|
|
|
||
|
|
||
|
1 9 - 0 6 - 2 0 0 7 Doping agents on the up - among French 11-year-olds
AFP More than one in 100 of French 11-year-olds use banned drugs to boost their performance in sports, according to a study published online on Monday. [Br J Sports Med. Published Online First: 1 May 2007. doi:10.1136/bjsm.2007.035733] Researchers in eastern France questioned 3,500 11-year-olds about their use of drugs that are banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and followed the youngsters up every six months for the next four years. At the start, 1.2 percent said they had used one or more drugs, but by the time they were 15, the proportion had risen to three percent. The most commonly-used performance booster was salbutamol, a stimulant that is also prescribed for asthma, which was taken by 45 percent of users. This was followed by corticosteroids (10 percent) and cannabis (six percent), while other stimulants and anabolic agents made up 38 percent. The researchers did not include the drug if the child had a medical reason for taking it. Of those using these doping agents, four percent reported experienced a health problem, such as becoming violent or losing consciousness, and 44 percent acknowledged that they had won at least one sporting event because of their pharmacological boost. The study appears in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, published by the British Medical Assocation (BMA). The authors, led by Patrick Laure of the Lorraine Regional Directorate for Youth and Sports, say the problem appears to be rooted in low self-esteem and anxiety, especially among boys, and it increases with age and competitive pressures. "Adults responsible for young people should be alerted by these signs," the paper warns. |
|
|
[Definitie:] "An ergogenic aid is any substance or phenomenon that enhances performance."
(Wilmore and Costill) 
