Some have suggested that growth hormone is a wonder drug ( 16 ) that results in ripped muscle ( 17 ) and provides stamina-increasing properties ( 18 ) .
The use of human growth hormone to improve athletic performance has recently received worldwide attention .
This practice , often called sports doping , is banned by most professional sports leagues and associations , including the International Olympic Committee , Major League Baseball , and the National Football League ( 13 ) .
However , a wide range of athletes , including those from baseball ( 46 ) , cycling ( 7 , 8) , and track and field ( 5 , 9 ) , have been implicated in or have confessed to illicit growth hormone use .
The Mitchell report ( 10 ) recently identified 89 Major League Baseball players who allegedly used performance-enhancing drugs , and some of these players have subsequently admitted to using growth hormone ( 11 , 12 ) .
Part of the attraction of using growth hormone as a performance enhancer has been that its use is difficult to detect .
The World Anti-Doping Agency , whose formation stemmed from the widely publicized doping sc and al of the 1998 Tour de France ( 13 ) , first used a blood test to detect exogenous growth hormone during the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens .
Although growth hormone is reportedly used to enhance athletic performance and has been called the most anabolic substance known ( 15 ) , its efficacy for this purpose is not well established .
Exogenous growth hormone therapy in growth hormonedeficient adults ( that is , those with growth hormone deficiency due to hypothalamic or pituitary defects ) results in increased lean mass and decreased fat mass ( 19 ) , and comparable body composition changes are seen in healthy elderly adults who receive growth hormone ( 20 ) .
Some experts , however , have suggested that the strength-enhancing properties of growth hormone among healthy adults have been exaggerated ( 15 ) .
Serious side effects , including diabetes , hepatitis , and acute renal failure , may occur in athletes using high-dose growth hormone ( 21 ) .
Furthermore , the use of growth hormone for athletic enhancement is not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration , and the distribution of growth hormone for this purpose is illegal in the United States ( 22 ) .
We performed a systematic review of r and omized , controlled trials to determine the effects of growth hormone therapy on athletic performance in healthy , physically fit , young adults .
Our primary aim was to evaluate the effects of growth hormone on body composition , strength , basal metabolism , and exercise capacity .
In addition , we sought to synthesize the evidence on adverse events associated with growth hormone in the healthy young and assess the quality of the published literature .
Expansion of extracellular volume and suppression of atrial natriuretic peptide after growth hormone administration in normal man.
Sodium retention and symptoms and signs of fluid retention are commonly recorded during GH administration in both GH-deficient patients and normal subjects . Most reports have however , been casuistic or uncontrolled . In a r and omized double blind placebo-controlled cross-over study we therefore examined the effect of 14-day GH administration ( 12 IU sc at 2000 h ) on plasma volume , extracellular volume ( ECV ) , atrial natriuretic peptide ( ANP ) , arginine vasopressin , and the renin angiotensin system in eight healthy adult men . A significant GH induced increase in serum insulin growth factor I was observed . GH caused a significant increase in ECV ( L ) : 20.45 + /- 0.45 ( GH ) , 19.53 + /- 0.48 ( placebo ) ( P less than 0.01 ) , whereas plasma volume ( L ) remained unchanged 3.92 + /- 0.16 ( GH ) , 4.02 + /- 0.13 ( placebo ) . A significant decrease in plasma ANP ( pmol/L ) after GH administration was observed : 2.28 + /- 0.54 ( GH ) , 3.16 + /- 0.53 ( placebo ) P less than 0.01 . Plasma aldosterone ( pmol/L ) : 129 + /- 14 ( GH ) , 89 + /- 17 ( placebo ) , P = 0.08 , and plasma angiotensin II ( pmol/L ) levels : 18 + /- 12 ( GH ) , 14 + /- 7 ( placebo ) , P = 0.21 , were not significantly elevated . No changes in plasma arginine vasopressin occurred ( 1.86 + /- 0.05 pmol/L vs. 1.90 + /- 0.05 , P = 0.33 ) . Serum sodium and blood pressure remained unaffected . Moderate complaints , which could be ascribed to water retention , were recorded in four subjects [ periorbital edema ( n = 3 ) , acral paraesthesia ( n = 2 ) and light articular pain ( n = 1 ) ] . The symptoms were most pronounced after 2 - 3 days of treatment and diminished at the end of the period . In summary , 14 days of high dose GH administration caused a significant increase in ECV and a significant suppression of ANP
Some have suggested that growth hormone is a wonder drug ( 16 ) that results in ripped muscle ( 17 ) and provides stamina-increasing properties ( 18 ) .
The use of human growth hormone to improve athletic performance has recently received worldwide attention .
This practice , often called sports doping , is banned by most professional sports leagues and associations , including the International Olympic Committee , Major League Baseball , and the National Football League ( 13 ) .
However , a wide range of athletes , including those from baseball ( 46 ) , cycling ( 7 , 8) , and track and field ( 5 , 9 ) , have been implicated in or have confessed to illicit growth hormone use .
The Mitchell report ( 10 ) recently identified 89 Major League Baseball players who allegedly used performance-enhancing drugs , and some of these players have subsequently admitted to using growth hormone ( 11 , 12 ) .
Part of the attraction of using growth hormone as a performance enhancer has been that its use is difficult to detect .
The World Anti-Doping Agency , whose formation stemmed from the widely publicized doping sc and al of the 1998 Tour de France ( 13 ) , first used a blood test to detect exogenous growth hormone during the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens .
Although growth hormone is reportedly used to enhance athletic performance and has been called the most anabolic substance known ( 15 ) , its efficacy for this purpose is not well established .
Exogenous growth hormone therapy in growth hormonedeficient adults ( that is , those with growth hormone deficiency due to hypothalamic or pituitary defects ) results in increased lean mass and decreased fat mass ( 19 ) , and comparable body composition changes are seen in healthy elderly adults who receive growth hormone ( 20 ) .
Some experts , however , have suggested that the strength-enhancing properties of growth hormone among healthy adults have been exaggerated ( 15 ) .
Serious side effects , including diabetes , hepatitis , and acute renal failure , may occur in athletes using high-dose growth hormone ( 21 ) .
Furthermore , the use of growth hormone for athletic enhancement is not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration , and the distribution of growth hormone for this purpose is illegal in the United States ( 22 ) .
We performed a systematic review of r and omized , controlled trials to determine the effects of growth hormone therapy on athletic performance in healthy , physically fit , young adults .
Our primary aim was to evaluate the effects of growth hormone on body composition , strength , basal metabolism , and exercise capacity .
In addition , we sought to synthesize the evidence on adverse events associated with growth hormone in the healthy young and assess the quality of the published literature .