drchaos
04-22-2004, 01:54 PM
Oh [censored]!
And the worst part, The bill, which would allow the Health and Human Services (news
- web sites) Secretary to recommend future supplement bans, now moves to Rules Committee before a possible House
vote.
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=594&e=1&u=/nm/20040422/hl_nm/congres
s_steroids_dc (\"http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=594&e=1&u=/nm/20040422/hl_nm/cong
ress_steroids_dc\")
Congress Seeks to Control Steroid Precursors
1 hour, 54 minutes ago
Add Health -
Reuters to My Yahoo!
By Susan Heavey
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A congressional committee on Thursday moved to ban
steroid-like substances from store shelves but exempted DHEA, a dietary supplement that one lawmaker warned is as
dangerous as its popular cousin \"andro.\"
Yahoo! Health
Have questions about your health?
Find answers
here.
The House of Representatives Energy and Commerce Committee unanimously approved the Anabolic
Steroid Control Act, which would make 43 so-called steroid precursors controlled substances instead of
over-the-counter supplements.
The bill includes andro, the performance-enhancing substance made famous by
baseball slugger Mark McGwire in the 1990s. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (news - web sites) last month
sought to crack down on makers of andro, or androstenedione, but did not ban it.
The measure excludes DHEA or
dehydroepiandrosterone, a widely marketed substance that \"is really not any different\" than an anabolic steroid,
said Rep. Henry Waxman, a committee member.
While DHEA occurs naturally in the body as a hormone, its supplement
form is derived from plant chemicals. Like andro, it produces steroidal hormones such as testosterone only after it
is metabolized.
Side effects can include testicle shrinkage, breast enlargement and aggressiveness in men. Women
can grow facial hair, develop deeper voice and gain weight. It can also increase blood pressure and harm cholesterol
levels.
\"My concern is that by specifically exempting DHEA, we\'re sending the wrong signal to the American
public. We\'re telling them that while there may be concerns about andro, DHEA is safe,\" said Waxman, a
California Democrat.
The National Institutes of Health (news - web sites) is studying DHEA as an alternative HIV
(news - web sites)/AIDS (news - web sites) therapy. California-based Genelabs Technologies, Inc. is also funding
several studies of it as a possible treatment for lupus.
It is often touted as an anti-aging remedy as well as a
sexual performance booster because DHEA levels decrease with age.
Committee Chairman Rep. Joe Barton, a Texas
Republican, said the AARP, the nation\'s largest lobbying group for seniors, opposes banning the supplement. AARP
did not immediately return a request for comment.
Waxman said evidence shows DHEA is risky but \"pressure from
the dietary supplement industry to protect a highly profitable product\" has kept it out of the
legislation.
Barton and other lawmakers said DHEA could be addressed, possibly in a later amendment.
The bill,
which would allow the Health and Human Services (news - web sites) Secretary to recommend future supplement bans,
now moves to Rules Committee before a possible House vote.
And the worst part, The bill, which would allow the Health and Human Services (news
- web sites) Secretary to recommend future supplement bans, now moves to Rules Committee before a possible House
vote.
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=594&e=1&u=/nm/20040422/hl_nm/congres
s_steroids_dc (\"http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=594&e=1&u=/nm/20040422/hl_nm/cong
ress_steroids_dc\")
Congress Seeks to Control Steroid Precursors
1 hour, 54 minutes ago
Add Health -
Reuters to My Yahoo!
By Susan Heavey
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A congressional committee on Thursday moved to ban
steroid-like substances from store shelves but exempted DHEA, a dietary supplement that one lawmaker warned is as
dangerous as its popular cousin \"andro.\"
Yahoo! Health
Have questions about your health?
Find answers
here.
The House of Representatives Energy and Commerce Committee unanimously approved the Anabolic
Steroid Control Act, which would make 43 so-called steroid precursors controlled substances instead of
over-the-counter supplements.
The bill includes andro, the performance-enhancing substance made famous by
baseball slugger Mark McGwire in the 1990s. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (news - web sites) last month
sought to crack down on makers of andro, or androstenedione, but did not ban it.
The measure excludes DHEA or
dehydroepiandrosterone, a widely marketed substance that \"is really not any different\" than an anabolic steroid,
said Rep. Henry Waxman, a committee member.
While DHEA occurs naturally in the body as a hormone, its supplement
form is derived from plant chemicals. Like andro, it produces steroidal hormones such as testosterone only after it
is metabolized.
Side effects can include testicle shrinkage, breast enlargement and aggressiveness in men. Women
can grow facial hair, develop deeper voice and gain weight. It can also increase blood pressure and harm cholesterol
levels.
\"My concern is that by specifically exempting DHEA, we\'re sending the wrong signal to the American
public. We\'re telling them that while there may be concerns about andro, DHEA is safe,\" said Waxman, a
California Democrat.
The National Institutes of Health (news - web sites) is studying DHEA as an alternative HIV
(news - web sites)/AIDS (news - web sites) therapy. California-based Genelabs Technologies, Inc. is also funding
several studies of it as a possible treatment for lupus.
It is often touted as an anti-aging remedy as well as a
sexual performance booster because DHEA levels decrease with age.
Committee Chairman Rep. Joe Barton, a Texas
Republican, said the AARP, the nation\'s largest lobbying group for seniors, opposes banning the supplement. AARP
did not immediately return a request for comment.
Waxman said evidence shows DHEA is risky but \"pressure from
the dietary supplement industry to protect a highly profitable product\" has kept it out of the
legislation.
Barton and other lawmakers said DHEA could be addressed, possibly in a later amendment.
The bill,
which would allow the Health and Human Services (news - web sites) Secretary to recommend future supplement bans,
now moves to Rules Committee before a possible House vote.