Masato Takahashi, Yukitoshi Tatsugi and Tosihiko Kohno
Background: Drug abuse, most notably Anabolic-Androgenic Steroid (AAS) use, in athletes is thought to be widespread. A few drug abusers and persons who express acceptance of drug abuse in sports are known to be present in Japan as well. We investigated the state of drug abuse and attitudes toward drug abuse in sports in a Japanese physical education university from the viewpoint of anti-doping.
Methods: The study sample was comprised of students attending a physical educational university in Japan. An anonymous self-completed questionnaire was given out in two classes at the beginning of the semester from 2008 until 2012, inclusive. Results for the year 2011 are given here. The questionnaire had 5 sections covering responder’s drug use, attitudes toward doping, a hypothetical situation on an athlete’s drug use, dietary supplements, and what the responder eats or drinks before playing a game.
Results: The response rate for the 2011 questionnaire was 100%. There were 2 admitted drug abusers (0.4%) and 774 (99.6%) non-abusers. The use of diuretics was admitted. In Section II, which included a question on what the responder thought of doping, 144 (19.3%) selected “good” and 592 (79.1%) selected “bad”. Section III presented a hypothetical situation whereby the respondent would use a drug undetectable by doping control, win a gold medal and have a lifespan of only 5 years thereafter. In answer to the question of whether the respondent would use the drug under those conditions, 85 (11.4%) answered “yes” and 655 (87.5%) answered “no”.
Conclusions: 20% of the students approved of drug use in sports. Furthermore, based on the response to a question in Section III, it can be speculated that 10% of the students might have used drugs in sports.
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