The “High Risk” Workout Supplements You Shouldn’t Take

The US Department of Defense published a list of workout supplements it considers high risk. Some old acquaintances are on it.

“Operation Supplement Safety”

When the Pentagon a couple of years ago learned that two of its soldiers died after using workout supplement Jack3d they were under a bit pressure to act.

They came up with “OPPS” (“Operation Supplement Safety”) – it seems  in the military you can’t do these things without giving it a moniker that’s a least a tiny bit dramatic. I wonder how closely “Operation Musclemonger” was overvoted.

If the US military does it only out of the goodness of their heart I’m not sure. For them it also isn’t that fab when half a platoon isn’t combat-ready, because it’s waiting for a liver transplant.

Nonetheless, the list about dangerous supplements they now put together is a good start for anyone trying to sort the good from the potentially stuff.

Some Examples

It’s quite long at more than 130 items. Here are some highlights:

• Mayhem, a supplement found to contain a prescription anti-inflammatory and a prescription antihistamine without stating it
• Jack3d Micro, successor of the Jack3d that caused the death of a London woman
• A dozen supplements still coming with 1,3-dimethylbutylamine (“DMAA”), the stuff that was removed from the original Jack3d

The full monty you can find over here. Don’t ask why you have to register to view it. Be thankful you don’t have to fill out form 17B in triple to do it!

What The Supplement Industry Says

The supplement industry of course isn’t happy with the list. On the forefront is an attorney speaking for the company of convicted felon Mark Cahill, Driven Sports. With indignation he gave the Military Times the following statement:

The substance in Lean Xtreme […] is a non-anabolic, non-androgenic metabolite of DHEA. It is natural, safe, and has been the subject of several safety/efficacy studies. […]  USADA has set itself up as the unchallengeable authority on tainted products, makes pronouncements as to what should be banned, and feels no obligation to provide any substantive explanation from those pronouncements.

Yeah, Mr. Attorney, just like Mark Cahill doesn’t feel like telling his costumers what he puts into the products he expects them to ingest.

Picture courtesy of the U.S. Marine Corps.