New Gary Hall commerical

I don't believe there's much interest in insulin among athletes (unless, of course, they're diabetic); insulin-like growth factor (which mediates the effects of growth hormone) is a different story. The natural history and prognosis of Type I diabetes is very different from Type II.

Here's an excerpt from Gary's doctor herself...a little explanation and excerpt from Athens to help clarify this argument. I'm putting the excerpt here but you can read the whole article at: theraceclub.net/.../index.html Gary is more different than most, because he is slightly imperfect. His beta-cells no longer secrete insulin. Watching his blood sugar levels rise and fall with training and racing provides a window into his physiologic needs for fuel, and an understanding of the intense stress athletes face when they compete. Working with Gary has taught me how to treat all of my patients who exercise, whether it is by walking around the block in the evenings or training for and competing in triathalons. The same rules apply. The most important principle I learned is that every rule can be wrong in a given individual. I thought I knew about exercise, that training would make muscles more sensitive to glucose and lower insulin requirements. It made sense. But in Gary's case, that rule doesn't always apply. When he trains intensely he needs more insulin, largely because his carbohydrate intake is so high at 4,000 to 5,000 calories per day, with 60% or so of his calories coming from carbohydrate. When he's training less hard, his caloric intake and percentage carbohydrate ingestion is markedly reduced. So his insulin requirements are less. Another reason his insulin requirements are higher during his intense training sessions is because of the catecholamine response to such heavy training. As a sprinter he doesn't do lots of slow long distance swimming; he does more intense episodes of training, which may be more physiologically stressful. Gary's insulin requirements change if he is training once a day or twice a day or three times a day. They differ if he is doing more weight training than cardio or the other way around. Time spent training in the pool is different than time spent training on land. Calculating doses wrong and he's too low at night, a delayed effect of training, but giving too little insulin overnight results in fasting hyperglycemia and a bad workout the next day. An insulin pump might offer the fine tuning of basal rates that would better match his physiologic needs, but as a swimmer Gary can't stand the drag of the tape and infusion site on his skin against the water. So he has become a master at adjusting his insulin doses, using a multiple daily insulin injection regimen that is more complex and varied than almost any other patient I treat. Most of the time this approach works; the frequent insulin dosing and the 10 or more times he tests his blood sugar levels each day keep his sugars under control and his A1C level less than 7%. Sometimes, as with all patients, it doesn't work as well and hopefully that doesn't coincide with race days. I wish it were easier to manage our patients with type 1 diabetes, but it isn't, not yet. Gary, like all my patients with diabetes, dreams of the day this disease is cured. I dream along with them...I'd like to be out of a job, at least a job of treating blood sugar levels.

To John Smith: "Gull 80.... I am fully aware of the effects of diabetes. My mother is Type II." You may not be fully aware, because Type I and Type II are essentially two entirely different diseases. I'm not trying to critisize, just trying to shed light.

or how angel martino claimed her positive steriod test occured because she had sex with her husband who was taking steriods. was she born with those muscles? hercules.gcsu.edu/.../Angel.html a Originally posted by TheGoodSmith Is it possible that Michael Jackson was just around young boys but didn't do anything to them? John Smith

Again, the question is not about Gary Hall or diabetics. The question is simple. What are the positive effects of using insulin for a non diabetic athlete? Gull80 you say.... " don't believe there's much interest in insulin among athletes "...... you are probably right about the general population of athletes at large. But that's not what we are talking about. We are talking about the smaller percentage who do cheat. USCmaria..... believe me, I am FULLY aware of the difference betwe Type I and Type II conditions. You don't have a diabetic mother without learning the whole story. BillS - I believe Dead Fish already pointed out that Roger Bannister was a diabetic and succesfully competed in much longer events decades ago. The reason Gary doesn't swim the 200 free is because you really have to TRAIN for that event. He's too old to train for the 200 free.... believe me..... I know..... :-) John Smith

I wasn't able to find much about insulin abuse among athletes in the recent medical literature--IGF, GH, epo, and of course anabolic steroids are well described, however. Insulin administered in any significant dose can be problematic because of the effect on blood sugar (even in a nondiabetic).

don't forget to mention pro wrestling and the moon landings ande Originally posted by geochuck TheGoodSmith Boy you believe everything cops say, I was a cop and I know anything goes so you can get a conviction. I still believe OJ innocent and somone slipped drugs in Ben Johnson water even though he admitted taking them. Flo Jo and Carl Lewis never took steroids they said they did not. Lance Armstrong never took steroids, he said so.

Wow, I go swim for a couple of hours over the kunch hour and my inbox fills up with posts. In the middle of my swim it occurred to me that if athletes were really using insulin, some dumb**s high school football player in Texas would have ripped off his diabetic dad's stash and done a Sunny von Bulow by now. I don't think there are a whole lot of folks messing with this stuff recreationally. At least I hope not.

And the stoned snowboarder who didn't inhale, representing the Kingdom of Canada, was Ross Rabagliati. May he live in infamy.

Not surprising that you would "not find much about insulin abuse among athletes in the recent medical literature." Athletes who use it are cheating..... they don't want it to be widely known..... if it was widely known, they'd move to something else..... :-) John Smith