Quote:
Originally Posted by Jason Moyer
Jeff MacGregor: A-Rod, Phelps and fame - ESPN Page 2
That's the best article I've seen written about this stuff lately.
I've always found it weird how fans (of any celebrity, not just athletes) are so quick to make personal judgements about people they don't know based on information that's filtered down to them through people with an agenda. I think that's why I've never jumped on the "OMG CHEATER" train. The reason steroids are illegal and are against the rules in baseball are because they're harmful to your health - if they weren't they'd be treated like anything you can buy at GNC (and apparently some of that stuff is banned too). I don't have a personal relationship with any of these guys, so I really don't care if they were jamming needles up each other's asses all day in the clubhouse. What I do know is that I've never seen someone as dialled in mentally as Barry Bonds was for the last 8 years of his career, and I suspect that Ritalin would have been more likely to give him that edge than steroids or HGH were.
Edit: Actually it wouldn't surprise me if a higher-than-normal % of MLB players suddenly started having Ritalin prescriptions at the exact moment amphetamines were banned.
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LOL, Ritalin does nothing for you if you don't have fairly severe ADD/ADHD. It is a very mild stimulant that happens to act on a very specific part of the brain that is typically under stimulated in those with ADD. The effect is to reduce hyperactivity/impulsivity and increase attentiveness where these symptoms are present and relatively severe. If those symptoms are not present or are mild there is little change other than what could be gained through any stimulant including caffeine.
Bennies and/or other amphetamines would be far superior to Ritalin as a stimulant or a study aid for students etc.