let them eat crack

Let-Them-Eat-Cake-Screen-Print_440A3FBA

HGH.

wonder drug…

or?

“Growth hormone is naturally produced in the pituitary gland, and influences the overall mental and physical growth of an individual. It stimulates the growth of internal organs including bones, and plays a major role in homeostatic mechanisms, immune system processes, cell division, fat and glucose metabolism, and several other cellular processes. It is secreted by the body during growth years, and peaks during puberty. The levels of this hormone begin to decline after physical and reproductive maturation.”From its use as a treatment option for HGH deficiency, back in the first half of 20th century, this hormone has come a long way to become one of the most popular performance-enhancing drugs. This is because of the ability to synthesize recombinant growth hormone (rHGH) in the lab as against the earlier method of extraction from human cadavers.

“The therapeutic use of HGH is considered to be safe, and is legally approved. However, the off-label use and overdose of HGH for weight loss, muscle building, anti-aging benefits, etc. has been associated with certain adverse effects.”

so what are the benefits of administering HGH and why do cyclists and other athletes take it?
let’s have a look at the results of a study undertaken by three American doctors:

HGH Benefits assessments on Strength, Exercise & Body Fat:

showed an 88% increase in muscle strength

showed an 81% increase in muscle size

showed an 72% improvement in body fat loss

showed an 81% improvement in exercise tolerance

showed an 83% improvement in exercise endurance

HGH Benefits assessments Skin & Hair:

showed a 71% improvement in skin texture

showed a 68% improvement in skin thickness

showed a 71% improvement in skin elasticity

showed a 51% improvement on wrinkle disappearance

showed a 38% improvement towards new hair growth

HGH Benefits for Healing, Flexibilty, & Resistance:

showed a 55% improvement of healing old injuries

showed a 61% improvement of healing other injuries

showed a 71% improvement on healing capacity

showed a 53% improvement on back flexibility

showed a 73% improvement on resistance to common illness

HGH Benefits for Sexual Dysfunction Function:

showed a 75% improvement in sexual potency and frequency

showed a 62% improvement in the duration of penile erection

showed a 57% improvement on frequency of nighttime urination

showed a 58% improvement on hot flashes

showed a 38% improvement on menstrual cycle regulation

L Cass Terry, M.D., Ph.D. and Edmund Chein, M.D

‘sexual dysfunction function’?

ok so, not only does HGH seem to perfect for pro athletes, it is also, it seems, perfect for the bedroom athlete too…

here’s a breakdown of what the drug will do over a 6-month period:

  1. FIRST MONTH of hgh use: more energy, better sleep, and a better attitude on life.
  2. SECOND MONTH of hgh use: better muscle tone, healthier sexual function, better nail growth, clearer skin tone, some weight loss and a better muscle tone.
  3. THIRD MONTH of hgh use: improved mental capacity, bigger muscles, less fat, hair growth, better mood, more flexibility and stronger sexual desire.
  4. FOURTH MONTH of hgh use: improved mental capacity, bigger muscles, less fat, hair growth, better mood, more flexibility and stronger sexual desire. (Similar to the 3rd month)
  5. FIFTH MONTH of hgh use: significant weight loss and a more toned body with less fat, a healthier looking skin with better elasticity and appearance and significantly less wrinkles, and healthier hair.
  6. SIXTH MONTH of hgh use: most of the changes take place at this stage! the body becomes more contoured with less cellulite, the immune system strengthens, chronic pain might disappear, vision might improve, blood pressure might improve and cholesterol levels might drop.

and some of the side effects:

“Studies regarding the changes in physical composition owing to the administration of HGH, revealed the development of carpal tunnel syndrome as one of the many HGH side effects. It is characterized by pinching of the median nerve, which runs from the forearm to the palm. This leads to:♦ Weakened grip
♦ Weakness in hand(s)
♦ Clumsy finger movements
♦ Elbow pain
♦ Finger and wrist pain
♦ Numbness/tingling in hands

Other side effects:
♦ Extended belly
♦ Muscle and joint pain
♦ Increased body hair
♦ Increased hunger
♦ High cholesterol levels
♦ Abnormal fat distribution
♦ Tissue edema
♦ Dry and itchy skin
♦ Altered glucose metabolism
and the long term risks:
Prolonged use of HGH has been associated with an increased risk for:♦ Diabetes
♦ Liver damage
♦ Hypothyroidism
♦ Heart enlargement
♦ Hardening of arteries
♦ Gynecomastia (enlarged breast tissue in men)

now, back to our hallowed cheating athletes. remember that most of these guys take not only HGH but also EPO and in some cases cortisone and other steroids. the ‘Cancer Cocktail’, you might call it. seriously. read this:

Anabolic steroid and peptide hormones or growth factors are utilized to increase the performance of athletes of professional or amateur sports.

Despite their well-documented adverse effects, the use of some of these agents has significantly grown and has been extended also to non-athletes

with the aim to improve appearance or to counteract ageing. Pre-clinical studies and epidemiological observations in patients with an excess of

hormone production or in patients chronically treated with hormones/growth factors for various pathologies have warned about the potential risk

of cancer development and progression which may be also associated to the use of certain doping agents. Anabolic steroids have been described

to provoke liver tumours; growth hormone or high levels of its mediator insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) have been associated with colon,

breast, and prostate cancers. Actually, IGF-1 promotes cell cycle progression and inhibits apoptosis either by triggering other growth factors or by

interacting with pathways which have an established role in carcinogenesis and cancer promotion. More recently, the finding that erythropoietin

(Epo) may promote angiogenesis and inhibit apoptosis or modulate chemo- or radiosensitivity in cancer cells expressing the Epo receptor, raised

the concern that the use of recombinant Epo to increase tissue oxygenation might favour tumour survival and aggressiveness.

Cancer risk associated to doping might be higher than that of patients using hormones/growth factors as replacement therapy, since enormous

doses are taken by the athletes often for a long period of time. Moreover, these substances are often used in combination with other licit or illicit

drugs and this renders almost unpredictable all the possible adverse effects including cancer. Anyway, athletes should be made aware that long-term

treatment with doping agents might increase the risk of developing cancer.

[taken from a pdf that can be found here: www.cenegenicsfoundation.org – entitled ‘Doping with growth hormone/IGF-1, anabolic steroids or

erythropoietin: is there a cancer risk?’ by Lucio Tentori ∗, Grazia Graziani, Department of Neuroscience, University of Rome]

so yeah, let them eat crack. let them all dope. they might die a premature death, but who gives a f*ck? it’s just the way the world is, right? our athletes are so driven to win, so blinded by the $ signs, so desperate to be praised and put on a pedestal for simply riding a bike fast or throwing a ball hard and accurately – skills which, just in case it need be mentioned, mean almost nothing to the kind of human being they are – that they will take the risk of having a cinder black colon by the time they’re 42.

and we can’t get enough of it. we’ve seen our sport’s stars driven to the bottle, the madhouse and the grave by whatever it was in them that made them do it and in us that cheered them on. more will die. right now there are men in their 40s who took all this crap who are pissing into bags or on their third stroke already, people you’ll never hear about cos they aren’t famous enough and they’re demise isn’t as spectacular as others. no, for them it’s a far more grisly, lingering descent into nothingness.

is the way it’s supposed to be? like many things in this world, i look at it all and figure it’s hard to conceive it could be any more wrong…

Author: Lee Rodgers

Cycling coach, race organiser, former professional cyclist and the original CrankPunk.

9 thoughts

  1. You are right, but people are short-term. Most people will read the first 50% of this piece and immediately go in search of some HGH. A near-term positive is a lot more alluring than a higher-magnitude long-term negative.

  2. yes of course. they will take the risk. they are mentally ill, one definition of which is ‘any of various conditions characterized by impairment of an individual’s normal cognitive, emotional, or behavioral functioning.’ doping with this stuff is indicative of an impairment of cognitive functioning.

    1. By that definition most people are mentally ill. Most people drink, eat or smoke to excess, none of which are prohibited by any rule, never mind PEDs which are.

      I share your despair at the laissez-faire attitude among the public and regulators alike, I think the problem is that not enough people are at the sharp end; not enough people compete (at all, never mind) against cheaters. Or maybe as we agree, most people don’t care about doping and they perpetuate their sports accordingly?

  3. Call me naive – Is there any suggestions to a solution? Every athlete tested at every event ? (funded by all teams participating) Open class to allow PED’s (wild west style, like what you describe happening in your neck o’ the woods) I like the reminders (again and again) that drugs are BAD, but now what? Why is it that solutions are the hip topic? Why did the Velo-press hype/demi-gog McQuaid, then not say much at all with Cooksons’ “crowning” Why aren’t solutions being stuffed into palatable packaes for all to cosume/digest????????????Maybe someone will have a solution that makes sense that could be implemented to “guarantee” cyclings purity, (obviously there is no guarantee possible but…..)

      1. there are some ideas, increasing ban lengths, making doping criminal (theft/fraud etc), but to ‘solve’ this we’d need to re-wire humanity. but it could be far FAR better than it is right now, and yes, we do need a blueprint to be set out by the UCI President. but when do politicians do that? if you you write down ‘my solution’ then you can be held account for your failings. so, let’s hope Cookson has the integrity required for this…

  4. I say lifetime ban, with exceptions for ratting out the crooked docs, managers, etc. Independent testing should resolve any conflict-of-interest issues. Criminal penalties will certainly help in the investigative front, but I’m content to simply have the cheats tossed out of the sport – they need not go to jail.

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