by Baller » Sun Apr 13, 2008 11:01 am
From the Bismarck Tribune today:
It's a nonfiction tale of magic seeds and grow-powder. The first part of the story came in an e-mail to a newspaper editor.
Journalists have an unflattering word to refer to public relations writers. (No, you're not going to read it here.) One of the main reasons is that PR people always are trying to get something for nothing. They want column inches of free print coverage for clients ranging from drug manufacturers to movie stars to (blush) journalists who have written books - trying to pass off the PR mush as news.
Friday morning's barrage of e-mails included one from a PR firm lauding a product made from a natural seed the Aztec Indians consumed that gave then enough stamina to run all day. The Conquistadors destroyed salvia hispanica as part of their campaign to subjugate the Indians by robbing them of their vigor.
Now a company has exclusive U.S. distribution rights to peddle - (No, the Tribune will not mention the brand and give the PRwriter the satisfaction).
The writer seems to think it's a telling point that an Ironman triathlete whose diet is 100 percent plant-based takes the junk and never wears out.
Think of tempting high school athletes and teenagers, and their developing bodies, with an array of aids to enhance sports performance.
We learned Monday in a story reprinted from the Century Star and written by Greg Hilzendeger, a Century High School sophomore, that athletes in training are using protein supplements to help them beef up.
One young athlete told Hilzendeger that "I put on 10 pounds of muscle" right after beginning use of protein and other supplements.
Like any good reporter, Hilzendeger dug until he learned that something seeming to be natural and healthy and performance-enhancing could have its drawbacks. He wrote: "Overuse of creatine increases the risk of muscle tears and cramping. An excess of glutamine can cause urination problems. Large amounts of protein in a diet over a long period of time can harm the kidneys ... and liver."
The competitive pressure on young athletes has never been greater. They're having to push their bodies more than ever, when it's true that high school students routinely turn in performances that would have broken world records in the 1960s.
What has an older generation taught them? The ugly lesson was that some athletes couldn't be content with their own native talent, acquired skills and conditioned bodies to deliver a competitive edge. So they opened their mouths and swallowed a competitive edge or had it injected into their muscles.
Of course, there's a world of difference between steroids and human growth hormone and amphetamines and taking a protein booster.
But the young who want to excel are especially vulnerable to thinking they're indestructible. Hilzendeger's story did them a service by proving that something perfectly legal and seemingly good for building better athletes can also harm them. They need to take any supplement, even multivitamins, under the supervision of a nutritionist or trainer.
The adults who care about them want the young to be healthy and safe
"I'm going to take my ball and go home!"