|
|
[Definitie:] "An ergogenic aid is any substance or phenomenon that enhances performance."
(Wilmore and Costill) 
|
|
|
||
|
||
|
1 8 - 0 1 - 2 0 0 5 Local merchant spreads the word about drawbacks of anabolic steroid ban
2005-01-18
A local work-out supplement seller is concerned the public is unaware of the anabolic steroid ban that will go into effect on Jan. 20 and the potential health risk such a ban carries. Chris Bisbocci, who co-owns Iron Empire, 42 S. Court St., with Dave Wakeley, said he is concerned that the federal government has covertly enacted a ban on anabolic steroids. In April 2004, the Food and Drug Administration banned ephedra, which is not illegal to possess but is illegal to produce and sell. That drew a lot of coverage from the national and local media, Bisbocci said. But on Oct. 9, 2004, when President Bush signed into law the Anabolic Steroid Control Act of 2004, the only media coverage he was aware of occurred on CNN's news ticker. Anabolic steroids include androstenedione (or andro), which was made popular after a bottle of it was found in Major League Baseball player Mark McGwire's locker while he was chasing Roger Maris' single-season homerun record in 1998. Andro is a testosterone precursor, which increases hormone production. "The issue of steroid trafficking and abuse has recently received national attention in the context of professional sports," Joseph Rannazzisi, a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration deputy director, told the U.S. House subcommittee on terrorism and homeland security on March 16, 2004. "Abuse of anabolic steroids among young Americans has reached dangerous levels, and it puts our kids at increased risk of heart disease, liver cancer, depression, stunted growth and eating disorders, not to mention increased episodes of hostility and aggression," Rannazzisi said. BUT BISBOCCI DISAGREES. "(Anabolic steroids) are a safe and effective way to get around illegal steroids," Bisbocci said. Anabolic steroids such as andro give users about one-third the effectiveness of illegal steroids, he said, but do so with a "minimal chance of minimal side effects." Bisbocci conceded that most anabolic steroid users don't know enough about what they are putting in their body, and he tries to help out his customers. "I get a lot of (Ohio University) freshmen who don't know what they are doing," he said. "They are our customers; we don't want them hurting themselves." Bisbocci said he has two concerns when the anabolic steroid ban goes into effect on Jan. 20. First, it's bad for his business. "If I sold half of the stuff on this shelf after Jan. 20, I'd be a felon," he said. But Bisbocci also is concerned that removing safe anabolic steroids from the market will result in people looking elsewhere for workout supplements such as illegal steroids. "The market is going to be flooded with cheap junk," he predicted. Illegal steroids are easily obtained from Mexico, and U.S. soldiers have been known to bring them back from foreign countries, he said. Several tests of andro have come back with mixed results, with some findings claiming that the steroid is not effective. Bisbocci said customers get what they pay for, and his products have helped him. Other studies claim that not enough is known about andro's health effects. But potential side effects are listed on the bottle, Bisbocci said. And in many studies, he added, obscene amounts of the steroid are used to show it is harmful. Bisbocci said he doesn't know of any deaths or pending lawsuits involving anabolic steroid users. Another criticism is that the country should be promoting physical fitness through healthy eating and exercising. "That's great for the general populace," Bisbocci said. But anabolic steroids are for people, such as bodybuilders and athletes, who want to take physical fitness to the next level, he explained. |
|
|
