When looks can kill
THE RECENT DEATHS OF BODYBUILDERS RICH PIANA AND DALLAS McCARVER RAISE QUESTIONS ABOUT STEROID ABUSE THAT’S QUITE RAMPANT IN SHOWBIZ. BUT, EXPERTS SAY THAT IT ISN’T POISON IF TAKEN IN RIGHT MEASURE
Celebrities aren’t unfamiliar with steroids. The stars who aim to build a good physique are usually well-acquainted with the drugs that help them bulk up. While they may help you achieve your fitness goals, steroids can be lethal. The recent deaths of bodybuilders Rich Piana and Dallas McCarver raise many questions about steroid abuse.
Fitness expert Kunal Gir says, “Anything taken in the right dose is not poison. The chances of a person surviving steroids is more than him having an overdose of Vitamin C. One should not judge by the name and controversies surrounding the products.”
The real culprit here is not the use of the product, but the abuse of it. If taken in the right doses, steroids can help you achieve your desired goal. A classic example is Aamir Khan’s look in Dangal. “The knowledge of the ingredients is important. If you drink five litres of water in five minutes, you might have a brain haemorrhage. So would you call water harmful? If a cup of coffee wakes you up, the same coffee in excess can give a heart attack. Same is the case with supplements.A supplement in the right dose does wonders usually, but that one incident when one person took a large dose becomes a headline. That shouldn’t be the reason to demonise it,” says Kunal, who is a trainer to Ranbir Kapoor, Rana Daggubati, Tamannaah Bhatia, Rakul Preet Singh, and others.
Bodybuilders, powerlifters and many athletes take supplements to enhance their performance. The problem arises when a person, who doesn’t know about the basics of nutrition and training, takes such shortcuts without any guidance or the supervision of a doctor. “There was this product called Hyproxica that was extremely popular worldwide. One sports personality wanted to shed weight before selections. He was overweight by 30 kg. He started using a larger dose. Instead of 20 mg, he started taking 2000 mg. Then he wore seven layers of clothing and started running in the sun. He collapsed after it and never woke up. The product was found in his locker and the media said hypotrexica is deadly and should be banned. The company fought the case and won it. The government could not ban it and agreed that if it was taken in the right dose it’s a good product. All these products come with a label mentioning the maximum recommended dose. If you choose to ignore that then that’s your own fault,” argues Kunal.
Actor Harshvardhan Rane agrees. He says, “The key is moderation and it’s in our control. What’s common in all these bodybuilders is a streak of greed for appearance enhancing drugs. The world will offer you many short cuts. It’s up to us whether we let them kill us.”
Another celebrity fitness trainer Rasheed Khan says, “Every human being has the testosterone hormone. If people want to participate in bodybuilding competitions, they inject steroids without realising they are damaging their liver and muscle building process. In the long run, they wont even be able to digest food.”
There are much healthier ways to build muscle. Sri, fitness director at SD&FS and a regular at WHO conferences, says, “A healthy diet with plenty of protein, following a strength-training programme and taking supplements like whey protein that are used with appropriate guidance can work wonders. Stay away from steroids. Hit the gym regularly and consume real food.”