Sports or Science? Which Will Take the Fields?

KB29023

English 10

9 Feb. 2016

Sports or Science? Which will take the fields?

You are sprinting down a track - no one else is in sight - when you see glimpses of the approaching finish line with its wavering red tape still intact; suddenly, a racer scissors in front of you and splices the tape moments before you could and is proclaim the race’s winner no matter the enhancement running through his veins. The world of sports and its traditions has existed for hundreds of years, but with different types of gene therapy, the determination and hard work of the players will no longer matter as the field shapes into a place of scientific advancements.

The gene therapy breakthrough will help treat muscle and bone diseases by helping the muscles gain lost strength and possess better endurance; however, the healthy athlete could use this to win competitions and awards unfairly. Scientists at the University of Pennsylvania who were researching for a cure for Parkinson’s and muscular dystrophy discovered that gene therapy and exercise would lead to a 35% increase in muscle strength in mice after receiving the growth protein (Lamb 13).

Moreover, changing your body’s genetic code with gene therapy or similar discoveries like stem cell research could have underlining side effects in the long run like the continuing use of steroids. Stem cells, the body’s undeveloped cells without function, can become any type of cell in the body – including a cancerous – and replicate (NLCATP). The risk of sickness and death could cause this to go from a breakthrough to a waste of resources we could have spent finding the cure for other multiple diseases.

Many argue that performance enhancement may lead to the perfect athlete and a healthier community. President of the International Association for the Philosophy of Sports Angela Schneider stated “Why should athletes be denied state-of-the-art technology? Sports are becoming a perversion and a circus. Do we want to celebrate...