Steroid Nation

Minnesota Vikings Williams's trump NFL drug policies; Other leagues come to NFL's defense

As noted over the weekend, a local Minnesota judge blocked the 2008 drug suspension of the two Minnesota Viking lineman Kevin and Pat Williams.  (To the AP)

A judge has blocked NFL plans to suspend Minnesota Vikings players Kevin Williams and Pat Williams.

Hennepin County District Judge Gary Larson on Thursday granted the players' motion for a temporary restraining order. That keeps the NFL from suspending them until their case is decided.

That may be a while. The judge also scheduled a hearing for July 22 on whether he should put state court proceedings on hold while a federal appeals court considers other issues in the case.

The defensive tackles tested positive last summer for a banned diuretic that can mask the presence of steroids, though they've never been accused of taking steroids.

The NFL had intended to enforce the Williamses' four-game suspensions at the start of the upcoming season.

Other professional leagues have now supported the NFL in attempting to discipline the Viking duo:

U.S. Olympic officials, Major League Baseball and other professional sports organizations are getting into the NFL's fight with two Minnesota Vikings linemen who were suspended for violating the league's anti-doping policy.

MLB, the National Basketball Association and the National Hockey Association asked Monday for permission to file paperwork in federal court in support of the NFL, which wants to suspend the players for four games. The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency filed a similar motion on its own.

Kevin Williams and Pat Williams, who are not related, have never been accused of taking steroids. The two linemen tested positive last summer for a banned diuretic, bumetanide, that can mask the presence of steroids. They took the weight-loss supplement StarCaps, which contained the diuretic but wasn't listed on the label.

The leagues contend their own drug testing programs would be affected if the linemen are allowed to fight their four-game suspensions in state court. USADA argues uniform rules are needed "to ensure a level playing field."

Steroids in Fencing? Italian Andrea Baldini suspended

The International Fencing Federation appears to be concerned about doping in the sport.  The agency handed out a 66 month ban to a gold medalist who tested positive for furosemide (a diuretic).  A diuretic can be used as a masking agent -- or fir short term weight loss.  In fencing though...steroids???  From BMA News TV:

Italian fencer Andrea Baldini has been handed a retroactive six-month ban by the international federation and stripped of his team foil gold medal from the European Championships. He could return to the sport, however, when the World Cup resumes next month.

Baldini was removed from Italy's team days before the Beijing Olympics after testing positive for the banned diuretic furosemide at the European Championships in Ukraine in July.

Baldini said he had taken an antibiotic prescribed by the Italian federation's doctor and declared it before the doping test. He also suggested he may have been a victim of foul play, although the Italian Olympic Committee dropped its inquiry into an alleged conspiracy plot in October.

Meeting in Belfast, the international fencing federation ruled that Baldini be banned retroactively from Sept. 3 — the date he was provisionally suspended — to March 3. The ban is subject to approval by the World Anti-Doping Agency.

"The cases of using prohibited substances in our sport are extremely rare," FIE secretary general Maxim Paramonov said in a statement released Tuesday. "Moreover, it is absolutely unclear what could urge the fencer, who had already ensured his participation in the Olympics, to use doping drugs during the competitions of no relevance for him.

"(This) decision allows the athlete to return to the elite sport within a short period and try to demonstrate his exceptional talent in the future tournaments."

The ruling also means Baldini will have to forfeit his gold medal from the team foil at the European Championships.

UK Sprinter Dwain Chambers lays out chilling inside look at track doping via BALCO

Carrying excerpts before the mid-March publication of Dwain Chambers new book "Race Against Me", The Daily Mail shows the chilling (and expensive) world of big time track doping.  Chambers admits to more than 300 drug cocktails from BALCO (and other sources).  To Earth Times:

London - Disgraced British sprinter Dwain Chambers admits in his forthcoming autobiography "Race Against Me" that he took a concoction of over 300 performance-enhancing drugs. In an installment published in Tuesday's Daily Mail ahead of next Monday's release, Chambers, who served a two-year ban after being found guilty of doping offences in 2003, said he had paid out 30,000 dollars a year for doping substances.

"I wasn't just on THG, EPO and HGH, but testosterone to help with sleep and reduce cholesterol," he said. "On Christmas Day (in 2002), as I sat in the bathroom with 'The Clear' (THG), I realized I had been taking drugs - more than 300 different concoctions - for 12 months.

During that time, Chambers says he passed 10 doping tests as well as winning the 100-metre gold medal at the 2002 European Championships. However, his times hadn't improved that dramatically and he was also often troubled by stomach cramps.

"When I was clean, my personal best was 9.97 seconds. A year on, after the sleepless nights, the anxiety, the pain of the cramps, the blood draws to make sure I wouldn't suffer a stroke, or worse, the inconsistent races and the disappointment of missing events, my PB (personal best) was 9.87 seconds," he wrote.

Some of the drugs: The clear (THG), testosterone, insulin, HGH . Provigil, T4, and EPO.  Dangerous...Yes.  Effective...apparently.  Chambers says his time went for a PB of 9.97 to 9.87, nice gains.  The cost, you can see above the price.

The discussions?  This discussing with Tim Montgomery about Conte and BALCO:

I  (Chambers)should have seen the danger signals when Montgomery snarled at me one day: ‘Yo, Dwain! You wit that n***** Conte? Don’t go anywhere near that c********r. Let me tell you, Chambers, he’s bad news.’

I was unnerved, but he didn’t elaborate. I didn’t know there was a huge row brewing between Montgomery and Conte. Tim had probably taken a well-educated guess that I was clean and didn’t want me dragged down. I just wish he had been more constructive, instead of hurling obscenities in the direction of Victor.

And a discussion with Conte:

Conte had convinced me that a new drug meant I could train harder and more often. He called it The Clear (THG) and The Cream.

‘Is it illegal?’ I asked.

‘It’s undetectable.’

‘Is it banned?’

‘The Clear is not on the prohibited list and neither will cause a positive test.’

‘Isn’t that cheating?

‘They’re cheating you, Dwain. You’re a talented athlete and you’re not competing on a level playing field. Most of the top sprinters are on steroids. Every time you race you’re at a disadvantage.’

Ah, rationalizations...

Michigan swimmer Emily Brunemann tests positive for diuretics -- 'masking agents'

A University of Michigan swimmer tested positive for 2 diuretics: hydrocholorothiazide and triamterene.  The combination makes up the pill 'Dyazide'.  The swimmer's lawyer says she thought she took a laxative.  Opps...wrong excretory system. 

Those are impressive delts shown in the photo.  To AFP for the story.

American swimmer Emily Brunemann has been slapped with a six-month suspension after testing positive for a banned substance, the United States Anti-doping Agency announced Wednesday.

The 22-year-old Brunemann, a four-time NCAA All-American, was caught using banned drugs hydrochlorothiazide and triamterene. The two are considered masking agents and are listed on the World Anti-doping Agency Prohibited List.

"Following a detailed evidentary hearing, the panel confirmed that Brunemann committed a doping violation and found that she failed to take appropriate steps to avoid ingesting a prohibited substance," USADA said in a news release. Brunemann's suspension is retroactive to September 26.

Brunemann's lawyer, Howard Jacobs, said his client tested positive after taking what she thought was a laxative.

"Emily Brunemann accepted responsibility for her one-time mistake in taking what she thought at the time was a laxative but that turned out to be a banned diuretic," said Jacobs, who was also the lawyer for disgraced former American sprinter Tim Montgomery.

A diuretic can mask steroid use by diluting the urine.  The drug could also be used to simply drop water weight.

Brunemann denied knowingly taking a banned drug and said she plans to continue swimming for her US college team, the University of Michigan.

"I look forward to finishing my collegiate swimming career and proving my first place finishes at the 2008 NCAA Championship and the 2008 US National Championships were based on my hard work and dedication," she was reported saying in Swimming World Magazine.

Vikings Pat and Kevin Williams duo admit they engaged in 'Pee to Pay' ( 'Pee tp Play') with Starcaps (bumetanide)

You know Illinois governor Ron Zook Rod Blagojevich engaged in the age old Illini practice of 'Pay to Play'?  The Minnesota Vikings defensive line duo of Kevin and Pat Williams apparently engaged in 'Pee to Play' or 'Pee to Pay'.  A release today indicated the Williams boys will be paid bonuses if they make weight on 11 occasions both in-season and off-season.  The duo admitted to taking the woman's weight loss supplement StarCaps, which was spiked with the diuretic bumetanide.  Couldn't they just attend Weight Watchers meetings?  To the Minneapolis StarCaps-Tribune:

Vikings defensive tackles Kevin and Pat Williams both admitted they used a banned diuretic because they each stood to get $400,000 bonuses if they were at or below their prescribed weight a set number of times each year.

$400,000 a year for making weight.  Heck, we would jump on that scale any day.  Where is the Ex-Lax?

The information surfaced Tuesday as part of a letter that was included in the filings in the Williamses' suit against the NFL to avoid four-game suspensions for violating the league's anti-doping policy.

The letter was sent by NFL executive vice president Jeffrey Pash on Dec. 2 to Peter Ginsburg, lawyer for the Williamses, denying their appeal of the suspensions. According to the document, the players tested positive "on or about July 26" and were advised by letter two months later. They appealed, and at their appeal hearing Nov. 20, both players said they took StarCaps "on more than one occasion" the night before a scheduled weigh-in. The supplement contained the banned diuretic known as bumetanide.

According to the letter, both Pat and Kevin Williams get their bonuses if they are at or below their prescribed weight 11 times during the year (eight during the season, three off-season). That weight clause, however, provided that the players "would not engage in any 'last-minute weight reduction techniques,' which included 'use of diuretics.'" Pash also wrote "I accept the representations of both players that they did not use steroids."

Isn't using StarCaps as a diuretic breaking the contract? 

Meanwhile, attorneys for the NFL Players' Association responded Tuesday to the NFL's request to put off discovery proceedings pending an appeal to the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals to overturn a federal judge's order that blocked the suspension of five players, including the Williamses. Among the five points in the NFLPA's letter to the federal judge, Paul Magnuson of U.S. District Court in St. Paul, was that the NFL's Monday request was a "complete about-face from their previous position that there should be no delay in this action."

The issue of steroid use, and bumetanide as a masking agent has been completely flushed down the toilet...

StarCaps case may produce long lasting implications for NFL anti-steroid policy and procedure

It appears that the contamination of a woman's weight loss supplement used by NFL players may inexorably complicate the anti-steroid policies of professional sports leagues.  So says the St. Paul Pioneer Press.

The story (briefly) goers that several NFL players including running back Deuce McAllister of the New Orleans Saints, and tow Minnesota Vikings defensive linemen -- the Williams boys -- took StarCaps to loose weight.  Starcaps is contaminated (or spiked) with bumetanide a potent diuretic that can also be used as a masking agent for steroid abuse.  The players were suspended.

However, the players appealed the suspensions to local and Federal courts who blocked the NFL suspensions, on procedural grounds.  Seems the arbitrator in the NFL's players internal appeal was the NFL's own lawyer, hardly a dispassionate observer.  To the PP:

A federal judge's injunction allowing suspended Vikings Kevin Williams and Pat Williams and three New Orleans Saints to play the rest of the season could profoundly affect how the NFL and other professional sports enforce their drug testing policies, legal experts said Friday.

U.S. District Court Judge Paul Magnuson's ruling Thursday blocked the NFL's four-game suspensions and set a course for trial. His findings also weakened the league's Policy for Steroids and Related Substances and marked a path for players to challenge their sport's punishments in court, according to one sports law scholar.

"Every disciplinary decision of a major professional sports league is up to the unfettered, Solomonic wisdom of U.S. district judges," said professor Stephen Ross, director of Penn State's Institute for Sports Law.

If one knows about 'judicial realism' that could be a frightening prospect.  Clearing every particular disciplinary decision would appear to be time-consuming, and costly.  US courts do not move with the speed of the NFL schedule.

On the other hand, a decision to suspend a player based on lab tests without good due process restricts the players form earning a living.  And it appears the NFL did not present the players with objective due process.

Ross and others scrutinizing Magnuson's 20-page decision were drawn to his initial determination that the NFL violated public policy by failing to inform the players in November 2006 the diuretic they were using contained a known masking agent for steroids for which a positive test could result in suspensions.

The judge wrote it was unfair for Jeff Pash, the league's chief legal officer and arbitrator, to punish the players after withholding specific information that might have helped them avoid testing positive for the banned substance bumetanide.

It appears Mr. Bash isn't particularly objective.  As an arbitrator, he is not objective as  he represents the NFL...in fact the NFL's chief legal consul.  Imagine the arbitrator is the lawyer for the NFL in the NFL v. players.  Odds are somewhat weighted against the players.  The Daily Norseman says this:

The Mr. Pash he's referring to is Jeffery Pash, the person who heard the appeals of the cases of the StarCaps Five.  Oh, and in a minor but somewhat interesting fact, Mr. Pash is also the NFL's chief legal counsel.

Basically, this is the equivalent of getting a judgment against you in a divorce proceeding, filing an appeal, and having the appeal heard by the mother-in-law that never liked you anyway.  See, I've watched enough episodes of Law & Order in my life to be under the impression that arbitration, in a legal matter, is supposed to be handled by a neutral third party. . .not somebody that's on the payroll of one of the parties involved.  That really doesn't strike me as impartial or neutral, but that's just me.

The Star-Tribune also talked to a couple of Twin Cities attorneys on the matter, and they're basically under the same impression:

Marshall Tanick, who has represented players in drug-testing matters, said of Magnuson: "He came out pretty strong on this one. This looks like, at the end of the day, the scoreboard is going to be in favor of the players."

John Klassen, an attorney who does much of his work in federal court, said Magnuson's language about Pash's partiality and the league's obligation to warn players is a clear signal that the tide may have turned against the NFL.

"It is no longer about the players' conduct," Klassen said. "It is about the NFL's conduct, which would be a surprise turn that the NFL didn't expect when they stepped into this."

After all, it was the NFL that moved to shift the Williamses' case from state court -- where they had obtained a temporary restraining order two weeks ago -- to federal court.

"It's the old lesson," Klassen said. "Be careful what door you open and what arena you walk into. And the NFL may come to regret that."

Backto the Pionieer Press.  As pointed out the NFL may be correct in their policy, however their administrative handling of the policy presents serious troubling possibilites.  ANds such bungled administrative actions then threaten to jade public opinoin about anti-doping effprts.

That narrow interpretation (of the Federal judge) has broader implications for the sports world because it undercuts the bedrock  principle of strict liability governing all drug-testing programs: players ultimately are responsible for what they ingest.

Moreover, it dealt a blow to the NFL's image because the public tends to view steroids and drug cases in black and white, said professor Paul Haagen, co-director of Duke University's Department of Sports Law and Policy.

"People think of cheaters and not cheaters, people who take the stuff or who are clean," he said. "What you've got here is this middle ground. Yes, (the players) ran a risk by using this supplement, and, yes, it turned out to be a banned substance. But there is a justice problem.

"At that point you are in danger of losing the public-relations war, which is central to anti-doping."

The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency monitors the country's Olympic athletes. Its authority is unrivaled in the realm of drug testing because it is not governed by a collective bargaining agreement like major pro sports are.

The NFL is very concerned...

Magnuson's decision is subject to appeal, and he ultimately could reverse himself after hearing a full vetting of the case if the NFL and the union hold evidentiary hearings and proceed to trial.

Until then, his words set a precedent for other players to challenge the authority of NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell on similar grounds.

Titans lose backup defensive lineman Kevin Vickerson, and no one has gone to court yet

Tennessee Titan backup defensive lineman Kevin Vickerson sat out yesterday's game, reportedly as a suspension for violating the NFL's steroid policy.  Although his lawyer stated the violation involved a diuretic, no one has reserved a federal court room in the obligatory legal challenge.  To the AP:

The Tennessee Titans went into Sunday's game with the Cleveland Browns with 52 players on the roster, choosing not to replace suspended backup defensive lineman Kevin Vickerson for now.

The Titans deactivated seven players, with Vickerson placed on the reserve-suspended list. He was suspended Friday for four games for violating the NFL's policy on anabolic steroids and related substances, with his agent saying it involved a diuretic pill.

With Ken Dorsey making his first start at quarterback since Nov. 27, 2005, the Browns did not designate an emergency third quarterback behind newly signed Bruce Gradkowski. The Browns also deactivated tight end Kellen Winslow with a high ankle sprain.

Cleveland sat defensive back Travis Daniels, fullback Charles Ali, safety Hamza Abdullah, linebackers Kris Griffin and Beau Bell, offensive lineman Scott Young and defensive lineman Santonio Thomas.

Tennessee deactivated receivers Paul Williams and Chris Davis, cornerback Tyrone Poole, running back Chris Henry, offensive lineman Mike Otto and defensive end William Hayes.

Vickerson, as with the ilk of NFL players using diuretics, is a large person.

NFL Players Association seeks to obtain injunction in Minnesota court in StarCaps/bumetanide case

Apparently unaware that the Vikings Williamses (svelte pictures below) filed their own case in a Hennepin County courtroom, the NFLPA will seek another injunction against the NFL StarCaps/bumetanide suspensions.  ESPN reports on this one:

The NFL Players Association will file a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Minneapolis on Thursday, seeking to overturn all suspensions issued Tuesday by the league for any player who took the supplement identified as StarCaps that triggered several positive tests for the banned diuretic Bumetanide, union sources said.

       The action will ask the federal court for a ruling by Friday, the sources said.

The basis for the union's action is founded on many of the same arguments that resulted in a temporary restraining order issued in a Minneapolis state district court on Wednesday that will allow Minnesota Vikings defensive tackles Kevin Williams and Pat Williams to return to the team after they were suspended for a mandatory four games in Tuesday's action.

Players who were suspended included both Vikings players, as well as Deuce McAlister, Will Smith and Charles Grant of the Saints and Bryan Pittman of the Texans. Pittman did not use StarCaps but tested positive for a banned diuretic that he claims was prescribed by a physician.

The NFLPA's suit may seek retroactive pay for any player who already as served a suspension in which StarCaps was the product in question. The union, as Williams' legal team argued Wednesday in court, will cite that the NFL improperly administered the policy for steroids and performance-enhancing drugs by failing to notify players that it had specific knowledge since late 2006 that StarCaps contained the banned diuretic.

The legal brief filed on behalf of Kevin and Pat Williams also claimed that a politically charged climate contributed to the league's negligent action.

The issue, of course, is the NFL's ban on bumetanide which contaminates StarCaps.  The diuretic can be used to mask anabolic steroid use.

Hennepin County judge puts StarCaps/bumetanide game into overtime: Viking's Pat and Kevin Williams obtain injuction staying suspension

The NFL sideline show involving a woman's diet weight-loss supplement containing a potent diuretic banned by the NFL as a steroid masking agent just went into overtime, compliments of a Hennepin County (Minneapolis) judge tonight.

The byzantine case started about 6 weeks ago when several NFL players tested positive for bumetanide, a banned diuretic which can be utilized as a masking agent.  The situation become more complex when players began admitting that that they took the weight loss supplement StarCaps, a supplement known to be contaminated with bumetanide.

The NFL suspended the players Monday, based on a collective bargained steroids policy violation.  However, like may professional situation a judge was more than happy to stay the execution of the ban, pending review and appeal.  Here is the Minneapolis Star-Tribune's story:

The Vikings spent Wednesday afternoon preparing to complete the regular season without Pat and Kevin Williams. But by Wednesday evening, the Pro Bowl tackles were back at Winter Park and hoping they will be allowed to play in Sunday's game at Detroit.

The Williamses, suspended for four games by the NFL on Tuesday for violating the league's policy on anabolic steroids and related substances, were granted a temporary restraining order to rejoin the team by Hennepin County District Court Judge Gary Larson. The suspensions came two days after the Vikings moved into sole possession of first place in the NFC North with a victory over Chicago.

Larson acknowledged leaving the case in limbo after he issued his ruling, but he said he is poised to conduct a full hearing as early as today, if that's what the NFL wants. That means Larson could still issue an order before Sunday that would make the Williamses ineligible to play.

The NFL appear to be caught by surprise, even after past history of frequent injunctions by local judges, and copious threats by the players to obtain a judicial stay.

Dan Nash, a lawyer for the NFL who is based in Washington, D.C., said he needs to consult with the league.

"I'm not sure what our next step will be," he said, adding that if the NFL doesn't try to move the case to federal court, he will want a hearing today.

The NFL better be prepared to fight a change of venue to a federal court.  The Williams's lawyer will clearly be adverse to moving the case out of the Viking-friendly county court.

New York-based attorney Peter Ginsberg said the players would fight a move to federal court from Hennepin County District Court.

Larson issued his ruling after an hour of vigorous debate from both sides. The request was filed at midday Wednesday and arguments were scheduled late in the afternoon. Ginsberg flew in shortly before the hearing; Nash conducted his arguments via conference call in the courtroom.

StarCaps -- contaminated with potent diuretic & steroid masking agent bumetanide -- caps 6 NFL stars

The ongoing saga of the "NFL v. 6 players who tested positive for bumetanide v. Starcaps" temporarily culminated yesterday when the league suspended 6 players from the Saints, Vikings, and Texans in the flap.  Basically the players tested positive for the potent diuretic bumetanide.  However their defense says that the NFL players took a women's weight loss supplement StarCaps, contaminated with the masking agent (covers the use of steroids)

Paula Duffy in the Examiner summarizes the entire deal:

In a move that will certainly set off legal fireworks, the NFL has decided to suspend six players for violating the league's drug policy. The drug in question isn't really a drug at all. It is Bumetanide, a substance that acts as a masking agent for steroids but has a legitimate use. It is used in weight loss products and acts as a diuretic. The players in question took an over-the-counter product named StarCaps that contained Bumetanide. They have weight clauses in their contracts and used StarCaps to make that weight.

Bumetanide was not listed as an active ingredient in the StarCaps product and according to a lawyer for three of the suspended players, Bumetanide was also absent from the NFL banned substance list. The attorney, David Cornwell alleges the league knew of Bumetanide's presence in StarCaps and failed to let players know.

The league has decided to play hard ball on this subject and along with the press release about the suspensions it included two scanned documents that were sent to all players. One is a portion of the league's drug policy that concerns non-prescription supplements and warns that they might contain substances that aren't accounted for. The other is a notification to players that weight loss products might possibly trip the wire on a positive drug screen. Both documents are being relied on by the league to support these suspensions. Read the warning notices here and here.

Player included both defensive ends for the Vikings, currently fighting for a playoff spot.  This list also included ex-All Pro running back Deuce McAllister of the New Orleans Saints.

The players suspended are Bryan Pittman, long snapper for the Houston Texans, defensive linemen Kevin and Pat Williams of the Minnesota Vikings, running back Deuce McAllister and defensive linemen Charles Grant and Will Smith of the New Orleans Saints. The Vikings' players are the backbone of that team's run defense and we all know about Deuce and his importance to the Saints.

Legal act5ion will ensure: The attorney for the Williams boys in Minnesota may seek a federal restraining order; attorneys for Nesbit and Grady Jackson (Atlanta Falcons) have initiated legal action against StarCaps.

The NFL apparently knew StarCaps spiked their supplement with the potent diuretic bumetanide, obviously to cheat women who buy the pill with water weight loss.   So why then didn't the league aggressively ostracize the supplement?

What makes these positive drug tests different than others is the substance bumetanide contained in the pills is not disclosed on the product label.

To make matters worse, at the appeal hearing for three other New Orleans Saints players who used StarCaps their attorney determined from a league official that it knew of the bumetanide in StarCaps for more than a year and did not disclose that to the players. Bumetanide is on the banned substance list because it acts as a masking agent for steroids.

The Examiner also claims that the NFL warned players  ( The report by Tom Verda continues after the jump).

Again, the action on this suspension is not over by a long shot.  More legal maneuvering, and much more talk especially if the Vikings miss on their playoff run.

No fowl called: Unlike American sports no steroids in your turkey today

As American prepares to sit down to a fine Thanksgiving feast, they should be thankful that -- unlike USA athletes -- the turkey at dinner is steroid free.  In the US, it has been illegal to pump up the turkeys with steroids for decades.  However, the athletes we watch today, may be full of some juiced gravy.   To the LA Times:

Here are a couple more turkey facts to get your teeth into -- one of them something you don't need to think about.

You may see some turkeys advertised as "hormone free."  The Foster Farms website -- to name just one example -- says of its fresh turkey: "You can feel good about serving it to your family as we promise that it will be the freshest available at your store and will never contain added hormones or steroids."

The Whole Foods Market website also proclaims that its turkeys lack added growth hormones -- and then notes, in small letters, that "federal regulations prohibit the use of hormones in raising pork and poultry."

However, unlike many American athletes, those turkeys are not pumped full of the sauce:

So don't be overly impressed by such claims. It's been illegal to treat poultry with hormones since the 1950s. "And they were never, ever used in turkeys," says Francine Bradley, extension poultry specialist in the Animal Science Department at UC Davis.

In short, the only hormones  turkeys have are the ones they produce themselves.

Similarly, any claim you may see about a steroid void is another red herring since the use of any steroids in turkey production is also illegal.

If a sports fan eats too much this Thanksgiving, try to avoid the example of those NFL players who used StarCaps, full of a diuretic which will rid you of those excess pounds...dangerously.

Vikings meet Starcaps: Williams boys to meet with the NFL about weight loss supplements.

The Williams boys up in Minnesota, consumers of StarCaps weight loss supplement, which apparently contained bumetanide -- the potent diuretic which can be used as a masking agent -- will negotiate with the NFL about suspensions today. (The Star-Tribune.com)

Vikings Pro Bowl defensive tackles Kevin and Pat Williams are scheduled to be at the NFL offices in New York today to appeal four-game suspensions for testing positive for a banned diuretic that can serve as a masking agent for steroids.

While the hearings will be on the same day, the cases will be heard separately. Both players will have team and legal representation that is expected to include Vikings owner Zygi Wilf and Kevin Warren, the Vikings vice president of legal affairs and chief administrative officer. Pat Williams' agent, Angelo Wright, and Kevin Williams' agent, Tom Condon, also will attend. It’s believed the Williamses went to New York on one of Wilf’s private planes.

Cool.  The duo flew to New York on a private jet...do these guys think they are CEOs of the big three automakers or what?

The defense seems to be set: The Viking's Williams's ingested StarCaps, the women's weight loss supplement that may be contaminated with bemetanide.  Bumetanide is a potent diuretic that cause fluid loss, and subsequent temporary weight loss.  Obviously a good thing if a consumer wants to see immediate weight loss; but not so good from a side-effect profile and from a truth in labeling viewpoint.  Fortunate that no NFL player died during the summer months from dehydration and diuresis.

The issue with the drug is that by diluting the urine, it can interfere with steroids testing, and thus used as a 'masking agent'.

Company punts on NFL urine-enhancing drug: Starcaps booted off store shelves

The woman's weight loss supplement Starcaps, which has several NFL players pissed off, will be jerked from stores shelves according the company.  The 'supplement' appears to be spiked contaminated with the powerful diuretic bumetanide, which increases urine flow thus producing a very quick and dirty way to temporarily drop weight.  To the USA Today:

Lab tests revealed a weight-loss supplement at the center of an NFL drug probe contained a prescription diuretic and a shipment of the product has been recalled, a lawyer for the company told USA TODAY on Tuesday.

Marc Ullman, the attorney for Balanced Health Products, said a sample taken from a bottle of Nikki Haskell's StarCaps tested positive for Bumetanide — a drug commonly given to heart disease patients to reduce fluid retention — and the company recalled a shipment of nearly 2,000 bottles from health food stores.

Balanced Health Products halted shipments of the product last month in response to the claim by several NFL players that their positive tests for Bumetanide, which is on the league's banned list because such drugs can mask steroids.

New Orleans Saints Jamar Nesbit's attorney says Starcaps should issue a big old apology (and some cash) to the players nailed with bumetanide, illegal in the NFL because it could mask steroid use.

"I think they should now offer up an apology for those players who have tested positive and then dig into their pockets to pay up for the damage they have done," Brian Molloy, the lawyer for New Orleans Saints offensive lineman Jamar Nesbit.

Nesbit filed a lawsuit in October against Balanced Health Products after he served a four-game suspension for testing positive for Bumetanide. The Associated Press, citing a person close to the case, reported that up to eight players tested positive for the diuretic, including Saints running back Deuce McAllister.

Most of the players have filed appeals, although such challenges haven't proved successful. The NFL only approves certain supplements through a partnership with EAS and tells players they can use other products at their own risk.

Several NFL players face the judge and jury this week over the Starcaps/bumetanide flap.  One expert says the players should only blame themselves:

That these guys who are paid all this money, who are paid millions of dollars to stay in shape, who have the best workout facilities available to them probably in the country, who have the best information about what to put in their bodies, about nutrition, who can hire their own chefs, have to resort to something like this that has to be just to lose weight to make weight, so you don’t get fined.

Then you go up and right after you make weight and you put it right back on by eating and drinking whatever you want. Most of these guys, with the exception of Deuce, that I have seen listed are all lineman. Guys like Grady Jackson, who has been hopelessly obese and fat his entire career, including here; this is a shortcut for these guys.

And I can’t understand why you would resort to that way. You wouldn’t have enough self discipline to stay in shape and not risk something like this. You risk losing four game checks, risk losing your teammate’s respect and your opportunity to put them in the playoffs, which might happen with the Saints.

Obviously these guys are lectured by the team, probably lectured by the NFL. I’m sure it’s no secret as to what you can or cannot put in your body. Why with all that knowledge, all that money, all these facilities would you take such a shortcut and do something like this?

 

Atlanta Falcons Grady Jackson sues StarCaps over bumetanide suspension

Suspended Atlanta Falcon's DT Grady Jackson will sue the makers of StarCaps, the women's weight loss supplement NFL players apparently use to skim off fluids.  The suit will obviously contend that bumetanide contaminates Starcaps, thus causing the player's urine to test positive for the banned diuretic.  Judging from his photo, Jackson is a big guy.

To AFP:

Atlanta Falcons defensive tackle Grady Jackson has filed a lawsuit against the manufacturer of a diuretic said to have led to his four-game doping suspension from the National Football League.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that Jackson, who is appealing his ban, filed the suit in the Superior Court of California against Nikki Harrell's StarCaps diet pills.

In the lawsuit, which also names Balanced Health Products, the maker of StarCaps, Jackson is seeking restitution and damages for false advertising and unfair business practices against the company and retailers of StarCaps.

In a statement on its website, StarCaps.com, the firm acknowledged the lawsuit.

"We've received notice of a problem with an NFL player," the statement read.

"We have referred the matter to our counsel and are taking all necessary steps to ensure that our customers receive product that is safe and effective. We have temporarily suspended shipping of StarCaps pending the results of our investigation."

Jackson was among a handful of NFL players who reportedly tested positive for Bumetanide, a diuretic which is on the NFL's list of banned substances.

Defensive tackles Pat Williams and Kevin Williams of the Minnesota Vikings and New Orleans Saints trio Deuce McAllister, Will Smith and Charles Grant have been named in multiple media reports as testing positive for the diuretic, which can mask the presence of other substances.

Under NFL rules, a first doping violation involving steroids policy typically brings a four-game suspension.