Experts believe that tainted sports supplements are in the range of 25% to 60%. It is not surprising that there are some professional athletes who can’t accept that they tested positive for a banned substance when in fact they are avoiding any type of steroid. Many professional athletes depend on supplements such as protein shakes and vitamins. However, most of the time, these supplements are tainted with steroids.

Steroid experts were recently invited in Chicago Humanities Festival to discuss the issues on steroids and supplements as well as the developments in the testing methods of sports organizations. Frank Shorter, former Olympian and one of the pillars of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency said that most of the supplements they tested contain traces of steroids. “Sixty percent of the creatine we test is laced with the steroid neandrolone,” he said. Though creatine supplements are not that popular anymore but it is still has a significant role in improving the energy levels of an athlete.

According to a sport medicine physician, the use of creatine waned already because of new supplements out in the market. “It’s not young. It’s not new. It’s not hot,” said Dr. Jeff Anderson who is also a professor at the University of Connecticut. He said that at least 25% of sports supplements in the country contain anabolic steroids like testosterone and its analogues. Steroids are used by athletes to help build muscles and aid them in recovery after strenuous training or injuries. But these are already declared as banned substances by most professional sports leagues.

Anderson believes that steroids found in sports supplements are intentionally made. “If you’re looking at it from a business perspective yeah put a lot of (steroid) in, it’s going to work well and people are going to buy your product,” Anderson said in a symposium in Boston. Supplement manufacturers doesn’t care about the welfare of athletes especially the risk for a positive steroid test.

Another problem that health experts see is the lax regulation of the government when it comes to supplement products. Supplements are considered as food products and not as medicines thus manufacturers were able to avoid strict regulation from the federal government. Although the FDA is tasked to monitor and regulate supplements in the market, there are still many companies selling unsafe supplements. Shorter explained this further. “Who is testing creatine to see if it’s pure? The creatine manufacturers themselves are testing their opposition to see if it’s pure. And those are the only people testing it. You can’t promote and police,” said the former Olympian.

So stories of athletes being suspended or banned will continue as long as there are supplements with steroids. Anderson is familiar with this scenario because he also worked in the NCAA. The Medill report also quoted Anderson saying, “One of the reasons you never let somebody off saying ‘I purchased a contaminated supplement‘ is because it’s very easy to lie about. You don’t know if the individual made an honest mistake, or whether athletes ingested something that they’re choosing not to tell you about.” Anderson advice players to be more responsible and be wary of any supplement that they put in their body. Once they were caught, there’s no escape. They will be held responsible.

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