{"id":69805,"date":"2024-10-09T17:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-10-09T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/31cbc0bd-db17-4e41-9feb-c0531dc1e43d"},"modified":"2024-10-09T18:25:30","modified_gmt":"2024-10-09T16:25:30","slug":"the-rise-of-testosterone-doping-why-amateur-athletes-are-turning-to-the-performance-enhancing-hormone","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/cyclingplus\/rss_feed\/the-rise-of-testosterone-doping-why-amateur-athletes-are-turning-to-the-performance-enhancing-hormone\/","title":{"rendered":"The rise of testosterone doping: why amateur athletes are turning to the performance-enhancing hormone"},"content":{"rendered":"

Testosterone is becoming a common training tool, but where does it stray into performance enhancement? <\/p>

By <\/p>

Published: Wednesday, 09 October 2024 at 15:00 PM<\/p>

\n\n

One of the natural processes of ageing is loss of muscle mass, a drop in metabolism and a middle-aged spread of fat, even when you\u2019re a keen cyclist. Weight training and higher protein intake will help ameliorate the decline \u2013 as will testosterone.\u00a0<\/p>

By using testosterone gels or injecting the hormone, amateur athletes hope to gain strength, recover quickly, train more and remain competitive. But it begs the question: where\u2019s the line between restoring previous physiology as the years roll by and performance enhancement?<\/p>

\u201cOver the past five years, I\u2019ve started to see more exercising men present with borderline testosterone results,\u201d says Dr Simon Saunders, specialist in endocrinology at the Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, and a keen cyclist. <\/p>

\u201cThese are effectively broken down into two major groups. First, there are young men in their mid-to-late 20s who are interested in bulk. They\u2019ve spoken to someone at the gym who\u2019s offered them testosterone. They\u2019ve tried it a couple times, felt better on it and carried on, but then they\u2019ve stopped, their natural testosterone\u2019s slowed and their levels are low.<\/p>

Affordable blood tests can assess testosterone levels. Getty<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>

\u201cThen there\u2019s another group in their mid-40s to early-50s,\u201d adds Saunders. \u201cThey\u2019ll be watching the cycling, the adverts kick in and they\u2019ll see things like Wellman tests or similar for Numan. It\u2019ll be a constant drip-feeding of, \u2018Have you had your testosterone levels tested?\u2019 So, you prick your finger, drop blood on a card and send it back. <\/p>

“The results come back low. They then visit their doctor, who\u2019ll do a proper test. This needs to be done fasted and is a single blood test for testosterone. This may come back normal or potentially borderline.<\/p>

“This is where there\u2019s a real blurring of lines, as I\u2019ve seen an increasing number of 40-year-old-plus athletes who are arguably more interested in performance gains than health.\u201d<\/p>

Saunders recently audited his endocrine clinic for new referrals in the past 12 months and around 10 per cent attended for hypogonadism or low testosterone. That\u2019s up from 5 per cent five years ago, with these wellness adverts mooted as a great driver. <\/p>

He says many people, even those exercising regularly, don\u2019t require testosterone injections or gels, as cutting a few pounds or cutting back on alcohol helps. If after six to 12 months, the levels are still borderline, he might briefly trial them on testosterone. \u201cI follow the guidance but some don\u2019t. That\u2019s the nature of who you see.\u201d<\/p>

Lower threshold<\/h2>
\"doctor's
Saunders audited new referrals and in the past year 10 per cent have been for hypogonadism and low testosterone. andri wahyudi \/ Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>

Many a more mature athlete is benefiting from guidance that, says Saunders, changed about four years ago and focuses on \u2018calculated free testosterone\u2019, which looks at the amount of circulating testosterone that\u2019s not bound to protein. <\/p>

Most of the testosterone<\/a> in your blood attaches to two proteins: albumin and the sex hormone globulin. Some testosterone is free, which means it isn\u2019t attached to proteins. If low, it usually indicates a deficiency in the body\u2019s usable or bioavailable testosterone.<\/p>

\u201cIf you\u2019re running around 10 [nanomoles per litre] after a blood test that measures calculated-free testosterone, you now qualify for testosterone treatment. That\u2019s lower than before,\u201d says Saunders. <\/p>

\u201cThe diagnostics has changed to facilitate more testosterone use. That\u2019s because of the association with outcomes down the line in terms of long-term health.\u201d These include type 2 diabetes, hypertension, osteoporosis and metabolic syndrome.<\/p>

Saunders currently works predominantly with people over 40<\/a>. Hence, his observations on a blurring of health and performance lines via testosterone prescription. <\/p>

How many cyclists have gone rogue, bypassing the NHS route and ordering testosterone online (\u201coften from Greece or Turkey,\u201d says Saunders) remains to be seen, but it\u2019s something he saw a great deal of when he used to work in Warrington, in the north-west of England.<\/p>

\u201cIt\u2019s rugby-league country, so there are gyms all over the place,\u201d he says. \u201cI generally use a drug called Nebido, which is a compound ester of testosterone and lasts for a while, so you only need to inject every three months. But gym users generally go for Sustanon, as it\u2019s easier to get hold of.<\/p>

\u201cNow, if we prescribed Sustanon, we\u2019d normally give about 250mg every three to four weeks, whereas gym goers are using 250mg-500mg three times a week. So huge amounts. The consequence of that is lifting big weights and massive muscle bulk, but it turns off their testosterone completely, their testicles shrink and they can become infertile if they use it for a long time.\u201d<\/p>

Middle-aged speed<\/h2>
\"Giant
Joe Papp: \u201cEven just being top dog in a local cycling club can be a real ego boost to a lot of guys.\u201d Steve Sayers \/ Our Media<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>

Saunders currently has at least three patients under his care who were heavy users of testosterone. They were all gym goers. <\/p>

But it doesn\u2019t take a huge leap to link ageing cyclists whose speed is naturally declining and testosterone replacement for performance rationale, especially when you recall the 2015 Cycling Independent Reform Commission (CIRC) 227-page report, which was collated by a three-member panel tasked with investigating the causes and patterns of doping within cycling. <\/p>

In the report, the panel wrote: \u201cDoping in amateur cycling is becoming endemic. It has been caused by a combination of ease of access to drugs via gyms and the internet, the reduction in costs for substances, a spread of knowledge in means and methods of administration, and a lack of funding for regular testing at the amateur level.\u201d<\/p>

The CIRC report also stated that middle-aged businessmen were winning masters races after using performance-enhancing drugs. \u201cSome riders explained that they no longer ride in the gran fondos because they were so competitive due to the number of riders doping,\u201d it read.<\/p>