To protect the health of athletes, the International Olympic Committee has confirmed the use of doping! However, high-level athletic competition is often characterized by unhealthy efforts.
If health factors are important, why are certain sports with high injury rates or potentially serious injuries allowed?
For example, many linemen playing American football weigh over 135 kg. These higher body weights are necessary to be successful at this sport; however, gaining large amounts of weight is unhealthy. Boxing is universally considered to be a dangerous sport but is part of the Olympic program.
The ergogenic aids
Interestingly, there is currently no comprehensive research comparing the harmful effects of exercise with ergogenic aids.
On the other hand, there is information showing how dangerous ergogenic aids, especially androgens, are.
And we think that information is too much.
It does not mean that ergogenic aids cannot cause harm, but puts them in a more appropriate context.
Of course, one could posit that certain ergogenic aids like androgens might offer some protection against injury due to their anabolic properties.
Indeed, the misinformation concerning androgens has been so persuasive, pervasive, and prevalent that one would expect high rates of mortality associated with their use.
However, this idea has received little support. Fear of the harmful effects of androgen use and positive drug test results often preclude the benefits of androgen use for medical reasons.
Perhaps relationship reassessment between health and competitive athletics is necessary and reasonable.
The NGB’s and Weightlifting
Another troubling issue is the attitudes held by International and National Governing Bodies (NGBs) on ergogenic aids. For instance, the idea that one can earn a medal in an event such as weightlifting without the use of androgens (or other illicit substances) has been put forth by the NGBs.
This is even though athletes believe that taking illicit ergogenic aids levels the playing field rather than provides an undue advantage.
Consider men’s weightlifting as an example.
Within weightlifting circles, it has been suspected for some time that weightlifters in certain countries, particularly in Eastern Europe, regularly use small doses of androgens in conjunction with intense training.
Canada, Great Britain, Finland, Sweden, Norway, and the USA have about 7000 weightlifters, yet they do not win medals in the World Championships or the Olympics.
Eastern European countries have traditionally been dominant in weightlifting. It is unlikely that Eastern Europeans have superior genetics.
They are also unlikely to discover more advanced training programs that have been kept secret for 20 years.
What is interesting, however, is that Canada, Great Britain, Finland, Sweden, Norway, and the USA have all had strict doping control procedures in place for 20 years.
Funding for Weightlifting (through the NGB) and other sports is related to how well they perform and how many medals they produce at the main event (i.e., World Championships and Olympics).
Thus, governing bodies expect medals to be won. They realize that competition based on equality is impossible. This problem is not only in weightlifting.
Wild thoughts
There is a lot of argument over what constitutes an ergogenic aid between scientists and sports administrators. However, there are extreme opinions.
Some sports officials argue anything that is not directly proven to be a natural source of nutrition should be banned.
Such as vitamins and artificially packaged or refined substances, including sports drinks. At the other extreme are those who use any method that has the potential to improve performance.
The latter opinion is more relevant, while the former is unclear because it requires a definition of ergogenic assistance.
Although most sports authorities and scientists do not go to extremes, they favor one side over the other. Thus, defining ergogenic aids is not a simple proposition.
For example, androstenedione, DHEA, and several related compounds can be sold legally without a prescription in the United States and some countries.
Whether they work as ergogenic aids is still a matter of debate. The IOC and related government agencies banned this compound due to its association with androgens (which are ergogenic).
Back in the day
Baseball, the NHL, and a few other governing bodies for professional sports do not ban them. In 1998, Randy Barnes, the world record holder in the shot-put, incurred a lifetime ban for taking androstenedione.
Mark McGuire, who admitted taking androstenedione, broke a long-standing home run record.
According to the mainstream media, Randy Barnes was deemed a disgraced cheater while Mark McGuire was a hero, even though they used the same substance.
The IOC’s policy on doping states that the use of a “discreet substance or method” to gain a performance advantage is against the rules.
Using birth control pills to control the menstrual period during training and competition is not banned, but it puts women in unnatural conditions.
The argument in support of this practice is that the hormones supplied by the birth control pills represent replacement therapy.
High exercise intensity can reduce testosterone concentrations in men and is associated with symptoms of overtraining and excessive stress.
Using exogenous testosterone, as well as replacement therapy in men, is prohibited. One could interpret this information to indicate that ergogenic hormone therapy is acceptable for women but not for men.
