Nandrolone found in food supplements in Germany and U.S.

Food supplements are used by many athletes and have in the past been named as possible sources for positive doping tests. The news came 24 hours after scientists in the United States said that examinations of food supplements had revealed traces of nandrolone and testosterone. The doping substances were neither listed on the German or American supplements.

The nandrolone was found in Germany in creatine tablets, but a ministry of agriculture chemist said further tests were needed to determine whether it was the result of contamination or a deliberate act.

The news came shortly after the German athletics body DLV cleared teenage javelin thrower Carolin Soboll of a doping offence after a positive nandrolone test. Soboll said she took in American creatine tablets which were later found to contain eight different steroids. Creatin is popular among athletes and not on the list of forbidden substances. It is produced by the body and also found in fish and meat.

The U.S. test of food supplements came after shot put world champion C.J. Hunter, the husband of three-times Olympic champion Marion Jones, submitted several positive nandrolone tests in summer and also blamed supplements for it.

The study conducted the University of California (UCLA) was ordered and paid for by the U.S. Olympic Committee, the National Football Federation, Major League Baseball and the college body NCAA.

It revealed that besides testosterone more than half of the athletes involved in the seven-day test also had nandrolone in their urine after taking the supplements. dpa jb ms

(dpa)