Ergogenic aids are substances or devices that enhance energy production, for use for recovery and provide athletes with a competitive advantage. Numerous ergogenic aids claim to enhance sports performance and are used by amateur and professional athletes. Approximately 50 percent of the general population has reported taking some form of dietary supplements, while 76 to 100 percent of athletes in some sports are reported to use them. Physicians can evaluate these products by examining four factors (method of action, available research, adverse effects, and legality) that will help them counsel patients. Common ergogenic aids include anabolic steroids, which increase muscle mass. These illegal supplements are associated with a number of …show more content…

Procuring and using them without a prescription is illegal. Most sports organizations have rules that ban the use of anabolic steroids for any reason.
Creatine
Action
During brief, high intensity exercise, adenosine diphosphate is rephosphorylated to adenosine triphosphate (ATP) by muscle phosphocreatine stores. As muscle phosphocreatine stores become depleted, performance decreases. Oral creatine supplementation can increase muscle phosphocreatine stores by 6 to 8 percent. Increasing the available muscle stores of phosphocreatine causes faster regeneration of ATP, allowing decreased rest time between activities and increased energy for repeated bouts of exercise. Increased muscle creatine also buffers the lactic acid produced during exercise, delaying muscle fatigue and soreness. As with any ergogenic aid, increased motivation can spring from expected or perceived benefits, causing increased effort (placebo effect).
Research
Creatine research shows generally positive results. A short-term, double-blind, placebo-controlled study7 examined the effects of 28 days of creatine supplementation on 25 football