A crash course on testosterone, hypgonadism, and doping [Archive] - satFIX.to

rokko

05-12-2012, 10:15 PM

In the case of Lamont Peterson, however, he was not testing positive under the protocol of a standard urine drug test. Why? While he was micro-dosing his testosterone usage, he was doing so in a manner in which his T/E ratio was under 4:1. Therefore, a standard, unsophisticated urine drug test was never going to catch them.

This is where the Carbon Isotope Ratio standard comes into play. CIR is essentially a standard used for more advanced urine drug testing that allows you to detect synthetic testosterone usage. Athletic commissions claim that they don’t use CIR because it’s cost-prohibitive. However, it absolutely works as a protocol for urine testing. Peterson got caught because of the CIR drug testing protocol. Keith Kizer of the Nevada State Athletic Commission admitted in an interview that standard Nevada urine drug tests would not have caught Lamont Peterson’s testosterone usage. What makes this so curious is that when a fighter fails a standard urine drug test in Nevada, the testing protocol on the B sample happens to feature Carbon Isotope Ratio testing. So, Kizer has admitted that Nevada’s lower standard of drug testing would not have caught Peterson and, yet, as we discovered in this case the CIR protocol that Nevada uses on appeal only would have busted Peterson. It’s totally backwards in terms of how the current drug testing process works.

The CIR test that Peterson tested positive for was administered by Dr. Margaret Goodman’s Voluntary Anti-Doping Agency, which contracted with the two fighters in question (Lamont Peterson & Amir Khan) to do supplemental drug testing in addition to what drug testing the state of Nevada does. This is the first big positive test for VADA.

What are testosterone users talking about when they are referring to their ‘levels’?

The T/E ratio that is used for standard urine drug testing is not what testosterone users talk about when it comes to their ‘levels’ for testing.

What testosterone users are talking about is the ng (serum) level of testosterone based on blood testing. The current spectrum of accepted ng levels by the state of Nevada is anywhere from 400 ng to 1100 ng. If this sounds like a wide gulf to you, that’s because it is. You can be a little lower than 400 ng for your testosterone levels and still be perfectly fine. In the case of UFC fighter Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, he claimed that his age management doctor told him that his level of 420 ng was ‘too low’ and that he needed to bump it up. Rampage claims it got bumped up to 600 ng but not the 800 ng that he wanted. The end result is that Rampage admittedly gained 15 pounds of muscle but had water retention issues when he missed weight for his UFC Japan fight against Ryan Bader.

The manipulation of levels when it comes to measuring testosterone levels via blood testing results is evident in one manner. If you are an anabolic steroid user, you can damage your endocrine system after usage and go get your blood work done. The results of the blood work will show that you are suffering from low testosterone levels. This is then used for justification to get a prescription for Testosterone Replacement Therapy. This is what makes the wildly varying state-by-state process of getting a Therapeutic Use Exemption for testosterone usage so maddening — and dangerous.

What is the net effect of testosterone usage in combat sports?

Given the rise of admitted & busted testosterone users in combat sports, eventually a crisis will happen in boxing or MMA sooner rather than later. A testosterone user will end up crippling or killing an opponent and the testosterone issue will blow up on a massive scale in the media — and rightfully so.

Testosterone usage gives anabolic steroid users a second chance at doping. Testosterone usage gives those who are abusing pain killers even more reason to continue their vicious cycle. The same can be said about fighters who suffer from permanent brain damage who end up getting a testosterone prescription in order to take more physical punishment and suffer even more brain damage.

Testosterone is power in combat sports. It can increase the knockout ratio of a fighter, even at an older age. Unlike using testosterone in order to increase your strength to hit a homerun or perform better at track & field, testosterone usage in combat sports allows a fighter to not only cause more brain damage against an opponent but also receive more brain damage as their career is extended due to getting permission to use testosterone because their body can’t produce testosterone naturally any longer.

Testosterone usage is a legitimately scary medical problem in combat sports and deserves intense public scrutiny. Lives are at stake here. If you don’t care about the cheaters, then at least care about fighters who are getting cheated against and are in a more vulnerable position to suffer their own form of physical damage.