Originally Posted by lefty
A possible solution is that the governing bodies test supplements and make them available (in batches) to athletes who want them. Then, if you go out on your own and consequently fail a test, it is on you.
This is a great idea. :applaud:
I think that many people taking supplements are trying to get "an edge" on their opponents. If everyone is taking the same supplements there is no "edge". Don't you think they would still try to find other supplements no sold by the governing body to try and get that advantage. And that's just the ones that are trying to stay legal. If they are knowingly taking a banned substance they will still do so.
I should be more precise. Take Mr. Cielo, for instance, who says that he was using a "caffeine supplement." I use a caffeine supplement every day. It is called Breakfast Blend. Like many of my friends and competitors, I often top off before races. Other caffeine supplements on the market include No Doz and Jolt Gum. What does a "sports supplement" of caffeine offer that No Doz doesn't, aside from either the placebo effect or the occasional dash of something even more metabolically stimulating than caffeine?
Same with the nutritional supplements, like vitamins or amino acids or whatever. You can buy vitamin supplements and nutritious food in any supermarket. What could a special sports powder offer, aside from the reassurance of a ripped athlete on the label, or for some (un)lucky users the training boost of clenbuterol or methyltestosterone?
Every "contaminated" supplement story I have ever read has involved products marketed expressly to athletes. I would be pretty surprised if a study showed that No Doz or Centrum or Enriched Malt-O-Meal were "contaminated" with PEDs. But I am not surprised at all that metabolically identical products marketed to athletes are.
In the Court of Arbitration for Sport press release: www.tas-cas.org/.../Media20Release20ENGLISH2021.07.11.pdf at the bottom they say will release the grounds for their decision in a few weeks. Until then everyone is just speculating.It would be helpful if the grounds are the actual grounds.
Don't sports supplements work primarily via the placebo effect?
In a word, no. Supplements work primarily via the "increased cellular metabolism" effect.
I should be more precise. Take Mr. Cielo, for instance, who says that he was using a "caffeine supplement." I use a caffeine supplement every day. It is called Breakfast Blend. Like many of my friends and competitors, I often top off before races. Other caffeine supplements on the market include No Doz and Jolt Gum. What does a "sports supplement" of caffeine offer that No Doz doesn't, aside from either the placebo effect or the occasional dash of something even more metabolically stimulating than caffeine?
Your intuition is correct here. Caffeine is most likely the thing that works in a supplement containing caffeine. Everything else is packaging and marketing. Things more stimulating than caffeine do exist, but I'm pretty sure they are all banned by WADA, and some of them are very dangerous.
Same with the nutritional supplements, like vitamins or amino acids or whatever. You can buy vitamin supplements and nutritious food in any supermarket. What could a special sports powder offer, aside from the reassurance of a ripped athlete on the label, or for some (un)lucky users the training boost of clenbuterol or methyltestosterone?
Again, correct. Protein and creatine can be very good supplements, but they don't need "special ingredients" added. Also, a lot of those supplements just have a bunch of sugar added. That's a severe waste of money.
Every "contaminated" supplement story I have ever read has involved products marketed expressly to athletes. I would be pretty surprised if a study showed that No Doz or Centrum or Enriched Malt-O-Meal were "contaminated" with PEDs. But I am not surprised at all that metabolically identical products marketed to athletes are.
You're just speculating, and I don't see a difference in marketing. Most supplements are marketed to obsessive health freaks and bodybuilders. I don't think I've ever seen the athlete-oriented things you're talking about. Also, there have been a few cases recently of clenbuterol in meat. So I wouldn't necessarily trust anything just because it's a "mainstream" product. What confuses me is why these guys are so confident that their caffeine was contaminated. How would one go about deducing that?
I just glanced over the WADA 2011 prohibited list. Mannitol is included in the "masking" category. I used to work at a pharmaceutical development company, I remember mannitol was used in just about everything as an inactive filler (solvent characteristics). I can see how it's very possible someone can get dinged innocently. But not without some negligence of knowing the details of what's ingested. Even shampoo has banned compounds
...What confuses me is why these guys are so confident that their caffeine was contaminated. How would one go about deducing that?
In the Court of Arbitration for Sport press release: www.tas-cas.org/.../Media20Release20ENGLISH2021.07.11.pdf at the bottom they say will release the grounds for their decision in a few weeks. Until then everyone is just speculating.
