However, while these drugs can be dangerous, some of the substances banned or restricted by WADA also have legitimate therapeutic uses. Common drugs such as asthma rescue inhalers, heart medications and common over-the-counter cold medicines are all found on the list of prohibited substances for athletes at the 2016 Olympics.
While some of the substances are only banned over certain limits or for certain sports, the inclusion of these substances with legitimate therapeutic uses introduces not only a plausible excuse for athletes such as Yulia Effimova – who was allowed to swim at in Rio after testing positive for the heart medication meldonium*, banned earlier this year – but clouds the moral waters as well, says Fr. Pacholczyk.
"The fact that some of the banned substances used among Olympic athletes may have legitimate therapeutic uses complicates the determination of whether steroids are being used for illegitimate purposes," he told CNA.
"In some cases, it may not be possible to distinguish such differences via standardized testing protocols," Fr. Pacholczyk continued, adding that it may be necessary and appropriate for sport authorities to set detection levels for a drug's use at a given limit. If an athlete passes that limit, whether or not a drug's use was for an injury or treatment of health issue, the athlete should sit out the next competition, he suggested.
"Injuries, obviously, must be properly attended to through standard treatments, even though one consequence may be that competitive athletic activities may need to cease, at least for a period."
*In July 2016, the world swimming association, FINA, ruled to allow Efimova to compete in the 2016 Rio Games despite testing positive for the heart medication, noting that it is currently unclear how long meldonium stays in a patient's body, even after stopping its use.
Adelaide Mena was the DC Correspondent for Catholic News Agency until 2017 and is a 2012 graduate of Princeton University.