Childhood Obesity Articles
Slugger's Suspension Sheds Light on Abuse of Hormone hCG
By Hugh C. McBride
In the aftermath of the May 7 announcement that Los Angeles Dodger star Manny Ramirez had been suspended for 50 games for violating Major League Baseball's drug policy, the topic of steroid abuse among professional athletes once again became a prime topic of debate and denunciation among columnists, bloggers, commentators, and fans.
But in Ramirez's case, the discussion involved more than the usual topics of steroid abuse, elevated levels of testosterone, and other issues related to the illicit use of performance-enhancing drugs. Ramirez, it was revealed, was found to have been using human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), a synthetic version of a hormone that is naturally found in the urine of pregnant women.
A May 8 article on the ESPN website provided the following details about Ramirez's involvement with hCG and the events that led to his suspension:
Testing by Major League Baseball [MLB] showed that Ramirez had testosterone in his body that was not natural and came from an artificial source, two people with knowledge of the case told ESPN's Mark Fainaru-Wada and T.J. Quinn. The sources said that in addition to the artificial testosterone, Ramirez was identified as using ... hCG.
Ramirez’s case was set off when a test in spring training revealed he had elevated levels of testosterone in his body. MLB followed up with a more comprehensive test that confirmed the testosterone had to come from an artificial source, the sources said.
Once MLB officials obtained documentation indicating that Ramirez had been provided with hCG, he was suspended for roughly one-third of the league's 162-game season. In a statement that was released following the announcement of his suspension, Ramirez claimed that he had inadvertently used a banned substance after consulting with his physician regarding "a personal health issue."
About hCG
A May 8 article by San Francisco Chronicle staff writer Lance Williams provided a quick look at some of the more common legitimate uses of hCG:
HCG, the hormone at issue in the suspension of Dodgers left-fielder Manny Ramirez, is produced naturally in the bodies of pregnant women. It helps the unborn child develop.
A synthetic form of human chorionic gonadotropin is prescribed to women with ovulation problems, to young boys whose testicles haven’t descended in a timely manner and to men with testicular cancer.
The medical information website WebMD offered more in-depth information about the natural occurrence of hCG during pregnancy:
An egg is normally fertilized by a sperm cell in a fallopian tube. Within nine days after fertilization, the fertilized egg moves down the fallopian tube into the uterus and attaches (implants) to the uterine wall. Once the fertilized egg implants, the developing placenta begins releasing hCG into your blood. Some hCG also gets passed in your urine. HCG can be found in the blood before the first missed menstrual period, as early as six days after implantation.
HCG helps to maintain your pregnancy and affects the development of your baby (fetus). Levels of hCG increase steadily in the first 14 to 16 weeks following your last menstrual period (LMP), peak around the 14th week following your LMP, and then decrease gradually. The amount that hCG increases early in pregnancy can give information about your pregnancy and the health of your baby. Shortly after delivery, hCG can no longer be found in your blood.
HCG testing, WebMD reported, can be used to determine if a man is suffering from testicular cancer, or to diagnose the presence of uterine cancer or a molar pregnancy in women. Legitimate medical reasons for using hCG involve treatments for delayed puberty in boys, undescended testicles and low sperm count in men, and infertility in women.
No one has claimed that hCG will enhance a person's strength or athletic performance in the manner that steroids will, but a strong association has been established between athletes' use of hCG and their abuse of steroids. For example, in that same May 8 article, Williams reported that "among male athletes who are using anabolic steroids, hCG is an important part of the regimen, experts say - a drug that restores the body's ability to produce testosterone naturally."
Weight Loss & hCG
Steroid abuse is not the only health problem related to the illicit use of hCG. More than 50 years ago, a British doctor explored the use of hCG as a weight-loss agent. As Patricia Petersen reported in a May 22 article on the southern Utah news site TheSpectrum, Dr. Albert Simeon gave daily hCG injections to patients in the belief that the hCG would curb their hunger while increasing their ability to burn fat. However, Peterson wrote, Dr. Simeon's theory of hCG-assisted weight loss did not hold up to the scrutiny of other experts:
In study after study, there were no significant differences in weight loss, appetite suppression or distribution of fat. In a summary review of the hCG studies, Dr. Stephen Barrett (vice president of the National Council Against Health Fraud) concluded "... there is no scientific evidence to support these claims that hCG injections plus a 500 calorie diet result in more effective weight loss than a 500 calorie diet alone. Furthermore, a 500 calorie diet (semi-starvation) is likely to result in loss of protein from vital organs and other adverse effects.”
Unfortunately (but perhaps not surprisingly), the idea that limiting oneself to 500 calories per day while receiving regular hCG injections will lead to "easy" weight loss has endured more than five decades after doubts were cast upon the efficacy and safety of this approach.
Whether hCG is used to mask steroid abuse or engage in a dangerous weight loss regimen, Australia's National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre (NDARC) reports that the continued use of hCG has been associated with the following conditions and side effects:
- Abnormal enlargement of breasts in men (gynecomastia)
- Overstimulation of the ovaries, which causes women to produce too many eggs
- Multiple pregnancy
- Acne and hair loss
- Fatigue and mood swings
- Irritation in area of use
- Excessive fluid retention in the body tissues, which results in swelling (edema)
- Prostate hypertrophy
In addition to suffering from the effects of the drug itself, individuals who purchase hCG from questionable sources (such as illicit online pharmacies) or who improperly inject hCG may suffer from injection-related diseases or impurities in the hCG.
Keeping Kids Safe
In recent years, professional baseball has been rocked by a steroid scandal that has ensnared a number of high-profile players, including the following:
- Barry Bonds (the league's all-time home run king)
- Roger Clemens (one of the game's great pitchers)
- Alex Rodriguez (the man who many feel will one day break Bonds's home-run record)
- Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa (whose epic 1998 chase of Roger Maris's single-season home-run record has been credited by many for bringing fans back to the game following a labor dispute that led to the cancellation of the 1994 World Series)
While Rodriguez is the only player from the list above to have admitted using performance enhancing drugs, considerable evidence links the others with steroids or other substances. And because these and other high-profile steroid-linked athletes are viewed as potential role models to millions of young sports fans, parents and other caregivers are challenged to ensure that their young charges don't attempt to take the same "shortcuts" that led to at least temporary success, fame, and fortune for these individuals.
Adding to this risk, Ramirez's suspension has given a boost to the profile of hCG – and any young people with an interest in the subject and an Internet connection are but a few clicks away from learning how to access these substances, and how to use them to mask steroid use or to shed unwanted weight.
For teens who have fallen prey to steroid abuse, effective steroid abuse treatment programs do exist. And for parents who discover that their children are using hCG for weight loss should immediately consult their family doctor to determine if an eating disorder treatment program is called for.
Parenting is rarely an easy endeavor, and the poor example of many athletes and other celebrities makes the challenge that much more difficult. But help is available, and improved health may be as close as a phone call or mouse-click.
