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[Definitie:] "An ergogenic aid is any substance or phenomenon that enhances performance."
(Wilmore and Costill) 
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0 5 - 0 1 - 2 0 0 6 Horse Drug Used To Lose Weight Dangerous To Nervous System
NBC 10 People hear about a horse drug that causes rapid weight loss so they grab it, never knowing about its consequences.
The drug was first taken by some bodybuilders, because it makes you lose fat, but not muscle. People said models and Hollywood types are now using the drug, which is meant only for horses.
"Everyone in Hollywood wants to be thin. It is a sign of achievement. And the tabloids keep constant track of who's the thinnest and what the weight watch is and if you gain a few pounds in Hollywood it's suddenly seen as a crisis," said Linda Wells, with Allure magazine.
One model, who did not want to be identified, took an illegal drug called clenbuterol years ago. We'll call her Jennifer. Normally used to treat asthma in horses, clenbuterol has also been found to cause rapid weight loss. "There are rumors that Hollywood celebrities are using this drug to become very thin, very quickly," Wells said. "My body would look better than it already did, and what 20 year old wouldn't be like, alright! I want my body to look better than it does!" Jennifer said. Despite being widely discussed and sold on the Internet, those pushing the drug rarely mention its potentially dangerous effects on the nervous system. "Probably the prevalent thing was the rapid heartbeat -- just my heart was going to beat out of my skin" Jennifer said. "This wasn't a cup of coffee feeling. This was like three pots of coffee feeling." "Just out of nowhere my eye would start going crazy twitching just from my nerves being so out of control," Jennifer said. Fortunately for Jennifer, she stopped taking the drug before things got worse, and walked away with a valuable lesson. "There's nothing at all that exists that is going to take the place of a consistent, good nutritional plan and working out, exercising on a regular basis. Nothing," Jennifer said. "This is dangerous. This is really bad idea. You do not want to be taking this drug," Wells said. On top of the fact that it's dangerous, some people said that after a few weeks of losing weight on the drug, it made them start gaining weight. 1 4 - 0 1 - 2 0 0 5 Animal Drug Pushed for Body Building and Diets Causes Concern
By Katrina Woznicki PITTSBURGH, Jan. 13 - Physicians are concerned about the unknown clinical consequences of a veterinary drug called clenbuterol that is being promoted online as a convenient way to boost muscle mass and lose weight. Clenbuterol, a beta-2 adrenergic agonist used primarily to treat asthma in horses, is sold online as a safer alternative to other popular body-building supplements, such as anabolic steroids, said Madelyn Fernstrom, Ph.D., director of the weight management center at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. The word among body builders and people trying to lose weight, is that clenbuterol “is a non-steroid steroid,” meaning it’s chemically different than a steroid, but produces similar results, Dr. Fernstrom said. “’Isn’t clenbuterol just a safe alternative to steroids?’” they ask. “The answer is ‘no.’” In December, Mariano Puerta, a French Open finalist last June, was suspended for eight years for using clenbuterol, the longest doping ban in tennis history. Those in the medical community who are aware of this underground misuse of clenbuterol fear it will spread from body builders to desperate housewives struggling to lose weight. People don’t understand that this is not an off-label use of a human medicine, Dr. Fernstrom said. Clenbuterol is used for muscle building because it affects the beta receptors, which can ultimately help in enhancing physical performance, said Stephen Rice, M.D., Ph.D., director of the Jersey Shore Sports Medicine Center in Neptune, N.J., and a spokesman for the American College of Sports Medicine. Chemically, “clenbuterol is similar to some of the albuterols,” Dr. Rice said. “It may be illegal, but people will get their hands on this stuff.” A quick Google search immediately showed that one Web site offered 90 clenbuterol tablets for $59. There are limited human data on clenbuterol so the consequences of short- or long-term use are not well known. A case report published in a September issue of Circulation, Journal of the American Heart Association, reported on a myocardial infarction suffered by a 17-year-old body builder who used only clenbuterol. Researchers at the Institute of Pediatrics at Medical University in Lodz, Poland, said the boy had been previously healthy. Dr. Fernstrom said there is evidence from animal studies that clenbuterol can stiffen the heart muscle by causing fibrosis of the surrounding connective tissue, not by affecting the heart cells directly. “So cardiac function will be compromised with this drug,” she said. Clenbuterol exposure can also occur unintentionally through the consumption of veal or lamb. A report last June in Food Additives and Contaminants described four cases of acute food poisoning in Portugal that was due to the ingestion of lamb and bovine meat containing residues of clenbuterol. The drug is used in young calves and lambs to boost muscle and reduce fat for meat production, Dr. Fernstrom said. Researchers are conducting tests in rodents to see whether clenbuterol could offer any therapeutic benefit in the treatment of muscular dystrophy, Dr. Fernstrom said. European researchers have also looked into whether clenbuterol might be effective in treating urinary incontinence. Dr. Rice said physicians need to caution patients about clenbuterol promotions that claim “this is so good that medical science won’t tell you about it.” Ask patients whether they are using supplements and where they are buying them, he emphasized. |
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