TEST FOR HEALTH, NOT DRUGS (Taken from the Journal of BiSportMed, "Why we Should allow Performance Enhancing Drugs in sport").
"The welfare of the athlete must be our primary concern. If a drug does not expose an athlete to excessive risk, we should allow it even if it enhances performance. We have two choices: to vainly try to turn the clock back, or to rethink who we are and what sport is, and to make a new 21st century Olympics. Not a super-Olympics but a more human Olympics. Our crusade against drugs in sport has failed. Rather than fearing drugs in sport, we should embrace them. In 1998, the president of the International Olympic Committee, Juan Antonio Samaranch, suggested that athletes be allowed to use non-harmful performance enhancing drugs. This view makes sense only if, by not using drugs, we are assured that athletes are not being harmed.
Performance enhancement is not against the spirit of sport; it is the spirit of sport. To choose to be better is to be human. Athletes should be the given this choice. Their welfare should be paramount. But taking drugs is not necessarily cheating. The legalisation of drugs in sport may be fairer and safer".
Full journal linked in references section.
Quite the curve ball and gives a different train of thought on this sensitive topic. Myself as a keen sports scientist at university I enjoy these sort of debates as it shows many sides to a discussion. We have one camp that is pro use PED's, another totally against PED's and finally, a group who want to use PED's but have it regulated.
For those who need some more background on the areas of PED's please articles I have done below.
Physiological effects of using PED's: http://strengthtrainingforyou.blogspot.co.uk/2015/06/the-physiological-effect-of-using-peds.html
Psychological effects of using PED's: http://strengthtrainingforyou.blogspot.co.uk/2015/04/psychological-effects-of-peds-anabolic.html
Now I am not pro nor against PED's from a science standpoint. I find it an interesting subject to discuss. However in terms of me competing I would be against the use of them as it is seen as an unfair advantage (statistically those on PED's would be 5% better than me). I am a member of the UKAD (United Kingdom Anti Doping) as an accredited coach where I help to promote anti-doping and their 100% me campaign in competitive sports.
Here is some basic info on the area. All AAS (Anabolic Steroids) are derivatives of Testosterone and are divided into 3 categories;
Anabolic: muscle growth, bone, red blood cell production.
Androgenic: masculariszation, libido and fertility
Estrogenic: anabolic, metabolic effects
Some of the known side effects of using AAS;
Cardiovascular
- Cholesterol (reduced HDL/LDL ratio)
- Ventricular Hypertrophy
- Increased blood pressure
- Increased prothombion time
Reproductive
- Infertility
- Sexual Dysfunction
- Testicular Atrophy/Hypogonadism (men)
- Menstrual Irregularities (women)
Liver Toxicity
- Liver dysfunction
- Liver Cancer
Cosmetic
- Acne
- Hair Loss
- Gynecomastia
- Water or fat retention
Psychological
- Depression
- Aggression
Virilization (women)
- Body hair (facial hair) growth
- Clitoral enlargement
- Vocal Change
Not supported side effects of AAS
- "Roid Rage"
- Suicide
- other cancers
Then came the "word on the street" that AAS helped increase muscle size and strength which then filtered into all sports. This led to hospitals being flooded with toxicity cases, sporting events being banned, AAS becoming a prohibited substance. Then came what we all know, doping scandals, the media fixation on this issue and public speculation who is on what etc.
As many of you have watched "Bigger Stronger Faster" there is a section in it how many departments opposed the banning of all steroids as criminal acts.
See film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O77cVVOFqbE
Drug Enforcement Agency
American Medical Association
Department of Health and Human Services
Various Experts
All opposed the criminalization of steroids, for the reason there is a huge medical benefit to having them;
AAS are acutely safe drugs
- no overdose
- no physical addiction
- non-toxic primarily
- Exceedingly rare to have a life threatening reaction
- Most short term side effects are short term or cosmetic
Health risks associated with long term AAS Abuse;
- Increased risk of CVD (cardiovascular disease)/ heart attack/stroke
- Hypogonadism
To date there has been 24 documented cases involving AAS from 1992-2012
This was taken from the Department of Forensic Medicine (DOFM)
All men, mean age was early 30's
- Accidental Drug Toxicity 54.2% (13)
- Combined accidental drug toxicity/CVD 8.3% (2)
- Suicide 16.7% (4)
- Homicide 12.5% (3)
- Accident 4.2% (1)
- Undetermined 4.2% (1)
This was from the Journal of Forensic Science (2014)
Looking at the Australian AAS Death Report
Only one case of death solely has had AAS on it own.
- Opioid's 37.5% (9)
- Psycho-stimulants 66.7% (16)
- Benzodiazepines 45.8% (11)
Steroid deaths = Other Drugs are involved
Cardiac pathology was detected in 47.8% of all cases
Reason for some of these deaths can be put too poor AAS quality or contamination issues;
One study (Hartfourd Courant "Poison in a Package" November 2005) looked at 12 samples of AAS off 3 internet dealers. None of the samples matched the label, overdosed, under-dosed, substituted ingredients. Containments included;
- Tin
- Arsenic
- Lead
- Prednisone (corticosteroid)
- Betamethasone (corticosteroid)
- Furfural (industrial processing)
- Benzyl Chloride (alkylating agent, precursor chemical)
- Diethylstilbestrol (synthetic estrogen)
Another study (Underground Anabolic's 2005), 24 samples sent in to be tested;
- 6 samples (25%) contained bacteria
- Food preservatives
- Paraffin
- Fatty Acids
- Amines & Carboline
Again in Australia one case looked at a 35 year old body-builder carrying assortment of supplements, steroids, other drugs, two unlabelled vials admitted to the hospital.
- symptoms of liver dysfunction
- Progressed to signs of heavy metal poisoning
- he was over 33x the safe limit of arsenic. Patient died soon after
Analysis of vials found in unlabelled bottle with very high levels of arsenic with no presence of AAS (This was from the Journal of Clinical Endocrinol Metab. 2013)
To prevent unnecessary deaths and correct regulation of AAS/clean competition the following needs to be done;
Making things Safer by William Llewellyn (video in link)
1/ Quantify the risk of AAS
- Researchers and clinicians need to work together to collect and analyse the data
- Short term risks
- Long term risks
- Athletes V Recreational use
2/ Quantify Black Market Risk
- Heavy Metals
- Other substance contamination
- Bacterial/microbial contamination
- Dosage/Drug mislabelling
3/ Evaluate New Equipment
- Better and more reliable testing measures
- Syringe Filters
- Sterile Vials
4/ Address Abuse V Self Medication
- Many men 35+ suffer from hypogonadism (low testosterone)
- Clinical Symptoms: loss of libido, reduced energy, loss of muscle mass, increased adiposivity, osteoporosis and depression
- HRT shows consistent improvements in CVD, diabetes, metabolic syndrome and cancer risk
- Some needle exchange users should be referred for medical treatment
5/ Allocation of Resources
- AAS user should not take away resources from narcotic interventions
- AAS = seperate issue = new resources
6/ Staffing: Hire former athletes whom have used to educate those not to/advise on the side effects if they decide to do
- Connect with current users; better acceptance of drug-related advice
7/ Re-think Policies
- Ease restriction on imports
- Recovery Agenda
- Allow for personal use. Never criminalise the use of it (in terms of recreational use)
- Allow Dr's to recommend and monitor patients
Injection Methods
One method used by the majority of nations assumes all testosterone is the same so when it tests people the number it is given must be below a certain value. To ensure you get the test lower is be tested in the evening, That's when test production is at it's lowest. Test production is highest in the morning (hence guys wake up with morning wood). This combined with a taper off with the drugs meant no one got caught.
Alot of athletes got away doing this until WADA (World Anti-Doping Agency) used another. This was using a carbon 2 isotope which could detect which sorts of testosterone was in athletes blood. To make it simpleit could detect synthetic from natural. Those athletes which had synthetic testosterone (without a TUE form) got suspended. Justin Gatlin being one of them.
He discussed how the IOC has a flawed testing system. If you miss your first test its one strike. Doesn't matter as long as you do the next test. If you repeatedly miss the first test every year you will be watched like a hawk. People make themselves unavailable for the first tests (as they are on PED's) so when it comes to the second required test they can do it as all the PED's have been flushed out.
A famous example of an athlete missing her first test was Serena Williams (story goes she rang the police from her panic room as the testers arrived unannounced hahaha) she got away with not having to do the test came back after a period of time and guess what was clean.
Now in today's era, with NFL players coming out using HGH as the testers have caught up.
2010 HGH made
2014 Test for HGH made available
2015 people being caught using HGH
In time people will always be caught but its those with the money and the knowledge that always stay ahead.
Baseball has been a sport known to masses to of used many PED's the reason for this was its poor Anti-Doping polices.
Before the Maguire and Bonds cases this was Baseball's Anti-Doping policy.
- 1 random drug per year Per team
- 5 strike rule if caught using something (so could do it 5 times before being punished)
Madness!!
Moving onto the history of drugs and AAS (Anabolic Steroids) development.
The information was obtained from IPF Magazine pages 48-54 Issue 10(2015) and NADA Germany, Prof. Dr. Dirk Clasing (Doping and list agents 2003), Wikipedia, WADA, Peter Konopka (Sports Nutrition, 2002).
1970’s: Study from the UDSSR
- A secret document from the Soviet Union publicised in 2000, proves the existence of government-sponsored studies from the early 1970’s on the effects of anabolic steroids Dianabol and Retaboil/Decaburabolin) on various morphological, biomechanical and physiological variables of athletes and athletic performance in various sports. The athletic performance increased, regeneration was accelerated and appetite increased. A positive mood led to the desire to exercise more. There were also detailed recommendations for steroid use in various sports.
1984: Study from America
- 1984 NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) together with the Human Medicine at the Michigan State University published a survey called “The Substance Use and Abuse Habits of College Student-Athletes”. 2039 sports people took part in the evaluation. Here are some of the results:
Use of in the past 12 months;
Amphetamines 8% of respondents
61% took if for private or social reasons
37% took it to improve athletic performance
Anabolic Steroids 9% American Football Players
4% Athletes, Tennis players, Basketball Players
Marijuana or Hashish 36%
Cocaine 17%
Barbiturates or Tranquilizers 2%
28% took it due to injuries
8% took it to improve athletic performance
Greater consumption of Alcohol 37% (more than 3-5 drinks, 2-5 times a week.
1987: Study from America
- The first study in the USA was conducted on the use of anabolic steroids. 6.6% of male high school visitors had experience with one or more of these agents. 38% had started taking it before the age of 16. Numerous other studies found that 4-12% of male high school visitors had an experience with anabolic steroids during their lifetime.
1988: Study from Italy
- Survey done in 1988 on Italian athletes by the Italian Olympic Committee and the National Health Council regarding their doping knowledge and doping habits. 1015 athletes (690 male, 325 female) and 216 caregivers, doctors and managers were interviewed. 30% of athletes, coaches and managers and 21% of physicians said that performance could be improved by prohibited substances or practices. 27% of the athletes reported occasional use of amphetamines. 26% took anabolic steroids and 25% of autologous blood transfusions. The reasons for the abuse that was mentioned; 63% win in competition, 9% improve performance, 6% pain reduction and 6% prompted by trainer. The vast majority of athletes demanded strict doping controls not only in comp but also in training.
1993/94: Study from Germany
- In Hanover, Germany 1993/1994 a total of 97 students (53 girls, 44 Boys) between the ages of 15-19 and 19 teachers were asked about strategies to improve performance. On the subject of doping 57% knew of the prohibited substance groups. However, none of them had their own experience with drugs. Almost all students rejected the manipulation of physical performance by doping from a substance. Half of the young people had known such agents could be obtained if the need for such arose.
1994: Study from Switzerland
- The doping laboratory in Lausanne conducted a student survey in 1994. As part of a health survey 5 500 students between the ages of 11-16 were surveyed regarding their opinion on the efficacy of drugs, their knowledge and the procedure to use of drugs, their knowledge and the procedure to use drugs. The most important message from this study was that they believed the efficacy of doping substances increases strongly from 13-14 years of age. Accurate knowledge about doping remained low however.
1998: Study from Germany
- Recreational athletes from 24 North German fitness centres were asked drug abuse in 1998. 255 in total took part: 204 male, 51 female, 49 men and 4 women were classified as users. The male users (these were further evaluated) took one or more active ingredients such as methandrolstenolone, nandrolone, testosterone, oxandralon, stanozolol, methenolone, HCG, STH, cleanbuterol and others, and also cannabis, coacaine, ecstacy and amphetamines. The intake periods lasted about 7.5 weeks. The procurement was carried out on the black market. In the 15% of cases the anabolic steroids were prescribed by a doctor. The authors suggested that entry into drug abuse was likely after about 2 years of training if no more power progress was observed by the athlete.
1999: Study from Germany
- In 1999 the Emnid Institute Bielefeld Germany, questioned 3085 sporty students. They were aged between, 14-18 on issues regarding doping. 91% were of the opinion that doping ruins sport. 74% felt that the penalties should be harder. 88% thought that professional athletes taking drugs under medical supervision should not be allowed 83% wanted trainers and doctors punished. The regular use of sedatives and sleeping pills was specified by 8% of 12 year olds and 12% of 17 year-olds, while the regular use of excitation and stimulants of 6% of 12 year old and 11% of 17 year olds. Girls were accessing medicines more often than boys. The drug consumption was related to the “stress of school”.
2001: Study from Switzerland
- In 2 population surveys (1998 and 2001) 800 and 1 535 people were interviewed from all linguistic regions of Switzerland. The surveys found that 90% of the respondents felt that doping in sport is a very big or fairly big problem. 57% (1998) and 75% (2001) are for a general ban a doping. 34% (1998) and 19% (2001) are for delivery under medical supervision. 6% (1998) and 4% (2001) are for a release of doping. In general, the majority responded that control measures should be amplified especially prevention and that fair play among young people is encouraged, that there are more checks and that sportsmen testing positive should be punished.
Obviously doping occurred before the 1970’s but there isn’t any studies that go into depth on the use and effects of them.
I will end this article with a conversation one of my close friends gave on PED's:
"My debate would be kind of what I have always said really, which is that ...if you take away the testing you kind of open up the floodgates. The balance of health and performance is greatly distorted. People will become lab rats, so yes you will test for health but all that will do is highlight how medically messed everyone is now and that there is no CAP on PED's. But I totally get the argument too...like everyone takes drugs and its not really cheating if everyone takes them
but then that creates quadruple the pressure on natural people to endanger their health
and there's also a whole other level because then it becomes a case of 'some people may have unfair supply advantages''.
Having a good source will become the new cheating lol "that guy can get HGH in his country, I cant...its not fair...'' blabla ''oh the top end athletes have more money for better drugs and higher dosages'' also could be deemed unfair and on a par with cheating so you still have all those moral conundrums so unfortunately although it seems somewhat futile...... you need those steroid sanctions and regulations in place.....to maintain the *balance in the force*
So yes people will cheat but it will be in moderation and everyone's kind of restricted to the same kinds of cycles and the same kinds of drugs in order to clear their systems for testing dates etc etc
We need to accept that at a top level drugs are often required to keep an athlete on the rails due to recovery and expectations etc but weirdly condemn it at the same time. The one thing I will say about PED's tho if you did open up the floodgates and allow it all it would eliminate or at least minimize what I deam a huge ''cheating'' factor which most people would scream at me for is, genetics.
Look, ok someone with good genetics, they didn't actively ask god for super powers over other people, but at the same time how is it any worse than someone enhancing themselves. They were gifted with abilities that they didn't have to work any harder than anyone else for (that's not to say they haven't worked for it of course). But its undeniable that you have people out there who diet and train the same, and have the same kinds of pain thresholds and more than often 1 guy will be miles ahead of another due to his genetics
My point being, life has always been unfair, cheating is the definition of unfair in many cases so yea open use of drugs puts people on a much more level playing field. As the margins between our super-physiological potentials are much smaller than our natural ones you have years of body-builders with different genetics who got to top level stuff to prove that. To have people like Tom Prince who were pretty ectomorph who were able to hold their own against naturally mesomorph guys like Ronnie Coleman and Jay Cutler due to drugs.
If you took them all off drugs you could bet your ass Jay and Ronnie would be bigger than him so what has PED's done...simply narrowed the gap. So its very hard to really come out with a moral answer we can prohibit them and keep people healthy or we can uncap them, create a fairer playing field but unwittingly create a race of mutants that our kids look up to and then that's a whole other debate in itself.
Testing is getting better but so is the drug companies and the athletes are getting smarter. Unfortunately no one wants to see world records beaten by a few cm or 0.01 of a second. They want to see records smashed by freaks, majority of the public don't care. In fact they are more swayed to seeing drug cheats than clean athletes as it will be better entertainment to the viewer, the tv company and the sponsors. Everyone wins, more views, more money, more products sold and linked back to the freaks whom we call heroes and villains. Thank you PED's for making things morally complicated hahaha
I hope you found the all the information above helpful in understanding the issue of Doping in sports. It is a very complex issue which requires a broad understanding to be able to give an opinion on it.
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Some good videos looking at the science of Doping (from a doctors perspective)
- William Llewellyn Anabolic Steroids (William Llewellyn presented at the Public Health and Enhancement Drugs Conference at Liverpool John Moores University Centre for Public Health)
- Balco Interviews https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKqAUm1Tjek
Some good podcasts looking at the Doping side (from the athletes and coaches perspective)
- Joe Rogan # 737 Lance Armstrong https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rEfSdPz1WtA
- Joe Rogan # 277 Victor Conte (in charge of the Balco Labs) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azzhD2QJ8B0
- Joe Rogan # 682 Bell's Brothers (Powerlifters) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMSGMuumwu0
Some good podcasts which look at the Anti-Doping side (the people whom are trying to stop them)
- Joe Rogan #685 with Jeff Novitzky (one of the main guys to take down Lance Armstrong)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rR7IqzwgGeU
References
- http://m.bjsm.bmj.com/content/38/6/666.full.pdf Journal of BiSportMed, "Why we Should allow Performance Enhancing Drugs in sport"
- Gaffney, G.R. and Parisotto, R., 2007. Gene doping: a review of performance-enhancing genetics. Pediatric Clinics of North America, 54(4), pp.807-822.
Andrew Richardson, Founder of Strength is Never a Weakness Blog
I have a BSc (Hons) in Applied Sport Science and a Merit in my MSc in Sport and Exercise Science and I passed my PGCE at Teesside University.
Now I will be commencing my PhD into "Investigating Sedentary Lifestyles of the Tees Valley" this October 2019.
I am employed by Teesside University Sport and WellBeing Department as a PT/Fitness Instructor.
My long term goal is to become a Sport Science and/or Sport and Exercise Lecturer. I am also keen to contribute to academia via continued research in a quest for new knowledge.
My most recent publications:
My passion is for Sport Science which has led to additional interests incorporating Sports Psychology, Body Dysmorphia, AAS, Doping and Strength and Conditioning.
Within these respective fields, I have a passion for Strength Training, Fitness Testing, Periodisation and Tapering.
I write for numerous websites across the UK and Ireland including my own blog Strength is Never a Weakness.
I had my own business for providing training plans for teams and athletes.
I was one of the Irish National Coaches for Powerlifting, and have attained two 3rd places at the first World University Championships,
in Belarus in July 2016.Feel free to email me or call me as I am always looking for the next challenge.
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