Drugs, Athletes, and Physical Performance

1. Front Matter

   Pages iii-xvii

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2. Vitamins and Athletes

   • Suzanne Barone

   Pages 1-9

3. Fate of Anabolic Steroids in the Body

   • Howard D. Colby, Penelope A. Longhurst

   Pages 11-30

4. Nutrition, Fluid Balance, and Physical Performance

   • Richard Cotter

   Pages 31-40

5. Analgesics and Sports Medicine

   • Charles R. Craig

   Pages 41-51

6. Calcium

   • Michael J. Glade, Paula H. Stern

   Pages 53-71

7. Muscle Relaxants

   • Donald B. Hoover

   Pages 73-89

8. Anabolic and Androgenic Steroids

   • Edward J. Keenan

   Pages 91-103

9. Anti-inflammatory Agents

   • Edward T. Knych

   Pages 105-117

10. Effect of Exercise on Fuel Utilization and Insulin Requirements

    • Michael P. McLane, David L. Horwitz

    Pages 119-140

11. Drug Abuse in Athletes

    • Nancy A. Nuzzo, Donald P. Waller

    Pages 141-167

12. Exercise and Immunity

    • Marc Salit

    Pages 169-179

13. Reproductive Consequences of Athletic Training in Women

    • Carol Grace Smith, Raymond A. Dombroski

    Pages 181-197

14. Human Growth Hormone

    • Michael J. Thomas, John A. Thomas

    Pages 199-216

15. CNS Stimulants and Athletic Performance

    • Galen R. Wenger

    Pages 217-234

16. Back Matter

    Pages 235-237

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The use of performance-enhancing substances by athletes is not a contemporary epi­ demic. In fact, athletes purportedly resorted to such measures over 2000 years ago. Even at the ancient olympic games, athletes employed special diets and concoctions to enhance their performance. In ancient Rome and ancient Egypt, gladiators and athletes ingested various potions in order to improve their physical endurance. In most in­ stances, such early examples of substance abuse by athletes involved relatively in­ nocuous chemicals, and one might presume that any enhanced performance could be attributed largely to a placebo effect. Nowadays, aside from the ethical issues, these performance-enhancing substances are far more potent and hence toxic to the body. The many performance-enhancing chemicals, drugs, and hormones exert a variety of complex pharmacological actions, but all are meant in some fashion to improve phys­ ical ability. Their pharmacological effects ranges from imprOVed muscle strength, as in the case of anabolic steroids and growth hormone, to central nervous system stimula­ tion, as in the case of caffeine or amphetamine. Analgesics or other pain-killing drugs may also be used to suppress an existing injury in order that the athlete may compete.

• amphetamine
• analgesics
• growth
• growth hormone
• hormone
• muscle
• steroid
• steroids
• diabetes

• Department of Pharmacology, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, USA

  John A. Thomas

Policies and ethics