If caffeine is legal then that has me thinking why aren't we allowed to coke up just a little bit before races.
See the excellent post on WADA's rationale for banning a drug. Cocaine has actual health risks. Caffeine does not.
Also, caffeine was once limited. If the amount in your urine (or its metabolites) was higher than a certain concentration you could be sanctioned. NCAA might still have this in place.
They tried this kinda in the 2000 Olympics with a caffeine limit. The problem is that caffeine is so common in the average person's diet. One of the most common beverages in the world is coffee. So to police this would be a huge headache and the amount of people claiming they ordered decafe but received caffeinated coffee on accident from a restaurant would make this ban useless.
Caffeine was a banned substance at one point, so they did have luck policing it. Athletes knew and followed the rules as much as they do now avoiding certain burritos.
As far as the 2/3 criteria, the fact that pros openly admit taking caffeine pills before racing is a clear violation of the "spirit of sport".
It was not banned exactly. There was a limit like there are with many other substances.
The answer: the chances aren't high, but after the highly sensationalized death of a South Carolina teen, it's best to understand the risks of caffeinated drinks.
Ok I will concede that in incredibly rare instances caffeine can have health risks. You know I can find cases of people dying from water intoxication. Should we ban water?
If caffeine gets banned I'm going to have to come as an unapologetic doper. I'll gladly return that 2nd place pineapple I wont that one time, if it means I can keep feeding the caffeine-monster.
Ok I will concede that in incredibly rare instances caffeine can have health risks. You know I can find cases of people dying from water intoxication. Should we ban water?
Okay I'll flip the script on you-
Yes there's certainly are water intoxication deaths. Has happened to several mid to back of the pack marathoners. Actual documented deaths from EPO use are not extremely common. Therefore..... maybe EPO should be legal? I mean to your point people die from high levels of lots things, even water. Therefore why the scare tactics/banning of EPO? Just tell people to be very careful, have a doctor watch them, Etc. Health risks mitigated/eliminated. Voila.
Look of course I am being facetious and I don't even support banning caffeine. I am simply saying that in fairly high amounts there certainly are health risks and deaths associated with it. Many of these individuals were susceptible/ sensitive to the effects of caffeine but of course did not know that.
Several triathletes have died during the swim portion due to cardiac arrest and it may have been a combination of adrenaline surge, cold water, underlying genetic vulnerability and caffeine.
Here is some information on potential risks of caffeine use before exercise.
Much of the concern about caffeinated food and beverages and their potential health effects in vulnerable populations stems from several recent sudden cardiac deaths in adolescents being attributed to consumption of caffeinat...
Rule number two - Coke can harm a person's health.
Coffee does not. We tested it on 200 million people this morning and it went well. It is different.
But once again, the "pretend to be dumb" segment of Letsrun is out in full force... You know coffee doesn't kill people but 'roids, EPO, and cocaine can. You guys aren't really dumb, you are just faking it.
It's not clear whether they were talking about coca cola or cocaine LOL.
Coffee has been shown to reduce all-cause mortality, an effect likely due mainly to caffeine. ANY substance (including water) can be lethal in sufficiently vast quantities, but available evidence suggests that caffeine at sane doses is either innocuous or health-promoting.
Shoot, ban carbs. No gels allowed on the course, only meat. Aide stations with a nice filet mignon, but done conveniently, bite sized with tooth picks and such so can grab them at race pace with no problem
Why do we allow athletes to use caffeine, a known performance-enhancing drug? Why are we ok with some doping but not others?
Caffeine is permitted by the WADA, but it's been on the monitoring list for years, supposedly to monitor for "abuse." On the other hand, Caffeine IS banned in the NCAA at levels above 15 micrograms per milliliter, which is like ingesting 500 milligrams of caffeine. For reference, there are 410 milligrams of caffeine in a Starbucks venti Pike Place. That's just black coffee with no extra shots. If the NCAA actually enforced the rule, no one would be running! For the record, it should be banned based on the other drugs they ban.
Caffeine is not a PED unless you're the sort to show up at the starting line sleepy. Maybe you don't care and have no adrenaline or fear to hype you up.
So they do tests on random sample and 20% of them are sleepy so they find some slight overall effect. Big deal. You could get the same effect by someone grabbing their shoulders and shaking them and screaming "wake up!"
So this is not a real drug, just a substitute for motivating yourself into an energetic mood. Can't make you do anything you couldn't do naturally.
Amphetamines CAN... basically long-term adrenaline that never lets up, removing physiological barriers to overexertion.
No comment on banning but I am curious what percent of athletes:
A. Do not consume a significant amount of caffeine. (Like none up to a cup of tea or half cup of coffee.)
B. Drink 1-2cups of coffee(or 2+ cups of tea) in the morning that is not intentionally aligned in time with any race event.
C. Specifically consume any type of caffeine to increase their race performance. For example a pill or shot of expresso 1hr before a 5k so it peaks at the gun.
Caffeine is not a PED unless you're the sort to show up at the starting line sleepy. Maybe you don't care and have no adrenaline or fear to hype you up.
So they do tests on random sample and 20% of them are sleepy so they find some slight overall effect. Big deal. You could get the same effect by someone grabbing their shoulders and shaking them and screaming "wake up!"
So this is not a real drug, just a substitute for motivating yourself into an energetic mood. Can't make you do anything you couldn't do naturally.
Amphetamines CAN... basically long-term adrenaline that never lets up, removing physiological barriers to overexertion.
removing physiological barriers to overexertion? Explain? Or try to explain at least.
"Rule number two - Coke can harm a person's health. Coffee does not. We tested it on 200 million people this morning and it went well. It is different...."
