Whenever anyone talks about Pound for Pound boxing champion Manny ‘pacman” Pacquiao, the name of coach Freddie Roach cannot be far behind. Freddie Roach has been the long time trainer and coach of the Philippines’ pride and joy. Pacquiao, being the first boxer in history to win seven world titles in seven different weight divisions in his boxing career, has news and gossip following him all around.

Besides issues about his personal life, there has also been some media buzz regarding Pacquiao’s alleged use of PEDs in the boxing ring again. Although this is not something new, there is much talk about Pacquiao using steroids and other PEDs. The issue has refused to die down, especially with the upcoming fight “The Event” on Saturday at Dallas Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas against Ghanaian champion Joshua Clottey.

The issue of Manny Pacquiao on steroids has bothered sports fans the world over, and they of course turn to Freddie Roach for confirmation or assurance. For the nth time coach Freddie Roach denied all allegations that his prized fighter Manny Pacquio has ever touched steroids or any kind of performance enhancing drug. Roach, however admitted to having knowledge of his two other fighters who had tested positive for performance enhancing drugs. Roach mentioned that his former boxing fighters Justin Fortune and James Toney were known to have used steroid. Toney in fact tested positive for steroids on at least two occasions.

Roach said that when news first broke that Pacquiao was allegedly using illegal substances, he confronted the 31- year-old fighter asking whether he knew anything about steroids or other prohibited pharmaceuticals. Roach recalled that the answer he got from Emmanuel “Manny” Pacquio clearly indicated that he had little knowledge about the substances, and in fact had less knowledge about steroids than he did. Another clear proof, he said, is the fact that Pacquiao always gets tested for drug use before and after each fight. So far, Roach defended, there has never been an instance that this generation’s most popular fighter had tested positive for anything.

Moreover, Freddie Roach adds that he also had a serious talk with Coach Alex Ariza who handles Pacquiao’s strength and conditioning training. Roach asked him if he had any inkling that the WBC Super Flyweight Champion of the World was doping – and the answer he received was a firm and confident NO.

This is not the first time that the issue of steroid and drug use has been raised against the Filipino champion. However, as with all other controversies, they eventually die down after Pacquiao scores another victory. With seven prestigious titles under his belt and another big match coming up on Saturday, it is no wonder that tongues are wagging about Pacquiao and steroid use in an effort to discredit or psych Manny out. The goods news is that people close to Pacquiao, as well as his legions of fans the world over continue to believe that the issue of Manny Pacquio on PEDS is nothing but pure allegations with no substantial basis.

More importantly, Pacquiao’s opponent, former IBF Welterweight Champion Joshua Clottey, has already issued a statement indicating that he himself did not believe allegations that “Pacman” is using PEDS. On Saturday, hundreds of millions of boxing fans get ready as Pacman goes against Joshua Clottey for the boxing event of the year at the Dallas Cowboys Stadium in Dallas, TX.

Some professional athletes with steroid controversies were forced to take a leave from their field of sports. The latest is the case of Tiger Woods. Although the main issue is his extra marital affairs but he was also dragged into steroids use. Others were forced to retire to avoid sanctions from their league. Aside from the possible sanctions, the reputations of these professional athletes were questioned and ruined. But many are still hopeful that they still have a chance to return to the sports that they love.

The comeback of Alex Rodriguez after implicated for steroid use is an example. Last year, he made a confession that he took Boli as part of his training regimen. The confession was due to the report of Sports Illustrated that Rodriguez was among those MLB players who were tested positive for steroids in 2004. His return to the field was first criticized but his impressive performance with the NY Yankees redeemed his reputation and he was finally accepted by baseball fans.

However, it would not be too easy for these pro athletes with steroid stories in their profiles to just ignore what happened previously in their career. This month, it was reported that Alex Rodriguez was interviewed by federal authorities for his connection with a Canadian doctor who is charged for illegal importation and distribution of HGH and steroids. Dr Anthony Galea, who has claimed to treat several professional athletes, denied that he is prescribing illegal substances to his patients. His clients came from the different field of sports like golf, baseball, football, track and field and many others.

Mets shortstop Jose Reyes was also questioned by the authorities about his previous dealings with the Canadian doctor. “They just asked me basically how I met the guy and stuff like that and what he put in my body. I explained to them what he (was) doing. … I don’t worry about anything. I didn’t do anything wrong,” said Reyes when asked by the media. He went to Dr Galea because of an injury last season. Dr Anthony Galea became famous for his blood spinning technique which he claims helps athletes recover faster from injuries.

Marion Jones, the Olympian who was stripped off her medals because of steroids was also planning to return to sports. She spent 8 months in jail after confessing her use of steroids. Her return is not in the tract and field anymore but in WNBA. Jones previously played for North Carolina’s 1994 championship team and was also a third round selection by the Phoenix Mercury in the 203 WNBA Draft.

Jones will be signing a contract with WNBA’s Tulsa Shock. “We’re thrilled to have her. In the workouts last week I saw how hard she works. She has things you can’t teach, like speed and great hand and eye coordination. She looks chiseled. Her age (34) might be saying one thing but everything about her is saying she’s young,” said head coach Nolan Richardson when interviewed by Tulsa World.

Wrestler Hulk Hogan will be fighting again in the ring for the TNA this month. He retired from professional wrestling years ago but he still wants to prove that he can wrestle. In an interview, Hogan said that his life is playing inside the ring and he is still longing for that. When asked about Mark McGwire’s confession, the wrestler said that he should have told the whole truth about his steroid use. Hogan was also invited in congressional hearings to testify about steroids use in the sports. He also admitted that he used steroids while still playing for the world wrestling federation. “I don’t know his situation too well. But the only advice I have is don’t play a game with the fans. You’ve got to come clean. Don’t cling to half truths, either. I tried that during an interview on Arsenio Hall. I said I wasn’t on steroids, which was half true. I wasn’t when he asked me. But had I been? Yes. My advice is to lay it all out there,” said Hulk.

Anabolic steroids may not have a bad reputation if health professionals who are supposed to help regulate its use do not tolerate some patients and individuals to abuse the drug. There are already several cases where doctors and health care providers were involved in prescribing and selling anabolic steroids to people who are not supposed to take the drug. Steroids are beneficial to some patients because of its medical use. But when this drug is abused, it can lead to health problems and complications which can even lead to death.

In Staten Island, NY, a doctor who was charged with illegal prescriptions of steroids to more than a hundred patients appeared in court Monday. From 2005 to 2007, Dr Richard Lucente used his Anti-Aging and Wellness Center on Staten Island to prescribe steroids to bodybuilders and even to some cops. According to the report of Brooklyn Daily Eagle, the prosecution presented a witness detailing the fate of a customer bodybuilder who died due to complication from steroids use. In the testimony of Dr. David Mann, the steroid prescription to the bodybuilder is inappropriate since the bodybuilder underwent a heart transplant just a few months ago.

The bodybuilder, Joe Baglio, died of heart failure in March 2007 while attending a bodybuilding convention in Ohio. Court records shows that Baglio went to Dr Lucente and asked for a prescription for testosterone deficiency. Baglio is still under medication for the surgery since the heart transplant happened in October 2004. “This was a patient who’d probably been abusing growth hormones in the past and was seeking another medication that could lead to abuse,” said Mann. It is also probable that the heart problem of Baglio was caused by steroids. According to Dr Mann, even a person with a normal heart shouldn’t have gotten the dosage of testosterone that Dr Lucente prescribed to Baglio.

However, Dr Lucente argued that he made legal prescriptions of steroids to treat patients with hormonal imbalances. Investigators estimated that Dr Lucente made over $500,000 while running the New York Anti-Aging and Wellness Center. He also allegedly received kickbacks from the Lowen’s Pharmacy in Bay Ridge where he sends his patients to buy steroids.

Dr Lucente is facing more than 70 charges for illegal prescriptions of controlled substances. The minimum penalty that could be given to Dr Lucente is 5 years and 6 months if convicted.

Another case of a doctor involved in illegal prescription of steroids is Dr Jesse Haggard. He is a naturopathic doctor in Arizona who was implicated in the statewide conspiracy which involved the Applied Pharmacy Services. Dr Haggard recently pleads guilty for the charges of conspiracy to distribute steroids and conspiracy to commit money laundering. The doctor is already under the custody of the authorities after his return from Costa Rica last year. His lawyer is optimistic that Dr Haggard will only receive 1 year jail term as part of the plea agreement. The sentencing is set on June according to U.S. District Judge Ginny Granade.

There were already 5 people convicted in the conspiracy case which include several doctors and pharmacists. Before Dr Haggard fled the country when he was implicated in the case, he was able to write a book detailing his use of steroids when treating patients. The steroid book is entitled “Demystifying Steroids.”

Some unscrupulous people are also targeting high schools as one of their distribution area. Aside from selling steroids products to professional athletes and bodybuilders, they also offer these to young people who might want to experiment with performance enhancers. Other cases of young teens who tried using anabolic steroids usually lead to fatal health complications and death. The unsupervised use and self medication are the major factors why young teens suffer from the undesirable effects of these drugs.

In Calhoun High School Georgia, police investigators were able to seize numerous vials and pills of anabolic steroids. It becomes a major concern of the authorities since the suspected distributor is still a minor. The Special Operations Division of the Calhoun Police Department executed a search warrant on a vehicle located in the parking lot of Calhoun High School which is suspected to have the illegal substances. Aside from anabolic steroids, police also recovered steroid paraphernalia.

Sgt J. Marquez, who heads the Special Operations Division, said in an interview that the investigation is still ongoing. “The investigation has indicated students from several Northwest Georgia Schools may be involved in the use of these drugs. We are working closely with other agencies on this case,” he said. There is also a possibility that the juvenile is just being used as a distributor of a bigger steroid supplier in the area. Since the suspect is still a minor, the name of was withheld from the media. It was also reported that the minor was already released and turned over to his parents.

On a related story, a former high school coach pleaded guilty for selling steroids to a high school player. James Wilson, 29, is a former volunteer football coach at Stone Memorial High School in Crossville. Based on court records, Wilson sold Oxymetholone, controlled substance classified under Schedule III to one of the football players. The investigation revealed that in February 2009, a player approach Wilson and asked him how to have more muscles. Wilson recommended the anabolic steroids to the player which he said he was also taking. But the student athlete became ill and had to be hospitalized. Doctors found out that it was caused by the pill he was taking which they later found out as a kind of anabolic steroid.

The principal of Stone Memorial Dr. Janet Brooker and Cumberland County Schools Superintendent Aarona Vanwinkle declined to comment on the case. The only information they gave was the employment status of Wilson which they said is not a paid employee of the school system.

The Cumberland County Criminal Court charged Wilson with possession of a Schedule 3 drug. A six-year suspended sentence was also given to him. The court gave him the chance to expunge the records against him if he successfully completes 8 years of probation. The former coach is also prohibited to be in school grounds as part of the plea agreement.

On the other hand, the case of a Royal Marine Cadet, Matt Dear who died at 17 because of the complications of anabolic steroids, caused disappointment to his father. The doctors said that they have not established that it was caused by the anabolic steroids Matt purchased from underground distributors. The UK court also gave the convicted suppliers with light sentence. They were given community order with a year’s supervision and 160 hours of unpaid work. “We have here a kid who is super-fit. Now he is dead and they cannot tell me what killed him. It’s ridiculous,” said Matt’s father.

It is now common for every athlete to rely on supplements during trainings and competitions. Most believe that taking supplements will improve their performance and as well as their overall health condition. But a recent study showed that supplements are not properly used by some athletes. This is due to unsupervised training regimen and taking supplements without advice from a health professional.

Supplement intake may just be a waste of money and could even harm the body if not monitored properly. According to Martin Fréchette, a researcher and graduate of the Université de Montréal Department of Nutrition, supplements, particularly protein supplements are often poorly used or unnecessary by both high-level athletes and amateurs. The findings also showed that protein supplements will not improve performance and recovery time from fatigue or injury.

Fréchette conducted the study as part of his thesis at the university. The 42 respondents were given questionnaires with questions about their supplements use. They were asked to document their supplement intake and food intake for 3 days. Athletes who participated in the study came from various field of sports like biathlon, cycling, long-distance running, judo, swimming, volleyball, and skating.

Although the study only used a small sample, the findings were also significant. Food supplements are part of the daily consumption of 9 out of 10 athletes and they consume on the average more than 3 different products. These are energy drinks, multi-vitamins, minerals and powdered protein supplements. The researcher found out that most of the athletes have a poor knowledge on these food supplements.

For protein supplements, a very low percentage of product knowledge is evident. “Only one out of four consumers could associate a valid reason, backed by scientific literature for taking the product,” said Fréchette. “The role of proteins is particularly misunderstood,” he added. Even if most athletes rely on protein supplements, stopping it may not affect their performance. “More than 66 percent of those who believed to have bad eating habits took supplements. For those who claimed to have ‘good’ or ‘very good’ eating habits that number climbs to 90 percent,” he said.

The study also noted that more than 80% of athletes taking supplements already had sufficient protein from their diet. “The use of multivitamins and minerals can make up for an insufficient intake of calcium, folate yet not for lack of potassium,” said Fréchette. Based on the study, most of the athletes took more than the required daily intake of some vitamins and minerals which could result to some side effects. According to Fréchette this makes the athletes more susceptible to health problems such as nausea, vision trouble, fatigue and liver anomalies.

The athletes were also interested on the efficiency, legality and safety of these supplements. This could be due to the issue that a lot of sports supplements were tainted with prohibited substances such as steroids. It was reported in a study that 12 to 20 percent of dietary supplements contain a substance not in the list of ingredients or contain banned substances. “Their purity and preparation aren’t as controlled as prescription medication. Sports supplements often contain other ingredients than those listed on the label. Some athletes consume prohibited drugs without knowing.”

The NFL receives too much criticism on its existing anti-doping policy but they still want to prove that the policy on performance enhancing drugs is implemented effectively. This could be measured by the continued issuance of suspensions to erring players. Although, the sanctions may not be a total deterrent for steroid use, it would at least give warnings to those people who are trying to increase performance with the help of steroids and other drugs. And of course, it will have a great effect on the career of players caught using banned substances.

Recently, the NFL handed down an 8-game suspension to nose tackle Jason Ferguson for violating the steroid policy of the league. Ferguson, who last played with the Miami Dolphins, will be missing the first 8 games of the next season. Greg Aiello, NFL spokesperson, confirmed it to the media last Sunday but he did not elaborate on the specifics of the penalty. There are no details on the particular banned substance that caused Ferguson’s suspension. The media called Ferguson’s agent, Jimmy Sexton but did not return any call to at least give more information on the issue.

The recent suspension of Jason Ferguson for violating the anti-doping policy of the league is not the first one. In 1999, the NFL suspended him for 4 games for failing a drug test. His urine sample showed that he took an anabolic steroid. Ferguson never admitted that he took anabolic steroids that time. He said that he was taking dietary supplements but it does not contain any steroid. “People are thinking I’m a drug addict or something like that, and that’s ridiculous. I read bottles and I know steroids. I didn’t take no damn steroids,” Ferguson said in defending himself during that time. In 1997, he was also tested positive for marijuana at the scouting combine according to the report of AP.

The Miami Dolphins released him as a free agent last Friday. Ferguson’s status is now in limbo but it is expected that many teams will be interested in getting him into their rooster. His performance for the Dolphins is impressive before he met an injury late last year. He tore his quadriceps tendon last November and underwent a surgery a few days later. His doctor recommended eight-months rehabilitation for his injury. He allowed Dolphins to 93.7 rushing yards as compared with 135.6 rushing yards without him. He also made 23 tackles in nine games for the Dolphins last season.

The Miami Dolphins refused to comment on the suspension of Ferguson. “We won’t comment because he’s not officially on our roster,” said Harvey Greene, Dolphins spokesperson. He remains as a free agent and they did not confirm if they will still re-sign a new contract next season for Ferguson.

Meanwhile, Offensive lineman Ryan Tucker of the Cleveland Browns was also reported having a failed steroids test which could be the cause of his retirement. An 8 game suspension will be imposed next season if the veteran continues to play in the league. Although media reports can’t provide more details on his alleged positive steroid test. In an interview with WKNR radio, he said that he will be focusing more on his family after his retirement. “We notified the league and we are notifying the Cleveland Browns family that I’m shutting it down. It’s time for me to go ahead and hang up the cleats and starting being a daddy and a husband. I’m going that route,” Tucker said.