British Dressage reported that the prohibited substance methylhexaneamine has been found in a number of supplements recently, and athletes have tested positive for the substance in Australia, India and in the UK.
This week British shotputter, Rachel Wallader, received a four-month ban for testing positive to the substance.
Methylhexaneamine is prohibited in sport. It is increasingly being found in nutritional supplements, typically those that are designed to increase energy or aid weight loss. Methylhexaneamine is commonly referred to by a number of alternative names including 1,3-dimethylamylamine, dimethylamylamine, dimethylpentylamine, DMAA, forthan, forthane, floradrene, geranamine and geranium oil.
There is no guarantee that supplements are drug-free, even when all the ingredients listed are permitted substances. UK Anti-Doping counsels against the use of supplements; however, for those athletes who are considering using a supplement, UK Anti-Doping recommends caution, and advises a thorough assessment of the risks before taking them.
In order to assist athletes to assess the risk HFL, an independent organisation, has established a supplement risk minimisation scheme called Informed-Sport. This programme evaluates supplement manufacturers for their process integrity, and screens supplements and ingredients for the presence of prohibited substances. Athletes should be advised to go to www.informed-sport.com for more information.
Athletes must be aware of their responsibilities and are warned against the risks of supplement use.
The following key points should be stressed to athletes to help minimise the risk of ingesting a prohibited substance through a supplement.
1. Keep in mind that www.globaldro.com is for checking medications NOT supplements, nor ingredients in supplements.
2. If you do use a supplement, assess the risks and refer to www.informed-sport.com
3. Keep records of all the checks you carry out before taking any medications or supplements.
Athletes should remember that they are solely responsible for any substance found in their body under the World Anti-Doping Code’s policy of strict liability. Contaminated supplements or misleading packaging are not valid defences should an athlete test positive for methylhexaneamine or any other prohibited substance.
Source: British Dressage
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