Marijuana’s Role in Sports Should athletes be allowed to use marijuana? This question is one of the most hotly discussed subjects in the sports world. The topic has numerous supporters but also many critics. Players should be allowed to use marijuana to a degree. The effects of using it are reasonable and beneficial. Critics say that marijuana is harmful to the respiratory system. It increases your heart beat when smoked. This results in greater difficulty breathing in sufficient oxygen for peak performance. Another challenge is the lack of research and knowledge on the true effects of marijuana on athletes. Marijuana is a Schedule 1 drug, so it has to get multiple approvals to study it on patients. This is nothing new to leagues who ban …show more content…
Because I couldn't use cannabis while on the road, I started falling off track a little bit with team-supplied painkillers. If I could have done it the way I wanted, cannabis would have been the way I always managed my pain, sleep and anxiety. I was very serious about my football career. Football is about smashing your head; part of the culture is who's toughest. If I had a headache, I didn't tell anybody about it. When I did smoke, it was on my own, when I was at home and when I was injured. It was something I did alone to deal with the demands of what I was going through. The guys who consume cannabis through their football careers are going to be in much better shape coming out of them than the guys that don't.” The NFL is a prime example of where cannabis is needed. Many players absorb collision after collision at the line on every play. Others risk taking huge hits crossing the field to make catches. It can lead to fractures, sprains and concussions that cause serious pain. This is the reason why the use of narcotic painkillers among NFL players is thought to be high. The use of these drugs could be getting out of hand quickly. Several former players have claimed the league and teams were misusing them to get players back on the field at the cost of the athletes’ long-term