Hoot's Corner

  What is a dietary supplement? A dietary supplement is a pill, capsule, tablet, powder, liquid or other food form intended to supplement a whole food diet by providing any combination of the following:  Vitamins  Minerals  Amino acids  Herbs and botanicals (leaves, bark, stems, berries, roots, seed of plants) Sports supplements […]

Harrison G. Pope Jr, MD1; Jag H. Khalsa, MS, PhD2; Shalender Bhasin, MB, BS3 During the last several decades, the image of the idealized male body in many countries has shifted toward a substantially higher level of muscularity. Bodybuilding competitors, male models, and even children’s action toys (eg, “G.I. Joe”) have become significantly more muscular than their predecessors of the 1960s. Nowadays, […]

Emergency Department Visits for Adverse Events Related to Dietary Supplements Dietary supplements are sometimes erroneously perceived as inherently healthy. And because of the way many supplements are advertised, it’s easy to overlook that improper administration can lead to adverse outcomes. The classification of a supplement is defined in the United States Dietary Supplement Health and […]

(CNN) — Here’s a look at performance-enhancing drugs in sports. Facts: The use of performance-enhancing drugs by professional athletes, or “doping,” has been acknowledged as a problem since at least the 1960s. The issue has gained prominence in the last 10 years as a result of the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative (BALCO) investigation, tell-alls by […]

Just ask the Russians. Yes, the Russian Doping Scandal, as we have learned to call it, was a black cloud that kept appearing again and again over the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio. Any time a Russian athlete competed, we all wondered if they were truly “natural” or “drugged,” and if they actually won, the […]

By Sarah K. Spencer / MLB.com | July 27th, 2016 PITTSBURGH — Major League players working out or needing medical attention usually keep the Pirates’ athletic training staff busy. But on Wednesday, a few dozen rowdy kids at PNC Park kept them occupied when they joined forces with the Taylor Hooton Foundation to educate youth […]

Here’s what you should really do if you want to maximize your gain BY CHRIS MOHR, PH.D., R.D. It would seem logical that the more protein you pack away during a meal, the bigger your muscles would grow. But your body doesn’t work that way. There’s a certain amount of protein your muscles can absorb […]

  In a 12-count grand jury indictment that was recently unsealed, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is prosecuting two contract manufacturing executives in the sports nutrition industry for conspiracy to illegally sell steroids. John Wesley Houser IV and Beny Mesika, founders of Durcaps Labs, Active Sports Nutrition and Adrenaline Nutrition Supplements, face significant jail […]

Body dysmorphia isn’t a simple extension of low self-esteem, or bad body image; it’s a much-misunderstood anxiety disorder with strong links to obsessive-compulsive traits, and it can cause deep difficulties for people who suffer from it. OCD UK estimates that over 0.5 percent of the population may suffer from body dysmorphia (BDD), or over 1.5 […]

Even teens who are not athletes are using performance-enhancing supplements in an attempt to enhance their appearance, the American Academy of Pediatrics warns in a new report. The supplements, which include steroids, diet pills and protein powders, are risky and unregulated, the group says. “Doctors think of performance-enhancing substance use as an athlete problem, but […]