Folkesundhed og disciplinering - kulturanalyse af en opdragelsesstrategi

Analyse af regeringens folkesundhedsprogram 1999-2008 set i relation til ændringen af sygdomsbilledet siden 1900-tallet og diskussion af det nuværende sundhedspolitiske syn på idrætten.Public health and discipline – a cultural analysis of a strategy for instructionIn May 1999 the Danish Government’s Public Health Programme 1999-2008 was published. This article argues that the public health programme was developed as one element in a general slimming down of the welfare state. It will not be possible to maintain standards of welfare unless individuals and social institutions alike undergo a process of slimming down. Seen in this way, the public health programme is part of a project to impose social discipline and order. What has to be regulated is people’s behaviour so that it can become acceptable from the point of view of health. This is made necessary due to changes in the structure of illness during the past century, which in turn have prompted a change in medical focus away from cure and towards prevention. Prevention is a strategy which makes considerable use of a form of risk-moralising which directs itself by and large towards all areas of human activity. The public health programme has in this way changed its focus of operation from a social level to a subject- based, individual level. From this arises a paradox in regard to guilt and responsibility. On the one hand responsibility is taken away from the individual partly by dint of the interference of the state – for example, in relation to smokers – and partly through the way in which plans for prevention manifest themselves. On the other hand there is a tendency towards increased feelings of guilt. The result of this is that a large number of our everyday actions are placed in a health context. Health can no longer be taken for granted but is something to which we have to devote constant attention. The surveillance of health, which was once the task of the medical police, has now become integrated into the life of the individual and has turned into self-surveillance. This indicates that the health project is more concerned with moral than with medical matters

You can’t buy something you aren’t. On fixing results in cycling

Wind resistance is the primary external factor teams organise themselves around in cycling. In order to share this burden, members of opposing teams often cooperate, e.g. to secure the existence of a breakaway. To avoid free-riders the riders in question form a tacit social contract on sharing the work-load. Taking its point of departure in qualitative interviews with Danish elite cyclists, this study demonstrates how the social contract sometimes becomes explicit, and riders form an agreement of the podium placing in the final breakaway before they arrive at the finish line. This study examines riders' explanations of and attitudes to such agreements and discusses to what extent they should be regarded as match-fixing. While the available evidence suggests that the agreements are best understood as an integrated element of cycling culture with a purpose of upholding a certain social order, this study also demonstrates how the social contract and the accompanying agreements imply corruption in the sport of cycling, if only in germ form. On this basis, the study concludes that it is only the sport's culture and individual riders' self-discipline that can protect cycling from real corruption

Folkesundhed og disciplinering - kulturanalyse af en opdragelsesstrategi

Analyse af regeringens folkesundhedsprogram 1999-2008 set i relation til ændringen af sygdomsbilledet siden 1900-tallet og diskussion af det nuværende sundhedspolitiske syn på idrætten.Public health and discipline – a cultural analysis of a strategy for instructionIn May 1999 the Danish Government’s Public Health Programme 1999-2008 was published. This article argues that the public health programme was developed as one element in a general slimming down of the welfare state. It will not be possible to maintain standards of welfare unless individuals and social institutions alike undergo a process of slimming down. Seen in this way, the public health programme is part of a project to impose social discipline and order. What has to be regulated is people’s behaviour so that it can become acceptable from the point of view of health. This is made necessary due to changes in the structure of illness during the past century, which in turn have prompted a change in medical focus away from cure and towards prevention. Prevention is a strategy which makes considerable use of a form of risk-moralising which directs itself by and large towards all areas of human activity. The public health programme has in this way changed its focus of operation from a social level to a subject- based, individual level. From this arises a paradox in regard to guilt and responsibility. On the one hand responsibility is taken away from the individual partly by dint of the interference of the state – for example, in relation to smokers – and partly through the way in which plans for prevention manifest themselves. On the other hand there is a tendency towards increased feelings of guilt. The result of this is that a large number of our everyday actions are placed in a health context. Health can no longer be taken for granted but is something to which we have to devote constant attention. The surveillance of health, which was once the task of the medical police, has now become integrated into the life of the individual and has turned into self-surveillance. This indicates that the health project is more concerned with moral than with medical matters

Recreational Athletes' Use of Performance-Enhancing Substances: Results from the First European Randomized Response Technique Survey

Measuring the prevalence of doping in recreational sport is difficult. However, to fit their initiatives, National Anti-Doping Organizations are interested in knowing the numbers, so their scarce resources are not wasted. The present study aimed to estimate the prevalence of doping and over-the-counter medicine use for performance enhancement among recreational athletes in eight European countries. A survey covering + 200 sports aimed at recreational athletes 15 years and older was distributed via social media to sports clubs and individuals in eight European countries. To overcome social desirability bias, we applied indirect questioning by using the Randomized Response Technique and asked for the use of over-the-counter medicine and doping for the year 2019. The prevalence of the use of over-the-counter medications for performance enhancement was estimated at 10.4%. We differentiated between the concept of “doping” as the behavior to enhance performance in a certain sport and the concept of “a doper” as a property of a person. The prevalence of dopers in recreational sport was found to be 0.4%, with 3.1% male and 0% female dopers. Responses were separated into four categories: “Artistic sports,” “Combat sports,” “Games,” and “CGS sports” (i.e., sports measured in centimeters, grams, and seconds). The overall prevalence of doping in recreational sports was found to be 1.6%, and the results from Artistic and CGS sports did not differ significantly from this. However, in Games we found an estimated doping prevalence of 6.9%. The estimates for the prevalence of dopers and doping in this study do not equal Anti-Doping Rule Violations as stipulated by the World Anti-Doping Agency. Still, while doping is not absent in recreational sport in Europe, it appears to be a low frequent phenomenon. Also, the differences in doping prevalence between the sports categories might reflect structural and competition-related differences, rather than differences in the logic of the sporting competition or discipline-related subcultures. While few recreational athletes appear to use illegal drugs to enhance performance, those who do use them are more often men than women. Yet, 1 in 10 recreational athletes uses over-the-counter medication for performance enhancement and more than 4 out of 10 use medication for other reasons than performance enhancement when doing sports. The highest doping prevalence was found in the sub-category of Games, which can likely be attributed to competition-related differences between the categories. Therefore, research on doping in recreational sports needs tailored approaches to come to a better understanding of the phenomenon

The International Olympic Committee framework on fairness, inclusion and nondiscrimination on the basis of gender identity and sex variations does not protect fairness for female athletes

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) recently published a framework on fairness, inclusion, and nondiscrimination on the basis of gender identity and sex variations. Although we appreciate the IOC's recognition of the role of sports science and medicine in policy development, we disagree with the assertion that the IOC framework is consistent with existing scientific and medical evidence and question its recommendations for implementation. Testosterone exposure during male development results in physical differences between male and female bodies; this process underpins male athletic advantage in muscle mass, strength and power, and endurance and aerobic capacity. The IOC's “no presumption of advantage” principle disregards this reality. Studies show that transgender women (male-born individuals who identify as women) with suppressed testosterone retain muscle mass, strength, and other physical advantages compared to females; male performance advantage cannot be eliminated with testosterone suppression. The IOC's concept of “meaningful competition” is flawed because fairness of category does not hinge on closely matched performances. The female category ensures fair competition for female athletes by excluding male advantages. Case-by-case testing for transgender women may lead to stigmatization and cannot be robustly managed in practice. We argue that eligibility criteria for female competition must consider male development rather than relying on current testosterone levels. Female athletes should be recognized as the key stakeholders in the consultation and decision-making processes. We urge the IOC to reevaluate the recommendations of their Framework to include a comprehensive understanding of the biological advantages of male development to ensure fairness and safety in female sports

Support for people who use Anabolic Androgenic Steroids: A Systematic Scoping Review into what they want and what they access.

BACKGROUND: Since there is a paucity of research on support for people using Anabolic Androgenic Steroids (AAS), we aimed to identify and synthesise the available evidence in this field. Gaining an understanding of the support both accessed and wanted by recreational AAS users will be of use to professionals who provide services to intravenous substance users and also to those working in the fields of public health and social care, with the aim to increase engagement of those using AAS. METHODS: A systematic scoping review of the literature to explore and identify the nature and scope of information and support both accessed and wanted by non-prescribed AAS users. Any support services or information designed to help people who use AAS were considered. RESULTS: We identified 23 papers and one report for review, which indicated that AAS users access a range of sources of information on: how to inject, substance effectiveness, dosages and side effects, suggesting this is the type of information users want. AAS users sought support from a range of sources including medical professionals, needle and syringe programmes, friends, dealers, and via the internet, suggesting that, different sources were used dependent on the information or support sought. DISCUSSION: AAS users tended to prefer peer advice and support over that of professionals, and access information online via specialist forums, reflecting the stigma that is experienced by AAS users. These tendencies can act as barriers to accessing services provided by professionals. CONCLUSIONS: Support needs to be specific and targeted towards AAS users. Sensitivity to their perceptions of their drug-use and the associated stigma of being classified in the same sub-set as other illicit drug users is relevant to facilitating successful engagement

Civilized Muscles: Building a Powerful Body as a Vehicle for Social Status and Identity Formation

This paper explored the relationship between having a muscular body and identity formation in young men. Theoretically, it was built on evolutionary psychology; empirically, it drew on the author’s research into young men’s use of anabolic-androgenic steroids in gym settings. The questions I addressed were the following: First, why does the building of a muscular body through weight and strength training appeal to young men who have not yet found their place in the societal hierarchy? Second, what identity-related consequences does it have for them, when the size and posture of their body changes? First, the paper outlined some important aspects of the civilizing process and evolutionary psychology in order to offer an explanation on how and why brute force has been marginalized in today’s society, while the strong body continues to appeal to us. Then followed an explanation of the concept of identity used in this context. Hereafter, it was examined how building a more muscular body influences the young men and their relationship with their surroundings. Next, an underlying alternative understanding of health that may influence young men’s decision to use anabolic steroids was discussed. The article concluded with some remarks on the body’s impact on identity in a time where a strong build no longer has any practical importance in our lives