The Anti-Doping Agency (CELAD) and three other medical and nutritional bodies have warned about the use of SARMs, selective androgen receptor modulators, among young people who frequent gyms. These are doping chemicals that can cause “various and important health complications”.
These include elevated blood pressure, skin rashes, risk of heart attack or stroke, headaches, psychosis, hallucinations, sleep disturbances, liver injury and acute liver failure, vision problems or infertility, miscarriage, decreased testicular size, sexual dysfunction or impotence.
SARMs, “the latest trend in doping”, have similar effects to testosterone and anabolic steroids. Some of their specific names are enobosarm (ostarine), LGD-4033 (ligandrol), RAD140, SARMS S4 (andarine), YK-11 and SARMS S-23.
They are classified by the Spanish Medicines Agency as “investigational medicines”, so their distribution and sale is not authorised in Spain, but they are advertised on social networks as a quick way to improve physical appearance, gain muscle mass and strength and increase sporting performance. In addition, their presence has been frequently detected in different nutritional supplements, without appearing on the labelling. Their great advantage over other traditional systems is that they do not need to be injected.
For this reason, the aforementioned organisations “strongly” advise against the use of any SARM “because of the double risk of adverse health effects and because a positive doping test may occur”.
They also ask that “the possible fraudulent contamination and unlabelled contamination of products purchased in unreliable environments such as the internet, gyms, sports centres and unauthorised shops” be borne in mind and that social media posts by influencers and SARM sellers be ignored
The signatories of this statement are the UCAM Nutritional Accreditation and Certification Agency, the Spanish Society of Sports Medicine (SEMED), the Spanish Agency for the Fight against Doping in Sport (CELAD) and the Medical Association – General Council of Official Medical Associations (OMC)