Irish Anti-Doping Programme
Presenter Ailish Keaveney Programme Executive, Education and Research Direct Dial: 01 8608801 akeaveney@irishsportscouncil.ie
Website www.irishsportscouncil.ie/ Anti-Doping
What is Doping? 'Doping' is the word used in sport when athletes use prohibited substances or methods to unfairly improve their sporting performance What is Anti-Doping? Anti-doping' is the bid to eliminate doping from sport
WADA Prohibited List Produced annually Lists Prohibited Substances and Prohibited Methods When we test for drugs in sport, we are testing for the categories of drugs listed on the Prohibited List
How is the Anti-Doping programme relevant to you? National level athletes are subject to testing Are there any athletes in your club or school that compete at national level in any sport? If we test an athlete or not, it does not depend on their age it depends on their level of competition Some sports naturally have a younger age profile (e.g. gymnastics or swimming)
Relevance of Anti-Doping to Nutrition and Supplement Use Some athlete have blamed the use of supplements as the reason they tested positive for a banned substance Scientific research has shown some supplements to be contaminated with banned substances
Some concerns about Supplements from the Anti-Doping perspective Some supplements are not subject to the same stringent controls as medicines and therefore the contents and manufacturing processes cannot be guaranteed Some supplements are produced in a factory which also produces foodstuffs/medicines containing prohibited substances and therefore risk cross contamination
Some concerns about Supplements from the Anti-Doping perspective Sometimes the origin of all ingredients may not necessarily be reliable as controls of such ingredients may be considerably less accountable in some parts of the world Less scrupulous producers of the supplements may deliberately contaminate the supplements in order to make them more effective and therefore more likely to sell well The use of supplements in young athletes as a potential doorway to the taking of more serious products later in their careers
If you check on www.eirpharm.com there is a limited amount of listed vitamin and mineral supplements Calcium Deficiency Folic Acid Supplementation Iron and Folic Acid Supplementation Iron Supplementation Vitamin Mineral or Nutritional Deficiency The Irish Medicines Board check the quality, safety and efficacy of medicines available in Ireland
Republic of Ireland - www.eirpharm.com
Northern Ireland and UK - www.didglobal.com
The Athlete is ultimately responsible for what is in his/her own body if in doubt, check it out!
Current Supplement Policy. The Irish Sports Council advises athletes to avoid the use of Supplements
Edited Policy (Autumn 2008) The Irish Sports Council advises athletes to avoid the use of Supplements In addition if athletes in consultation with a qualified dietician decides they need to use supplements, to make an informed decision about where they buy supplements, from whom they buy them, what is the level of risk associated with the product? Etc.
Beware of marketing of products! natural products suitable for athletes who are drug tested screened in WADA labs Ask the Irish Sports Council for advice if you have concerns on any supplement product.
Irish Athletes Survey - Where do you buy your supplements? Health Food Shops 57% Supermarkets 33% Internet 29% From another person 9% In a gym 7% Sports Magazines 2%
Anti-Doping Unit Contact Details Anti Doping Unit Irish Sports Council Top Floor, Block A Westend Office Park, Blanchardstown, Dublin 15. antidoping@irishsportscouncil.ie Tel: 01 8608800 Fax: 01 8608860