article I am now able to apply the knowledge I’ve learned to my career. I am planning on going into the field of exercise science, and wish to train athletes. I will never suggest to anyone I’m training to abuse steroids, but rather avoid them entirely, and to enhance their performance naturally through over the counter vitamins, plenty of exercise, and eating healthy. There is no need to take steroids unless you want the easy way out. The negative side effects of them outweigh, in my opinion, the positive effects. While they may increase some performance, and make your muscles larger, they can affect you for the rest of your life by making you infertile, aggressive, or may end your life permanently. Also, I am an athlete myself, I play baseball, and I’ve seen so many athletes succumb to steroids, and end up losing their career over it. Every year dozens of MLB players are found to be on steroids, and are suspended, and their reputation and records ruined forever. You lose all respect, and dignity, when the fact that you’re using steroids to comes into the light. They may make you faster, or hit a ball harder, but when someone finds out those monster homeruns were boosted by being chemically induced, instead of a natural gift, or a result from being the best you can be, you basically lose the joy of every homerun you’ve ever hit, or base you’ve ever stolen.
Conclusion
The author does a great job in providing sufficient details in this cause and effect analysis. The author touched on a lot of the physical and emotional problems you will run into when dealing with abusing steroids. It becomes clear to me at the end of reading this that steroids are not up to par on the risk to reward plain. His use of steroids as his cause provides for a Cause and Effect Analysis 8 multiple effect pattern. I am now fully aware of what really happens to your body when you mess with this type of drug. Having knowledge on this topic will benefit me in my major because I am now able to preach to young athletes the dangers, and can now make some safer alternatives to performance enhancement. I am a better reader because of the cause and effect genre. Thanks to cause and effect I am now able to see all points the author is trying to make in his argument and better understand the effects of any cause someone may write about.

Cause and Effect Analysis 9
References
ADIS International Limited. (2005). Drug reactions and interactions. Performance enhancement is not the only effect of androgenic-anabolic steroids in athletes.
Drugs ther perspect 2005; Vol. 21, No.8
Choi, P.Y.L; Parrott, A.C.; and Cowan, D. (1990) High-Dose Anabolic Steroids in Strength Athletes: Effects upon Hostility and Aggression. Human Psychopharmacology 1990; Vol.5, pages (349-356).

References: ADIS International Limited. (2005). Drug reactions and interactions. Performance enhancement is not the only effect of androgenic-anabolic steroids in athletes. Drugs ther perspect 2005; Vol. 21, No.8 Choi, P.Y.L; Parrott, A.C.; and Cowan, D. (1990) High-Dose Anabolic Steroids in Strength Athletes: Effects upon Hostility and Aggression. Human Psychopharmacology 1990; Vol.5, pages (349-356).