Should Spinach Be On The Anti-doping List?
A substance found in spinach – ecdysterone or ecdysterone – increases muscle mass. The researchers propose that it be included among doping drugs.
If not spinach, then one of the chemical compounds found in its natural composition, ecdysterone, according to researchers at the Free University of Berlin.
We all know Popeye the Sailor, the cartoon born in 1929 that after swallowing a can of spinach acquired enormous strength due to the amount of iron they provided (although today we know that the study used as a reference multiplied by ten the actual content due to to an error in the placement of the decimal point).
Spinach ecdysterone builds muscle
The surprising thing is that the study published in the Archive für Toxikologie magazine has confirmed that the ecdysterone in spinach has the property of building muscles.
Ecdysterone is a steroid hormone that has been known since the 1980s. Already at that time its extraordinary effect was discussed and it was credited with the strength, at least in part, of Soviet athletes at the Moscow Olympics. There was talk of the “Russian secret”.
It is currently marketed as a supplement especially indicated to increase sports performance.
The effects have surprised scientists
The researchers wanted to know if ecdysterone had significant properties and even if it could be considered a doping substance.
To do this, 46 athletes were administered a dose of ecdysterone or placebo for 10 weeks. After the administration, the athletes had to jump, squats and weights.
The result was that the athletes who had ingested ecdysterone performed better and had developed their muscle mass.
Especially striking were the results with weight lifting. After ten days of training, participants taking ecdysterone increased their muscle strength twice as much as those taking placebo.
Researcher Maria Kristina acknowledged that “we expected to see an increase in performance, but we did not imagine it would be that big.” So large that the study recommends to the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) that ecdysterone be classified among doping substances.
However, at the administered dose, no kidney or liver damage was detected.
More than six kilos of spinach a day
Whatever decision WADA makes, it is highly unlikely that spinach will ever be banned for athletes. Experts will have to decide from what dose of ecdysterone is considered doping and if that amount can be obtained by eating spinach.
In the study 800 mg of ecdysterone was administered . To get this dose of spinach you would have to eat more than 6.5 kg.
Reference:
- Monica Mazzarino et al. Ecdysteroids as non-conventional anabolic agent: performance enhancement by ecdysterone supplementation in humans. Archive für Toxikologie.
