Baseball to Study Area of Nutritional Supplements

August 27, 1998

Baseball to Study Area of Nutritional Supplements

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By MURRAY CHASS

EW YORK -- In an effort to dilute the debate over a testosterone-producing pill that Mark McGwire has acknowledged using, the baseball commissioner and the players union chief issued a joint statement Wednesday saying that they have asked their medical experts to study the whole area of nutritional supplements.
Although the pill, androstenedione, is legal and available over the counter, its use by a baseball player of McGwire's stature has become controversial because it is banned by the International Olympic Committee, the National Football League and the National Collegiate Athletic Association.
It is not prohibited by Major League Baseball, the National Basketball Association or the National Hockey League.
Bud Selig, in one of his first pronouncements as commissioner, and Donald Fehr, the union chief, acted because baseball is concerned that the controversy will undermine the mushrooming interest in the pursuit of the home run record by McGwire and Sammy Sosa.
The home run chase is the biggest thing to hit baseball in years and has fans flocking to ball parks where McGwire and Sosa play. "In recent days," the Selig-Fehr statement said, "there have been press reports concerning the use of certain nutritional supplements by major league players. The substances in question are available over the counter and are not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration. In view of these facts, it seems inappropriate that such reports should overshadow the accomplishments of players such as Mark McGwire."
Because the debate isn't abating, however, Selig and Fehr added, they have asked their medical experts to "gather the relevant scientific and medical data and to consult with other experts on the general use of nutritional supplements by major league players."
Baseball's medical experts are Dr. Robert Millman for the clubs and Dr. Joel Solomon for the players. They have been involved primarily in cases involving illegal drugs, such as cocaine. They are expected, too, to seek input from club medical personnel. Each team has trainers and a set of doctors that care for its players.
Selig separately expressed concern for the health of baseball's players and said the sport wants to "take every precaution to assure they receive the most accurate medical and scientific information." Fehr said players shouldn't "be faulted for staying entirely within the rules."
But critics of the use of the pills say baseball should make them illegal. The sports organizations that ban androstenedione believe it produces an advantage in competition through added strength and the ability to recover more quickly from rigorous training and injuries.
Some in the medical community and news media have pointed to McGwire's ability to play this season injury-free compared with some of his previous seasons, suggesting that the pills have made that possible. But players and managers have asked, in effect, what is wrong with staying healthy. They further ask what the difference is between taking a pill to prevent injury or help heal an injury and having a player get a cortisone shot for tendinitis.
Baseball people argue that the andro pill does not help a player make contact with a baseball thrown at 96 miles an hour.
Furthermore, lest anyone think a pill can help a player hit home runs or hit balls greater distances, they note that McGwire has always been a home run hitter and has never hit cheap home runs.
"He still has to hit the ball," Devon White of Arizona said this week.
The Food and Drug Administration does not regulate pills such as androstenedione because it says supplements are closer to a food than a drug.
And no definitive studies have been made to determine long-range effects of the use of this particular supplement. Potential but unknown ill effects are what concerns some medical people.
The Chicago Tribune, citing a June9 memo it obtained, reported yesterday that General Nutrition Centers, a national chain of nutrition-supplement centers, ordered its 3,700 stores not to sell androstenedione because of safety concerns.
The Association of Professional Team Physicians, made up of doctors from professional teams, issued a position paper earlier this week in which it called for a ban on the use of androstenedione in competitive sports and for its removal from over-the-counter purchase.
The group's position is that the substance is an anabolic steroid.
The Selig-Fehr statement said there would be further comment "following review of the relevant scientific and medical information."

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