Steroid Cleanse Article

[kite]

TweetThe Steroid Cleanser
Is it real? And what does it mean for sports?
by Anthony Roberts


If you're anything like me, you cringe every time you see a guy in a white lab coat on a TV show dealing with sports. We all know what's coming next: an explanation of how the latest sports doping scandal evolved and a self-righteous condemnation of the athletes involved.

Other things are rarely mentioned. Like private investigators following Lance Armstrong around for over half a year, sifting through his garbage and tearing apart his hotel rooms after he left them — all in the name of keeping things fair. This is all done to "level the playing field." This is all in the name of "fair play."



Someone needs to keep things fair, right? Someone needs to insure a level, non-chemically enhanced playing field, right? And that someone needs to be someone we, the sports fans and the public at large, can trust. We need to know that they aren't hiding anything from us, and that they themselves are playing fair. If we can't trust the people who are administering the drug tests, then who can we trust?

Well, I'm here to tell you that we can't trust the people who administer these tests!


The Drug Testing Procedure

First, we need to take a look at the testing procedure so we can all understand exactly what's involved — the lengths taken to prevent an athlete (or anybody) from tampering with the test itself, the sample, or the testing procedure.

Let's suppose you're an athlete and you've been selected for "random" drug testing. Typically, you'll show up at your training facility where you'll be met and subsequently notified by an official who's actually there just to ask you to sign a form acknowledging said notification. This is very similar to the procedure for being served with papers for a summons to court.

Then you're usually accompanied by an official to a testing station or (this is more common) you must arrive at a designated testing station within a designated period. The testing station is usually a private, comfortable place where plenty of fluids are readily available. Sometimes, it's set up inside a specially designed mobile testing unit, which is brought to your practice facility.

Once inside, you'll meet sampling officers, each of whom are trained and/or appointed by the respective governing body of your sport, to carry out the collection of urine samples. Every one of these officers carries a time-sensitive identity card as well as a letter of authority for the event to which they're allocated, both of which they're required to show to you.

Before giving your urine sample, you're asked to select two numbered bottles from a table full of them that's been set out for you. At least 75-100 ml must be given under close scrutiny and then your urine is split into two different bottles labeled "A" and "B" respectively.



Many times, you're the only one who handles the urine and collection containers until they're totally sealed. After you seal the containers with tamperproof strips and then put them inside other sealed and tamperproof containers, you sign a record of the previous events.

The paper you'll have to sign also says that you've declared any drug treatment taken in the previous seven days, as well as that you've checked and signed the bottle the sample is in. Finally, you indicate that your sample has been taken and placed in the bottles correctly.

This record serves as a chain-of-custody which continues indefinitely. Since barcodes and numbers are the only identification used, the laboratory staff never knows your name, only your bottle identification number. This way a hypothetical lab-person who doesn't like a particular athlete can't tamper with the sample. ("Throw the winning touchdown against my favorite team, will ya?")

Granted, if you're Lance Armstrong or Jason Giambi, you're going to at least be recognizable to the staff who initially meets you for the first part of the procedure, but nobody past that point will know whose sample they're testing.

The urine sample is then sent for analysis to a laboratory currently accredited by your particular organization (and there aren't many that have such accreditation). Now, in the event of a positive test result, the lab who performed the test will first notify the governing body of your sport, who will then notify your team officials and yourself. The rules of the governing body of the particular sport determine what happens next.

Generally, you can ask for a retest, which is done with the rest of the sample (the "B" sample) taken previously. As an example, in 2001, USA Powerlifting performed roughly 700 total drug tests, which constitutes exactly 18.4% of their membership numbers (some members were tested more than once, it needs to be noted).

Of those 700 tests, there were 25 positive "A" samples, and two of them requested their "B" samples to be tested as well. Most people realize the futility of this; however, for these two lifters who requested a "B" test, their second samples were also positive. At the Olympic level, requesting the "B" test is basically a formality, while an appeal is worked up for the athlete by his or her sponsors and/or coaches. If the athlete still fails with the "B" sample (which is 99.999% of the time), then they go to a hearing, at which time their case is presented.

A favorite of mine was when a Nike sponsored runner failed a test with excessively high Testosterone levels. The Nike lawyers and scientists came up with the highly plausible story (related at her hearing) that she was drinking heavily the night before the race and alcohol can raise Testosterone levels under certain conditions and with proper amounts, blah, blah, blah...



Anyway, this absurdly complicated procedure is strictly adhered to so that all athletes receive the exact same treatment. Every part of the protocol, down to the smallest detail, including the observation of the collection of the urine sample, is rigorously adhered to. Several parameters of the specimen, like volume ("you musta been holding it for awhile, huh?"), pH, temperature, and in many cases specific gravity of the sample, are all tested immediately.

Urine pH is tested to detect attempts at changing the nature of the sample, which can affect the analysis of certain drugs (putting bleach in the sample for example, or surreptitiously ingesting sodium bicarbonate to change urine pH and alter the test ), as well to test their metabolism and clearance.

Specific gravity is checked for attempts to dilute the concentration of drugs, as is the case by deliberate diuretic use or by drinking highly excessive amounts of water prior to testing (one study suggested that a gallon or more in the preceding four hours may be sufficient for this).


Finding the "Juice"

Now let's see what happens when the rubber actually meets the road (or the urine meets the cup). Don't worry, I'll make it as painless and light on the nerd-speak as I can.

Typically, urinalysis is the easiest method for random testing, as urine's major constituents are primarily electrolytes, metabolic excretory products, and other substances typically eliminated through the kidneys. The mandatory test to detect Testosterone abuse is to measure the ratio of Testosterone to epitestosterone in the urine. Finding other steroids is generally done via the identification of metabolites present in the urine.



To understand how the Testosterone/epitestosterone (T/E) doping test works, you need to know that an adult male has a T/E ratio of approximately 1 to 1. Since epitestosterone doesn't originate from endogenous Testosterone, and because the ratio of urinary T to E in adults is almost always constant, this ratio has been used as the accepted standard basis for the detection of exogenously administered Testosterone.

The logic here is that if your Testosterone levels were a totally natural product of your body, they'd be commensurate with your epitestosterone levels. A urinary T/E ratio from 1 to 6 (or a score of 6) is considered high-end normal by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), while one which is greater than 6 is generally enough evidence to suspend an athlete for suspicion of using exogenous Testosterone.

Here's what a failing test looks like:


Click image to enlarge

As you can see, the person taking that test was using some form of injectable Testosterone, as his Testosterone/epitestosterone levels were almost four times what would be considered high-normal.

In addition, the person was clearly taking Deca (nandrolone) and Winstrol (stanozolol). Also, the Testosterone, when measured in ng/ml, on that test is pretty high (81ng/ml!), which is many times what would be considered within normal range.



It should be noted that the lab at which this test was conducted claims that their "zero tolerance" drug testing method and protocol has the ability to detect drugs for a longer period of time than conventional tests: two to three times longer than other comparable tests.

This is probably done by employing lower test thresholds as well as an exceptionally advanced screening technology. My favorite part of this company's website is that this particular test is claimed to be affected by products designed to fool drug tests — products available at common nutrition centers.

Well, that's just great, isn't it?!

Drug tests (other than for Testosterone) screen for the main excreted metabolites produced when your body metabolizes a given steroid (or recreational drug). Finding any of these metabolites indicates a positive on a drug screening test. Let's take a look at what the lab who provided that last test were probably looking for when they examined that first urine sample for the stanozolol and nandrolone:



Winstrol (Stanozolol) and its Metabolic Changes
(Winstrol) Stanozolol -> 3'-Hydroxystanozolol-17-Epistanozolol -> 16B-Hydroxystanozolol -> B-Hydroxystanozolol



Deca-Durabolin (Nandrolone) and its Metabolic Changes
(Dcea) Nandrolone -> 3a-Hydroxy-5B-estran-17-one -> 3a-Hydroxy-5a-estran-17-one -> 3B-Hydroxy-5B-estran-17-one

If the test above were from an Olympic athlete, the next thing you'd be hearing is a scientist on television talking about cheating and fairness and a whole host of other catch-words involving the highfalutin morality involved in catching cheats. Then they usually tell us that their test is nearly unbeatable and that false positives are nearly unheard of. And why not, right?

Well, if you've been paying attention, you're probably asking yourself why couldn't someone just inject some epitestosterone with their Testosterone in a 1:1 ratio and fool that portion of the test. Well, yes, this could be done, certainly, and it would appear that BALCO did something like that with their athletes. The Testosterone ng/ml (a measure of the amount in the body) could still register as failing, however.

Okay, but you could still use a very small amount of Test with some epitest and pass the T/E ratio test and maybe the ng/ml portion. And what about other products?


Enter "The Cleanser"

Let's suppose a product were developed which could remove steroids from your body within a couple of days. More people would be able to cheat and pass drug tests, right? There would be anarchy among athletics, the destruction of the American Way of Life!

Maybe I'm exaggerating, but at the very least, this would become another weapon in the arsenal of the modern day chemically-enhanced athlete. But is it even possible? What kind of reaction would the guys in white lab coats have, those upholders of truth, justice, and the American Way?

Surely there are other uses for a product that could remove steroids from your body. Off the top of my head, it could be used (when monitored by a physician of course) to rapidly cleanse the body of steroids while restoring homeostasis quickly in order to avoid possible side effects after a cycle is over.

The guys in the lab coats can imagine an athlete suffering from too many side effects who wants to use such a product to remove all steroids from his (or her) body immediately. Our lab coat wearing buddies would surely support this type of endeavor, right?

Maybe, when an athlete was caught using steroids, he or she would be given this product and allowed to return upon a clean test, days later! Of course, it would also be a product that has benefits to people inclined to cheat, but even if a few cheaters slipped by, the positives would clearly outweigh the negatives, right?

I see it that way. Maybe you see it that way. But the lab coat wearing masses don't.

As you'll see, the following test — which was taken a few days after the first — shows a normal level of Testosterone and T/E ratio, as well as the total elimination of stanozolol (although the nandrolone remained detectable.)


Click image to enlarge

Here's where things get interesting. First, from what I understand from numerous interviews with the man who took that test, there were problems obtaining lab results from the second test. The lab wanted to know who was doing this, what product(s) were used, what research and development was going on, and what company was going to hold the patent. They were reluctant to release that second test and even offered to refund the money.

Phone calls inquiring about this (by yours truly) weren't answered with any substance and generally were cut very short by the people I spoke to. I've even heard that there were other tests done with a different (and very large) lab who outright refused to release the results and simply gave a refund.

It seems that the emergence of a cleansing product with so many positive uses isn't going to be welcomed by the labs. In fact, from all indication, they're doing their best to prevent its research and development. They're all for fair play when they can act as the referee, not when they actually have to play by the rules!

More testing needs to be done, as only three compounds (Testosterone, Winstrol, and nandrolone) were tested, but this much needed testing to determine which other compounds can be cleansed successfully is being stifled.

Clearly only two of the three tested steroids (Winstrol and Testosterone) were successfully cleansed. A hundred thousand drug tests are conducted worldwide at a cost of $30 million each year, and compromising that is something the labs just aren't willing to do.



So if you're a drug testing lab or a scientist who works at one, you definitely want your piece of that financial pie, and you certainly don't want a product readily available on the market which can deprive you of your share of the money involved. It's easy to understand the desire of major labs to suppress further development of this product, as they want job security and want to continue their careers as long as possible... something Barry Bonds may have turned to steroids to do.

When we look at it like that, it would appear that the labs and scientists are on the exact same moral grounds that the steroid using athletes are. Did you really expect anything different?

From what I've seen so far, this product isn't "masking" the drugs in an athlete's body or "fooling" the drug test. It's actually cleansing the body of the exogenous hormones in question and returning the athlete to within acceptable and normal Testosterone levels. Drugs are simply being removed from the body. It's easy to see how this type of product is a good thing.


The Future is Now

Currently, this product is available if you know where to get it. As for me, I'm interested in observing the remainder of the research process which is being done to (possibly) figure out how to tweak the administration protocol to cleanse nandrolone or other steroids.

So now, I'm sure of two things. The first is that the labs and scientists who keep talking about "playing fair" aren't playing fair themselves. And the second is that things are about to get a whole lot more interesting.

[Stackt]

TweetI have yet to try it but heard great reviews !

[jipped genes]

Tweetdosnt effect me at all but it was an interesting read to say the least

[kite]

TweetIf it works, it's good news for all in law enforcement/security jobs.

[NATE]

TweetI still don't know how you avoid the backlash of sides when you strip your body clean of steriods.

Anybody mind helping a dullard out?