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Ergogenic Aids
Published in Michael H. Stone, Timothy J. Suchomel, W. Guy Hornsby, John P. Wagle, Aaron J. Cunanan, Strength and Conditioning in Sports, 2023
Michael H. Stone, Timothy J. Suchomel, W. Guy Hornsby, John P. Wagle, Aaron J. Cunanan
Most ergogenic aids can be thought of as an augmentation aimed at boosting a particular aspect of training or competitive performance. However, it is often the case that an ergogenic aid is creating an unfair advantage for the athletes that use them or is exposing the athlete to side effects that are a threat to the athlete’s health or well-being. The various governing bodies overseeing each sport and its levels work tirelessly to carefully police ergogenic aids to uphold the integrity of competition and preserve the health status of the athletes. Therefore, the authors will forgo any discussion of banned substances (e.g., anabolic steroids) or processes (e.g., blood doping), as these would not be useful for practitioners aligned with the ethical standards universally agreed upon in sport. Because sport science, as we have defined it in previous chapters, includes both the improvement of sport performance and its equipment, we will move forward with a rather inclusive discussion. However, only a brief discussion of psychological ergogenic aids will be provided, as it falls outside the authors’ collective scopes of practice. Readers interested in the various psychological ergogenic aids and their efficacy are directed towards the work of Baltzell (8).
Oxygen Transport
Published in James N. Cobley, Gareth W. Davison, Oxidative Eustress in Exercise Physiology, 2022
P.N. Chatzinikolaou, N.V. Margaritelis, A.N. Chatzinikolaou, V. Paschalis, A.A. Theodorou, I.S. Vrabas, A. Kyparos, M.G. Nikolaidis
Chronic exercise increases plasma volume, erythrocyte count and total hemoglobin content, which are fundamental determinants for VO2max improvements (Sawka et al., 2000; Mairbäurl, 2013; Saunders et al., 2013). In particular, exercise training can increase total blood volume by ≈10%–15%, by inducing blood volume expansion and increasing erythrocyte count (Sawka et al., 2000). Blood volume expansion augments cardiac output, while the increase in erythrocyte count and hemoglobin content enhances the oxygen-carrying capacity and subsequently VO2max (Lundby et al., 2017; Mairbäurl, 2013). The central role of blood is also exemplified by the fact that an acute loss of 450 mL reduces VO2max by 7% probably due to reduced stroke volume (Skattebo et al., 2021). These effects explain why the World Anti-Doping Agency prohibits blood doping (e.g., transfusion of blood or administration of erythropoietin).
Blood
Published in David Sturgeon, Introduction to Anatomy and Physiology for Healthcare Students, 2018
The process by which new erythrocytes (red blood cells) are produced is called erythropoiesis and is controlled by the hormone erythropoietin (EPO). Erythropoietin is secreted by cells in the kidney (and to a lesser degree the liver) in response to falling or low levels of oxygen in the blood (hypoxaemia). It stimulates the bone marrow to increase the rate of stem cell differentiation and haemoglobin synthesis. This results in the production of greater number of erythrocytes which increase the quantity of oxygen in the blood and slows the secretion of erythropoietin by the kidney. This negative feedback loop ensures that erythrocyte numbers remain relatively constant and that the oxygen-carrying capacity of blood is always sufficient to meet the metabolic requirements of the body. In addition to erythropoietin, folic acid and vitamin B 12 are also essential for normal erythrocyte production. If you are a fan of athletics or professional cycling you may know that erythropoietin (EPO) injections have been used by some competitors to increase the oxygen carrying potential of their red blood cells. This is particularly beneficial when competing at high altitude, such as the mountain stages of the Tour de France, since oxygen is less abundant here than at sea level (see Chapter 9). Despite the fact that the use of erythropoietin was banned in 1984, so-called blood doping remains a stubborn problem in professional sport and some athletes have admitted (or been caught) transfusing one or more units of blood immediately prior to an event to increase packed cell volume.
Review of Thomas H. Murray, Good Sport: Why Our Games Matter and How Doping Undermines Them
Published in The American Journal of Bioethics, 2019
In Chapters 7 and 8, Murray explores arguments against doping in sport. He puts forth his idea that antidoping is about preserving meaning and values in sport, whereas others have justified antidoping on the basis of protecting athletes’ health. The problem with the latter, Murray points out, is that health is expansive. One could argue that having a competitive advantage is better for their [mental] health. In some cases, drugs useful to assist in recovery from injury or illness can lend an advantage in performance. Murray points out that athletes have agency to make decisions and that just because something poses a health risk is not a reason to ban it. In many cases, determining who has violated a doping rule can be difficult. Both blood doping and training at high altitude will increase the number of red blood cells to transport oxygen to the muscles, but only one of these is banned because it is “unnatural” and “unhealthy.” Murray suggests that one is about the value of sport (hard work, skill, performance) and the other violates these values (cheating, circumventing what is possible with hard work). As more technologies are developed, the world of sports will be faced with whether those tools should be permitted or not. He suggests that looking at the value and meaning of sport is a more useful way to decide.