Drug Testing for Dummies

Dec 31, 2018, 2:34 AM

I encourage anyone interested in learning more about drug testing in general to check out the recent Joe Rogan podcast with Jeff Novitzky (VP of Athletic Health and Performance for the UFC). Jeff lays out the background and recent “failed” drug tests for Jon Jones and expounds his views on the topic of testing for performance-enhancing drugs and the related markers - metabolites - that the body produces.

The U.S. and world anti-doping agencies (USADA and WADA), along with other independent laboratories, appear to be in somewhat of an arms race to show how sensitive these tests can be - to the unintended detriment of athletes and the sporting world. Jeff explains/forcasts regarding the emerging science behind these tests and puts into perspective the threshold levels of testing the UFC, NCAA, and other major sporting organizations are starting to undergo - and the resulting issues with fairness.

As this relates to Clemson: Without any personal knowledge of the results of the testing, the apparent levels of metabolites found within our players’ recent tests are almost certainly a result of cross-contamination and most importantly would have zero performance-enhancing effect on the players. The levels now tested - down to a single picogram (a grain of salt divided approximately 58 million times) are best described as estimates within a couple dozen picogram range. As noted, the supplement world is the Wild West and there’s a very real chance many people would test positive for these illegal substances or related short-term, medium-term, or long-term metabolites at the thresholds being tested - even if not using any supplements.

Within the next year or two, it’s very possible that a case like this won’t exist because athletes testing positive for these levels of either the parent drug (e.g., oral turinabol/osterine) or the related markers won’t be publicized or punished.

I say all this to encourage education on the topic and to point people who would like to hear more about the limited knowledge and testing done at these thresholds to this discussion. I also commend Dabo for not trying to sweep this under the rug despite the appearance that this is a massively unfortunate case of science getting ahead of itself without the necessary rules and regulations in place for fairness, or verified studies to confirm the effectiveness of testing to these thresholds.

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But I highly encourage anyone with a fleeting interest in the UFC in particular to listen to the full podcast to gain a different perspective on this issue than one might hear on a quick segment on ESPN.

There is almost no known testing even done on this subject because some of these drugs are illegal for human consumption in all countries. This podcast is especially enlightening for anyone who is quick to cast stones at a person like Jon Jones (and by extension the Clemson football team) who has apparently never even tested positive for oral turinabol or the related short- or medium-term metabolites. It really shows the current limited level of understanding of when and how these markers appear and how best to regulate the results of these tests in a fair manner to catch actual cheaters.

To be clear, I don’t claim an opinion on Jon Jones’ innocence or lack thereof. I also do not equate Jon Jones and his admitted recreational drug use to the situation any of our players find themselves in now, but the discussion on the science behind the testing, what little is known on how long these markers can even remain in the body, how the markers can disappear and reappear, and how these levels of positive tests can possibly occur, are all relevant to the current situation.

Drug Testing for Dummies

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I know: TL;DR

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and now he works for UFC

Yeah, I think it’s important to note that while

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