A researcher from the University of Arkansas revealed that the characteristics associated with muscle dysmorphia have no difference whether or not bodybuilders use steroids. Muscle dysmorphia is actually a disorder characterized by the excessive preoccupation with muscularity and body fat percentage of an individual and is usually suffered by bodybuilders. It is mostly suffered by males when there is a pathological preoccupation with the absence of muscular size and leanness.

Timothy Baghurst, a visiting assistant professor of kinesiology at the University of Arkansas, said that he thinks that he suffered the same disorder at one point in his life and it was the reason why he conducted his research. Daniel Kissinger is a licensed professional counselor who helped Baghurst shape and integrate the mental health elements of the study and discussion of muscle dysmorphia. “One of the problems associated with classifying muscular dysmorphia is that, while it is receiving increasing attention in the mental health literature, muscle dysmorphia is not recognized by the American Psychological Association as a distinct mental illness,” said Kissinger.

“Studies have linked muscle dysmorphia with diagnoses from several recognized diagnostic categories, including somatoform disorders, eating disorders, and anxiety disorder,” Kissinger explained. “Still, it is likely that the notion of muscle dysmorphia and its larger clinical implications remain unfamiliar to many mental health professionals.”

Baghurst, in his research, also found that there is no agreement on how muscle dysmorphia should be measured. “Currently, there is no way to measure if a person has muscle dysmorphia,” he said. “Inventories measure only the degree of traits and characteristics associated with muscular dysmorphia.” “With respect to muscle dysmorphia, there is no cut off to determine whether or not someone has it,” Baghurst said. “We have a continuum, where some people fall on the high end, some on the low end, but most fall in the middle.”

During his research, Baghurst divided bodybuilders into “natural” and “non-natural” sub-groups. The former refers to competitions in which bodybuilders will undergo a drug test and must pass a polygraph for not using prohibited drugs. Meanwhile, the non-natural are participants who are not required to pass polygraph nor do not undergo drug testing before a competition.

In this method, Baghurst found that steroid use is not necessary to be concerned with muscularity and leanness. “Most people will assume bodybuilders using steroids are those with muscle dysmorphia,” he said. “By separating natural and non-natural bodybuilders, I found that either group is equally likely to have all of the traits of muscle dysmorphia with the exception of pharmacological use.”

Baghurst also found that males who were weight training to enhance their physique but are not bodybuilders also associated with muscle dysmorphia including dissatisfaction with their size and symmetry. The results of his research were actually published in Body Image last June 2009.

Miami Herald reported that the DEA or Drug Enforcement Agency is investigating whether a doctor in Florida and his son is the source of Manny Ramirez’ prescription drugs which is banned by the major league. The drug resulted in the 50 game suspension of Ramirez. Dr. Pedro Publio Bosch, 71 is being probe by the DEA for the possibility that he supplied Ramirez with the prescription drug HCG or human chorionic gonadotropin. It is a female fertility drug which can be used by athletes to restore hormone levels after a steroid cycle.

Andrew Bosch, 43, the son of the doctor was also included in the investigation for allegedly acting as the middleman between Ramirez and his father. Bosch did not give any comment on this news from the Herald. The case of Manny Ramirez was referred by MLB to the DEA to look further into the issue although there was no criminal case that has been filed. The DEA did not give any confirmation on the allege investigation when asked by the Herald.

Meanwhile, the short stint of Manny Ramirez in the minors was welcomed by the team, players and at the same time by his fans as reported in LATimes. John Traub, the general manager of the Dodgers’ triple-A affiliate, said that he has never seen anything like the hysteria that overtook Albuquerque when the news broke about Ramirez playing for the Isotopes.

An avid fan of baseball Michael Maldonado waited for an hour before the start of the game. He even takes a leave from his job just to be the first in line. The 51 year old utility worker said that it’s a big deal. For him it was a once in a lifetime event that he should not miss especially that Ramirez will be playing for his hometown team Albuquerque Isotopes. Maldonado is aware of the suspension of Manny Ramirez but he is not bothered by it. Under the league drug policy, violators will have to play in some minor league games before he can return and play again in the majors.

Another fan, Frank Marquez, who wore a replica of Ramirez’s jersey said that steroids or no steroids, Ramirez is still one of their players. “I can guarantee that three-quarters of Albuquerque are Dodger fans,” he said. “You can see it inside. Everyone’s wearing Dodger shirts. That never happened with the Marlins.” He also said that they will give Manny a standing ovation during the game.

Steve Hurlbert, Isotopes spokesman said that they have sold more than 40,000 tickets for the four-game series against the Nashville Sounds. He said that the team only averages 7,715 fans per home game this season but with Manny Ramirez on their side they are expecting more crowds which can reach to 14,000 to 15,000. The Isotopes Park which has 11,124 permanent seats was filled in every game.

Ramirez is expected to start for the Dodgers on July 3. He will be playing for the three-game series with the Padres in San Diego.

Marlon Byrd, a Rangers outfielder, fully understands that fans, media and some of his peers in baseball might be prejudicial or would question his decision to use supplements from Victor Conte, who is considered as the brains behind the BALCO steroid scandal. It was reported on Yahoo Sports last Thursday that Byrd considers his decision as the right thing for his career. Others may think that the player might be subjecting himself to the risk of testing positive for a banned substance. However, he countered this by saying that Conte’s help lessens that chance. “People are going to question it. Of course, they are,” Byrd said. “His supplements work for me. The things that I’m taking are subtle supplements to play the game. It’s weird to say, but it’s safer, in my opinion. “I’ve never been labeled a cheater. I know Victor has. If I was doing something wrong, do you think I would have come out with it? I’m being honest,” he added.

It his career, he has also seen players being suspended particularly Philadelphia reliever J.C. Romero for taking over-the-counter supplements from stores such as GNC. The Rangers recommends that players must use supplements that are certified by the National Sanitation Foundation. It is noted that Conte’s supplements are not certified by the said foundation and Byrd said that these supplements go through the same manufacturing audits as NSF’s approved products. However, NSF contested that it has never certified the products of Conte. The NSF company policy states that anybody who manufactures a steroid, steroid precursor or banned substance on the NFL, MLB, and the World Anti-Doping Agency lists will be excluded from the NSF program.

The MLB will test a supplement at a player’s request and the league will inform the player if it is safe to use. Byrd said that it is the same procedure that Conte has done with the supplements he provides. General Manager Jon Daniels on the other hand wishes to talk to Byrd about his relationship with Conte. “Marlon’s a veteran player who is a grown man and can make his own choices,” Daniels said. “I don’t want our young players thinking it’s OK to experiment with over-the-counter products that aren’t regulated.”

Meanwhile, Victor Conte revealed that Byrd is not the only athlete who is using the supplements. Conte told Mike Fish of ESPN.com that “there are NFL players.””There are Olympic track and field athletes. There are Olympic swimmers. We’re talking about medalists. These people routinely buy from SNAC [Conte's company, Scientific Nutrition for Advanced Conditioning]. How do I know? Because I recognize these names.”

But Conte refused to give names because of his fears that players would be ostracized. Conte also supplied banned performance-enhancing drugs to Barry Bonds, baseball’s all-time home run leader, and is also linked to a number of athletes in other sports during his days at BALCO.

“There are NFL players having product directly shipped to team facilities or to their homes,” he said. “But I don’t think it is fair to the players to go into detail. I don’t think it was fair to [British sprinter] Dwain Chambers or Marlon Byrd, either. Enough harm has been caused to players associated with myself. It wouldn’t be right for me to offer a list of professional athletes, but there are many.”

One of the highlights marking the 70th Anniversary of the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown this summer is Viva Baseball, Cooperstowns first permanent exhibit on Latin American baseball. Former first baseman Orlando Cepeda was the chosen speaker to represent the nine Latinos who were inducted into the Hall of Fame. In his speech, Cepeda emphasized that to be here today they had to go through some obstacles, pertaining to the racial prejudice and intolerance that they had to go through since the 19th century.

The first Latino who made it to the major leagues was third-baseman Esteban Bellan who was of Cuban descent. For seven more decades after that, MLB only allowed fair-skinned Latinos to join the majors, and even then, these Latino players weren’t exactly feeling at-home with their white peers. In 1947, Jackie Robinson integrated the game and dark-skinned Latino players began joining the league. From then, Latino players took an Anglo name or downplayed their roots. Even Ted Williams, one of the legendary names in baseball, was careful not to mention the fact that his mother was Mexican American. The first Latino to be elected to the Hall of Fame was Roberto Clemente, who was nicknamed Bob on early baseball cards of him. He did not like how sportswriters quoted his pidgin English and portrayed him as the stereotypically temperamental Puerto Rican.

While funny accents and temperament of Latino players are no longer being highlighted in print, Latino players still have to contend with an even more damaging notion that Latino players are responsible for introducing performance-enhancing drugs in the game. This image may be due to the fact that the widespread use of steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs were exposed by a self-confessed user and Latino, slugger Jose Canseco. Also, more than half of the baseball players caught juicing were Latino players. According to Newsweek, almost two-thirds of the MLB players who tested positive for steroid use were from Latin America. Newsweek was compelled to raise the troubling possibility, questioning if players from Latin America were simply too driven to succeed.

In many Latin American countries, steroids and performance enhancing drugs banned in the league can be bought legally or over-the-counter without prescription. Players from Latin America thus have a different notion of performance-enhancing drugs. Most people would say that using steroids is cheating, but in the history of the game, players have used various devices from corked bats to spitballs and various downers, stimulants, and booze to help them get through the pressures and stress of big league competition. Many Latino baseball players who are Hall of Fame material have been tainted by the scourge of steroids including Sammy Sosa, Alex Rodriguez, Manny Ramirez, Rafael Palmeiro, and Miguel Tejada among others.

Indeed, Latin Americans presence in the Major League Baseball is a formidable force that cannot be ignored. The New Latino Viva Baseball is a good start in recognizing the importance of the Latin American players in the history of American Baseball and the induction of Latino greats in the 80s and the 90s will prove this even more.

As long as his name remains in the memory of the public, Alex Rodriguez - A-Rods name will forever be associated with steroids. The public loves a hero downfall story, and the nasty beating that A-Rod received from the mouths of critics and fans is a good indication of this. Only a few compassionate fans will probably look beyond the ghastly image of a cheating drug-user in A-Rod. But then again, the public memory is short and they can be forgiving (with a good publicist, anything is possible).

Only a few people were in the mood to be understanding and tolerating when A-Rod gave a justification for his steroid use. In February, he said that the steroids were only to give him a dramatic energy boost. He earnestly believed that he needed the steroids back in 2001 when he was 25 years old. Today, with a repaired hip and a birthday next month that brings him closer to senior citizen in baseball terms, it is unfathomable how A-Rod will get his edge back and play in the level that the Yankees require without performance enhancers to help him. Perhaps to address this problem, A-Rod was given two days off, which he admitted that he needed to medical personnel and the front office.

This June, A-Rod had a .288 slugging percentage as the cleanup hitter, with one home run in 18 games away from the Yankee Stadium. After coming off the list of disabled players, A-Rod said that he was ready to play all 38 games but with his performance in the last games so far, it is clear that he is struggling to fulfill his insistence. It seems that A-Rod is also hiding something about his health or his capability.

Until the All-Star break, Rodriguez will be taking one game off for every week. Cody Ransom is supposed to be A-Rods backup since he will be coming off the disabled list this week, which is a better option than Angel Berroa. After their loss Sunday, Rodriguez said that they will take this month and regroup, and after every 10 days, regroup again. He said that the idea was for him to get a little stronger each month; he believed that his injury is healing and getting better but that it was all new ground for him, that he has never been down that road before.

His return last May did help push the standings of the Yankees upwards but his disability may just as equally have contributed to their losses. Peaking at 34-23 in early June, the Yankees took two of three from the Boston Mets. In their next two series, they lost the last two after winning one against both Florida and Washington. Behind the Red Sox, the Yankees stand four games in the American League East. Manager Joe Girardi is hopeful, however, saying that they were a better team than they have played the last two weeks. They got 11 games over and they have dropped a few from those games.

Recently, attempts to smuggle anabolic steroid through airports were foiled by customs officers. There are two similar cases reported in major news agencies, one is from the Southwest Florida International Airport and another case in Abu Dhabi International Airport. Although owners of these controlled substances told the authorities that it is for their personal use, they still lack the necessary documents for these drugs. The case in Abu Dhabi is really a smuggling activity since it was misdeclared in the bill of lading.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection Agents of Southwest Florida International Airport seized anabolic steroids from a German national who arrived at the airport last Tuesday. The agents searched the bag of Francesco Gigliotti, 45, of Cologne, Germany and they found a container of Deca-Durabolin, 250 milligrams of Testosterone Enanthate, two plastic syringes and four hypodermic needles.

Gigliotti which is residing at 338 SE 32nd Terrace Cape Coral will be facing five felony charges. These includes two counts of possessing felony drugs, steroids and testosterone; two counts of smuggling steroids; and one count of possessing drug paraphernalia.

In Abu Dhabi, custom officials and health inspectors were able to seized 33,000 steroid injections which were believed to be sold to bodybuilders. The suspects did not declare the items instead the containers were declared as containing clothes, fabrics and some medicines for personal use. The inspectors found the smuggled items when three people claiming to work for a fabric importing company asked for clearance for a container. They found a large quantity of a controlled hormonal drug in the form of injections. According to health officials, the drugs were manufactured in Bulgaria and may have been counterfeit. With the quantity of steroids, they believed that it is intended for sale and not for personal use. There was no sign of any clothes or fabric as what has been declared in the documents.

The executive director for medical practices and licensing at the Ministry of Health, Amin al Amiri said that the misleading behaviour of the suspects was fraudulent and liable to legal prosecution. “Having resorted to deceit and forgery in its bill of lading, the company concerned must be subject to the pertinent legal procedures,” Amiri said. The types of anabolic steroids that they found out were “androgens” which are widely used among bodybuilders.

According to Amiri, these androgens are indeed the most dangerous form of doping, as they have a rapid boosting effect on muscle volume and body stimulation. “Men and women use them despite their dangers and side-effects, namely, hormonal imbalance leading to aggressive tendencies,” he added.

Amiri also told the National that those medications are illegal and not registered in the country and he further attest that the medication was counterfeit. “These people want to gain money illegally. The medicine is used in bodybuilder clubs to increase muscles and for illegal practices. It is dangerous because medications should only be prescribed by physicians. Usage may cause serious complications,” he said.

The Ministry of Health considers anabolic steroids as a controlled drug that must be used in strictly controlled medical treatment. It can only be given to patients with specialist’s prescription. The prescription which is then held at the pharmacy to make sure it is not reused.