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[Definitie:] "An ergogenic aid is any substance or phenomenon that enhances performance."
(Wilmore and Costill) 
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0 1 - 0 4 - 2 0 0 5 Governor denies endorsing disputed diet supplements
By Pete Carey and Ann Marimow
Faced with growing criticism over his connections to the dietary supplement industry that sponsors his Arnold Fitness Weekend, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger says the annual expo is a private enterprise -- not a public endorsement of products sold there.
Schwarzenegger, a former bodybuilder who has a personal financial stake in the show, said through an aide that when he toured the exposition this month in Columbus, Ohio, and posed for pictures at the booths of various supplement companies, he was merely thanking vendors for their involvement in a ``private endeavor.''
But some of the companies that sponsor Schwarzenegger's expo or rent display booths sell supplements with powerful combinations of caffeine and synephrine, an ingredient banned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association, or yohimbine, which the Food and Drug Administration has warned could cause ``serious adverse effects.''
And synephrine, which at least one supplement maker has removed from its products, is certain to be discussed as California officials consider banning some supplement ingredients from high school sports, putting Schwarzenegger in a potentially difficult position.
``The thing is a conflict of interest,'' said Bruce Silverglade, director of legal affairs of the Center for Science and the Public Interest in Washington D.C. ``There's legislation that has been pending in the state Legislature on dietary supplements. Some of these bills have touched upon issues involving the same products the governor is seen as endorsing.''
Experts say they do not believe Schwarzenegger's actions constitute a legal conflict of interest under California's political reform law as long as any legislation is aimed at generic substances, not specific companies. And the governor's office says he will continue to be involved with the fitness industry.
``Where's the conflict?'' asked Margita Thompson, the governor's press secretary. ``He's not endorsing these products. These are people who have had their picture taken with the governor. Many legislators have had their pictures taken with the governor and that has not implied an endorsement either.''
Schwarzenegger, a Republican, started his political career as an advocate for kids, backing an initiative to provide after-school programs. Currently, he is trying to remove junk food from schools.
Schwarzenegger, who has acknowledged using steroids during his bodybuilding career, says he wants to rid the sport of illegal drugs. But he is a proponent of nutritional supplements. No other governor has had such close affiliations with products that have been the subject of so many questions from medical experts.
``They throw all this stuff together -- it's a veritable pharmacological Pandora's box,'' said Bill Gurley, a professor of pharmaceutical sciences in the College of Pharmacy at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. ``Who knows what you're going to get? Some people are not sensitive to them, some people are very sensitive to their effects.''
Dietary supplements do not need FDA approval before they are marketed, and the number and variety of ingredients in supplements make them difficult for researchers to study. But proponents argue that the products are safe if used by adults as directed and that questions arise largely because people are not familiar with some of the substances.
``It's an easy scapegoat,'' said Jim Schmaltz, editor of Physical Magazine, a sponsor of Schwarzenegger's expo. ``They don't know what it is. They think it's creepy.''
State Sen. Jackie Speier, D-San Mateo, is sponsoring a bill that would prohibit supplement makers from sponsoring school events and require the state health department to compile a list of substances to be banned from school sports. The governor vetoed a similar bill last year because of concerns that it would ban protein shakes or caffeine. But this year, he has directed officials to come up with compromise proposal.
``The governor, I think, has a bias,'' said Speier, who believes Schwarzenegger should suspend his participation in the Arnold expo while he remains in office. ``He really needs to step back from and be educated about these substances.''
The products promoted at ``the Arnold'' range from protein shakes to pills and liquids that promise to boost energy or incinerate fat. Some contain synephrine from bitter orange, a stimulant that has become more popular since Congress banned ephedra in the wake of dozens of deaths, or yohimbine, a stimulant that the FDA has cautioned against, along with other substances and plant extracts, after reports of kidney failure, seizures and death.
Dr. Arnold Mazur, a Boston College physician who looked at synephrine for the NCAA, said high school athletes should avoid both synephrine and yohimbine. But ``the biggest issue for me,'' he said, ``is that the governor of the state creates an image in helping to support an industry, which then makes a large amount of money off gullible young people who think that it will make them thinner or more energetic.''
Though banned by the NCAA because it might give athletes an edge, synephrine is allowed by the World Anti-Doping Agency. Though similar in structure to ephedra, synephrine has less of a stimulant effect and, taken alone, does not seem to cause problems. Instead, recent research suggests that it interacts with other ingredients to raise blood pressure and heart rate.
The FDA has not prohibited the use of either yohimbine or synephrine. But an official said the agency is ``looking into all dietary supplements, including those that have been touted as ephedra substitutes.''
Schwarzenegger did not use state money to travel to Ohio, according to his office. Once there, he was met at every turn by swarms of fans eager to grab his hand, snap a photo or score an autograph.
He stopped to pose with a group of bikini-clad women at the booth of one sponsor, VPX Sports, where a supplement containing caffeine, yohimbine and synephrine promised ``the ultimate energy rush.'' He paused at the GNC Corp. booth, another event sponsor that was displaying GNC Energy Rush, which contains caffeine and a bitter orange extract with 4 percent synephrine. GNC says it will not sell Energy Rush to anyone under 18 and spokesman Patrick Fitzgerald said the company uses a third party to conduct ``extensive'' safety testing on its products.
A third sponsor, Labrada Nutrition, removed synephrine from its Charge supplement last year and now advises anyone under 18 not to use Charge because of its caffeine content. The governor skipped the Ergopharm booth of Patrick Arnold, the popularizer of androstenedione, which the FDA banned last year.
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