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mauxlester
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There was a front page article in USA Today regarding HGH. (reproduced below)
I had to laugh when I first saw the article...they showed a picture of a vial of HCG.
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HGH goes beyond athletes
Updated 3/1/2007 8:53 AM ET
By Sal Ruibal, USA TODAY
A raid of an Orlando pharmacy company brought the usual buzz of pro athletes suspected of doping, but it also exposed an often-unseen and more pervasive aspect of performance-enhancing drug use: human growth hormone (HGH) as an aging cure.
A task force of federal, Florida and Albany County, N.Y., officers raided Signature Pharmacy on Tuesday as part of a multistate investigation into illegal online purchases of steroids and HGH. Investigators did not identify steroid recipients.
Signature, which is allowed under federal laws to manufacture drugs, is being investigated along with anti-aging clinics in New York and Florida, according to the Times Union of Albany. USA TODAY could not independently confirm the allegations.
Police arrested Signature owners Stan and Naomi Loomis on Tuesday. They were charged with criminal diversion of prescription medications, criminal sale of a controlled substance and insurance fraud, according to the Associated Press. Naomi Loomis is a member of the American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine and, according to the Signature website, "an expert on menopause and hormone replacement."
HGH's rejuvenating powers have been touted as "the new Botox," but use for that purpose has not been approved by the federal government. HGH can be used to help repair damaged muscle quickly, but it also can lead to lethal cardiac failure.
"Athletes may be the minority of those using these drugs," says Gary Gaffney, a University of Iowa associate professor of child psychology and behavior. He's also the editor of Steroid Nation, a blog that examines the use of anabolic steroids and performance-enhancing drugs in society.
"It is done for cosmetic purposes. There are doctors who prescribe HGH at anti-aging clinics. Athletes and actors have many of the same reasons to use these drugs."
Signature has grown from $550,000 in gross annual sales in 2000 to more than $36 million in 2006, according to published reports. Signature did more than $10 million in sales from New York, which was one reason it was targeted by Albany County District Attorney P. David Soares.
"Let's punch it (HGH) into Google," says physician Gary Wadler, a member of the World Anti-Doping Agency. "I come up with 2,930,000 sites.
"Something doesn't add up here. There is an anti-aging community that thinks this is legitimate use. … I didn't know getting older was a disease. But that's a lot of the interest in the sales."
Lt. Carl Metzger, spokesman for Orlando's Metropolitan Bureau of Investigation, says Signature had some legitimate business but the illegal portion was significant.
"We took anything that was contraband," Metzger said, adding the load required two trucks to haul it all away.
Contributing: Kevin Johnson in Washington, D.C., and Jill Lieber Steeg in San Diego
Posted 3/1/2007 3:15 AM ET
I had to laugh when I first saw the article...they showed a picture of a vial of HCG.
---------------
HGH goes beyond athletes
Updated 3/1/2007 8:53 AM ET
By Sal Ruibal, USA TODAY
A raid of an Orlando pharmacy company brought the usual buzz of pro athletes suspected of doping, but it also exposed an often-unseen and more pervasive aspect of performance-enhancing drug use: human growth hormone (HGH) as an aging cure.
A task force of federal, Florida and Albany County, N.Y., officers raided Signature Pharmacy on Tuesday as part of a multistate investigation into illegal online purchases of steroids and HGH. Investigators did not identify steroid recipients.
Signature, which is allowed under federal laws to manufacture drugs, is being investigated along with anti-aging clinics in New York and Florida, according to the Times Union of Albany. USA TODAY could not independently confirm the allegations.
Police arrested Signature owners Stan and Naomi Loomis on Tuesday. They were charged with criminal diversion of prescription medications, criminal sale of a controlled substance and insurance fraud, according to the Associated Press. Naomi Loomis is a member of the American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine and, according to the Signature website, "an expert on menopause and hormone replacement."
HGH's rejuvenating powers have been touted as "the new Botox," but use for that purpose has not been approved by the federal government. HGH can be used to help repair damaged muscle quickly, but it also can lead to lethal cardiac failure.
"Athletes may be the minority of those using these drugs," says Gary Gaffney, a University of Iowa associate professor of child psychology and behavior. He's also the editor of Steroid Nation, a blog that examines the use of anabolic steroids and performance-enhancing drugs in society.
"It is done for cosmetic purposes. There are doctors who prescribe HGH at anti-aging clinics. Athletes and actors have many of the same reasons to use these drugs."
Signature has grown from $550,000 in gross annual sales in 2000 to more than $36 million in 2006, according to published reports. Signature did more than $10 million in sales from New York, which was one reason it was targeted by Albany County District Attorney P. David Soares.
"Let's punch it (HGH) into Google," says physician Gary Wadler, a member of the World Anti-Doping Agency. "I come up with 2,930,000 sites.
"Something doesn't add up here. There is an anti-aging community that thinks this is legitimate use. … I didn't know getting older was a disease. But that's a lot of the interest in the sales."
Lt. Carl Metzger, spokesman for Orlando's Metropolitan Bureau of Investigation, says Signature had some legitimate business but the illegal portion was significant.
"We took anything that was contraband," Metzger said, adding the load required two trucks to haul it all away.
Contributing: Kevin Johnson in Washington, D.C., and Jill Lieber Steeg in San Diego
Posted 3/1/2007 3:15 AM ET
