THE athletes who will compete for Olympic honours in Beijing are intensely driven individuals. So we should not be surprised if some are found over the next few weeks to have pushed too far and resorted to banned drugs to boost their performance. Many more, however, will have tried to achieve similar results by taking nutritional supplements 鈥� which is why we need a wider debate on whether sporting bodies should do more to investigate the effects of these substances.
The idea comes from of Kingston University London, who is one of the researchers trying to identify the psychological and social factors that lead some athletes to seek pharmaceutical assistance, while others stay clean (see 鈥淥lympic cheats: creating a culture that rejects doping鈥�). If athletes could be given better advice on legitimate ways to enhance their performance, Petr贸czi argues, the temptation to take banned drugs would not be so great. She is also worried about the health consequences of prolonged supplement use.
Given the exotic cocktails of nutritional supplements being taken by many athletes, this is a genuine concern. At the Sydney Olympics in 2000, athletes who were tested for banned drugs were also asked what legitimate substances they had taken in the previous three days. More than half had used vitamins; 21 per cent had taken minerals; 12.5 per cent amino acids; and 22.5 per cent some other type of supplement. A fifth of the tested athletes said they had taken more than five different supplements and medications, and one listed a total of 26 (Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine, vol 13, p 33).
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Clearly, some supplements can improve athletic performance. Creatine, a naturally occurring substance that helps deliver energy to muscles, is useful for athletes needing intense bursts of power. Sodium bicarbonate helps fight muscle fatigue by buffering cells against the build-up of lactic acid.
Some athletes are taking these substances, and correcting mineral and vitamin deficiencies, under the guidance of expert sports nutritionists. Others are influenced by dubious marketing claims from supplement makers, rumours about what works for sporting rivals, and the mistaken belief that 鈥渕ore is better鈥�. They could well be endangering their health: a recent review from the Cochrane Collaboration for evidence-based medicine found that taking supplements of some antioxidant vitamins can actually .
鈥淪ome athletes are guided by expert nutritionists, others are influenced by marketing claims and rumours鈥�
Whether long-term consumption of creatine or other permitted performance enhancers holds similar risks is unknown. For many supplements, it is unclear whether they even have any benefit. So Petr贸czi鈥檚 call for more research seems sensible. The trouble for sporting bodies is that starting clinical studies into the effects of supplements opens a huge can of worms 鈥� potentially undermining the logic behind the existing list of banned substances.
Under , a substance is prohibited if it fulfils at least two of the following criteria: it enhances performance, or has the potential to; it endangers health; or it 鈥渧iolates the spirit of sport鈥�. The more research that is conducted on supplements, the more of them will be found to either enhance performance or pose health risks, putting increasing emphasis on the 鈥渟pirit of sport鈥� criterion 鈥� the vaguest and most subjective of the three.
These difficulties have led some commentators to suggest that the fight against doping should be abandoned, with athletes being allowed to take whatever they want. The problem with this permissive approach is that it would vastly increase the pressure on athletes to take dangerous drugs in order to compete at the highest level, which could seriously endanger their health.
If sporting authorities have a duty to prevent this from happening, it also falls to them to stop a similar competitive dynamic of experimentation and risk from taking hold with nutritional supplements. And if they do rise to the challenge and investigate supplements, it will be hard to avoid the conclusion that what matters, above all else, is protecting athletes鈥� health. Let鈥檚 accept that elite athletes want to improve their performance with nutritional supplements, and concentrate on ensuring that our sporting heroes do not propel themselves into an early grave.