Press Room

ACE Joins Coalition Formed to Support Dietary Supplement Regulation

Posted: Feb 19, 2004 in

SAN DIEGO, Calif. - June 11, 2003 - The American Council on Exercise (ACE), America’s nonprofit fitness advocate, today announced its participation with the Coalition for Anabolic Steroid Precursor and Ephedra Regulation (CASPER) in support of legislation regarding the regulation of dietary supplements that contain steroid precursors or ephedra.

CASPER is comprised of the nation’s leading medical, public health and sport organizations, and is focused on supporting efforts to regulate products containing steroid precursors and products containing ephedra. CASPER was initially founded to support The Anabolic Steroid Precursor Control and Health Education Act (H.R. 207), which was co-sponsored by Rep. John Sweeney (R-N.Y.) and Rep. Tom Osborne (R-Neb.). A complete list of CASPER’s current members can be found at the end of this release.

Steroid precursors are substances that are converted in the body into steroids which have an anabolic effect. The steroid precursors are themselves steroids. In almost all cases, the substances formed in the body from steroid precursors that are responsible for their advertised actions are scheduled under the Controlled Substances Act.

“The American Council on Exercise is proud to be associated with CASPER’s grass roots effort to ban ephedra use. Ephedra has been linked to many life-threatening side effects, even when taken at suggested dosages by presumably healthy individuals,” says Dr. Cedric Bryant, chief exercise physiologist and vice president of educational services for ACE. “Most health/medical authorities believe that the risks associated with ephedra use far outweigh any potential benefit.”

“The Coalition for Anabolic Steroid Precursor and Ephedra Regulation was formed to coordinate the efforts of the top U.S. medical, public health and sport organizations with an end result of changing the laws and regulations regarding the exclusion of steroid precursors and ephedra in dietary supplements,” said Shawn Smeallie, CASPER Executive Director.

The Anabolic Steroid Precursor Control and Health Education Act was co-sponsored by congressmen John Sweeney (R-N.Y.) and Tom Osborne (R-Neb.) in October 2002. It was reintroduced in January 2003 as H.R. 207. The proposed bill would apply to substances that, once ingested, metabolize in the body into anabolic steroids.

Currently, these anabolic steroid precursors are being marketed as anabolic-equivalent “dietary supplements” that promise to magically build muscle. The manufacturers of these products are not required to perform any safety testing prior to releasing these potentially dangerous steroid equivalents. To correct this situation, Rep. Sweeney and Rep. Osborne moved quickly to draft the new legislation reclassifying anabolic steroid precursors as controlled substances.

"The use of these dangerous supplements has become a serious health issue for the American public as a whole," said Rep. Sweeney. "We cannot allow their abuse to simultaneously ruin the health of those who have been duped into using them for everything from the promise of quick-fix weight loss to that of a magic muscle powder, as well as degrade the competitive spirit of athletic competition."

“I'm pleased with the creation of CASPER and its mission. It works to spread the word about important efforts and legislation geared to protect young athletes and non-athletes," Rep. Osborne said. "We need to make sure that steroid precursor manufacturers are no longer able to exploit teenagers, athletes and unsuspecting consumers by selling them untested, unregulated steroid equivalents, labeled as 'dietary supplements.'"

FOR MEDIA ONLY: For additional information, please contact USADA Director of Communications Rich Wanninger at 719/785-2009 or via email at rwanninger@usantidoping.org or visit the CASPER web site at www.casper207.com

About ACE
The American Council on Exercise (ACE), America’s Authority on Fitness, is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the benefits of physical activity and protecting consumers against unsafe and ineffective fitness products and instruction. As the nation’s “workout watchdog,” ACE sponsors university-based exercise science research and testing that targets fitness products and trends. ACE sets standards for fitness professionals and is the world’s largest nonprofit fitness certifying organization. For more information on ACE and its programs, call (800) 825-3636 or log onto the ACE Web site at www.acefitness.org