by Tim O'Dell

Created on: March 22, 2009

We've all seen the headlines. It seems like athletes will go to any lengths to achieve success. Yet this impacts on your kids. They read the headlines too, and it can seem like that is the only way to succeed. So how can we explain that success can come without drug use?

For a lot of children, sportsmen and women are revered. They idolize these top athletes and want to match their achievements. Then it is discovered the athlete has been taking drugs to stay at the top of their game, and they are accused of cheating. This can be an enormous blow to your child. They may decide to give up on sports completely. Or worse, they may start taking drugs themselves, if they are older.

As responsible parents, you need to get over the message that things don't have to be that way. It is possible to succeed without the use of drugs. You will need to explain that top athlete's are under a lot of pressure. They are pressurized by the sport, and manager's, into pushing themselves harder and harder to achieve results. For some this pressure pushes their limits beyond what they can take. Their only option then seems to be to take drugs to go beyond these limits.

You will also need to explain that, for others, it may be a case of career at any cost. Some athlete's, who are completely driven, will get to the top any way they can. At the detriment to their long term health they will take drugs to ensure success. In these cases nothing else matters beyond their sport. They may even destroy themselves to get where they want to be.

Then again, it may not be the athlete's decision to take drugs at all. It may be the coach. In a lot of instances of drug taking athletes claim to have been given liquid or pills by their trainers, not knowing what they were. In these cases it seems unfair the athlete loses their position. Yet it has to be questioned whether taking unknown substances is wise. Whatever the situation, drug taking is simply not worth the risk.

So how does this appear to your child? When their favorite sports star is revealed as a drug taker, it seems that this may be the way to excel. Your child is sure to question whether this is the normal process. They may decide they need to take the same route if they never want to fail. Even if they don't say this outright, the thought will be in their head. You need to explain drug taking is not a pre-requisite for sporting success. It is possible to get to the top by natural means.

Point out, to your child, that it is a minority of athlete's who take drugs. There are only a very few who are willing to take the risk. Not only is their health going to suffer at some point, but they will also lose their career. Point to people like Justin Gatlin who failed a drug test. Even though he claimed to be innocent, he was banned from athletics for four years. Or talented baseball player Barry Bonds, dropped from the San Francisco Giants, unable to get signed during 2008 and embroiled in a conspiracy over anabolic steroids.

Unfortunately, performance enhancing drug use seems too tempting for some athletes. The penalties are high if caught. Yet some are willing to pay the price for success. Your child may be devastated if their idols are caught out. You need to explain that it is cheating. You also need to explain that the vast majority of athletes succeed without such extreme measures. Hopefully, you can give your child back some faith. Then maybe they will switch their allegiance to other athletes. You may leave their dreams a little dented, but they will be a lot wiser.

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