Thanks to the expert from Mayo Clinic for the details.....Carpenter, PC, Performance-enhancing drugs in sport. Endocrinol Metab Clin N Am 36 (2007) 481–495
There are a variety of drugs that are employed to enhance performance. Some might consider Red Bull a performance enhancer. Others may take a zillion multivitamins and protein shakes. Basically it's ANY type of substance that someone takes to gain a competitive advantage. aka ERGOGENIC AIDES (chocolate milk anyone???)
But---most often people really mean illegal substances or banned substances that people try to utilize (and hide) basically to cheat the system. Tony Mandarich just shared with Rick Telander (rhymes with teabagger?? sorry couldn't resist) and the world about his gerry-rigged rubber duckie attached to his dickie in order to store 'clean' urine during his playing days.....
"In the pet area I see this rubber doggy squeaker toy. I get that, then I go to another area and get a small hose, and in the medical area I get some flesh-colored tape. I'm like the Unabomber getting supplies. Back home I rip the squeakers out of the toy, tape the hose into one end and experiment by filling the thing with water. At the Rose Bowl I taped the toy to my back, ran the hose between my butt cheeks, taped the end to my penis, and covered the hose tip with bubble gum. I had gotten some clean urine from somebody else. The tester stood behind me, couldn't see anything, and when I removed the gum everything worked fine."
And there you have evidence of the value of a Michigan State education......but I digress.
And there you have evidence of the value of a Michigan State education......but I digress.
Testosterone was the first widely used anabolic steroid, first synthesized in 
the 1930s and introduced by (0f course) the Russians into sport in the 40s and 50s. The 1964 Olympics was thick with 'em. (entendre intended). The steroids weren't regulated by the US until 1988 however when Congress finally passed The Anti-Drug Abuse Act which made the distribution or possession of anabolic steroids for non-medical purposes a federal offense. Thank you Nancy Reagan???? Especially because the truth of the matter is that now even adolescents ---both boys and girls--- are using steroids in high school.
the 1930s and introduced by (0f course) the Russians into sport in the 40s and 50s. The 1964 Olympics was thick with 'em. (entendre intended). The steroids weren't regulated by the US until 1988 however when Congress finally passed The Anti-Drug Abuse Act which made the distribution or possession of anabolic steroids for non-medical purposes a federal offense. Thank you Nancy Reagan???? Especially because the truth of the matter is that now even adolescents ---both boys and girls--- are using steroids in high school.The anabolic streroids are chemical derivatives of testosterone. They act by increasing protein
synthesis within cells, specifically muscle cells. And because they are derivatives of testosterone, they also virilize--meaning they inhance male characteristics like hair growth, voice changes. But counter-intuitively all the excess hormone actually suppresses the body's natural production of testosterone so the testes shrink up and sperm production is impaired.So, why do we really care? I mean cheating has been around for eons, right?? Many have said if ya ain't cheatin' ya ain't tryin'.
Well...here's the problem with anabolic steroids. Ready??
- Psychological dependence/abuse
- Testicular atrophy aka shrinkage
- Decreased sperm counts
- 'Roid rage
- Baldness
- Boobage (gynecomastia)
- Prostatic hypertrophy
- Acne
- Cholesterol alteration and risk for heart disease
- High blood pressure
- Dilation of the heart
- Hepatitis
- Blood clots
- Growth restriction in young kids
The other thing that athletes don't realize is that when you s
top, you really atrophy and you don't rebound from all of the other damage that you've done to your heart or your testes/ovaries. Meaning you can make yourself 
infertile.And here is a random weird co-inky-dink.
Anyone else notice that Madonna got REALLY really 'buff' all of a sudden. Kind of around the same time she and A-Rod were Kabbalahing together.
Things that make you go hmmmmm.
What about non-steroid enhancers? or non-banned substances???
I
f you go over to the GNC website you'll find all sorts of potions and powders that people completely swear by. None of which have been vetted by the FDA by the by. I'm convinced that GNC is the champion Snake Oil Sales group ever!! But--tell the truth. How many of you all buy them and use them???And---are enhancements bad if you just want to look buff/cut? I mean if you aren't cheating why not try to look good or boost your workout success a bit???? Maybe it's just a matter of degree???
I'm not suggesting that Dreamy Tom uses anabolic steroids AT ALL. But he sure has heck did something to go from the combine to the commercial.
yummo.
So, everyone wants an edge, and 'supplements' seem to be the way to get it. To me it's the continuum from healthy nutrition to vitamin supplements to nutritional enhancements to medications/substances to flat out cheating. It seems inconsistent to feign huge outrage about professional athletes doping when almost every college sports program has strength and conditioning coaches.....Seriously, why is gatorade ok but GNC muscle building stuff isn't????????
(aside from the obvious fact that most of those nutritional supplements GNC sells get "excreted" in either liquid or solid form, making it a pretty silly 'investment'.......)
Is a lot of the enhancing really about vanity (consider weight lifters) rather than performance?
The vanity piece will be the topic of upcoming SSF's.....so stay tuned!!!
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1 comment:
You had me worried for a minute. I thought this was going to be a SSF on male enhancement products and I just want to make sure that you do not think size matters.
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