Proven by German scientists
The Ecdysterone is a bio-active substance which is extracted from the plant Spinach or Leuzea.
It has an anabolic effect.
It is an amazing natural booster for protein synthesis. It helps the process of building muscle mass.
16.05.2019, MUNICH: An increase in sport performance has been demonstrated by Ecdysterone in conjunction with training. Supported by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), a study at the FU Berlin has been carried out for this purpose.
Volunteer athletes were given Ecdysterone during a ten-week strength training and found that their strength was three times greater than that of the placebo group.
Knowing the long-history of Ecdysterone use, one could expect a performance increase, but not so great, says Professor Maria Parr of the Freie Universität Berlin.
“We did not expect that”
She therefore recommends that WADA puts Ecdysterone on the list of prohibited substances. Background of the study were indications that Ecdysterone is used in Russian sports when athletes achieve great results. Ultimately, it will be decided by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), which financially supported the study.
Ecdysterone is biologically-active substance found in several plants such as Spinach, and Leuzea carthamoides, also called Rhaponticum carthamoides or Maral root.
Dietary supplements containing Ecdysterone have entered the market in recent years. These advertise positive effects on athletic performance. In addition to increased strength and more muscle mass, the herbal products also promise less fatigue and easier recovery after exercise.
Most of us remember Popeye – the sailor: As soon as the cartoon hero eats a can of spinach, his muscles enlarge. Spinach is known to contain the substance Ecdysterone. It looks like Popeye was aware of that. Just now the study that demonstrates this effect in competitive athletes, is reported in the journal “Archives of Toxicology”.
The excitement is great!
In fact, as far back as the eighties, the substance Ecdysterone is suspected of being responsible for the amazing achievements of Russian athletes in the Olympic Games.
The “Russian secret” was revealed!
Whether the Ecdysterone should be considered as a doping agent, researchers wanted to check in the current study now. For this purpose, they administered 46 athletes with either a placebo or the substance Ecdysterone for ten weeks. Then the athletes should jump, bench press and squats.
The result: The athletes who took Ecdysterone were usually better than the placebo group and had more muscle.
The effect was particularly evident in bench presses. The participants, who received two Ecdysterone pills per day, were able to lift three times more after the ten-week training session, namely a good 9.5 kilograms. Athletes from the placebo group managed on average only 3.3 kilograms more. In the other disciplines, the difference in performance was smaller.
Side effects were not noted by the researchers.
However, this requires more research to find out how popular is the Ecdysterone use in the elite sports. If WADA decides to ban Edysterone, it is questionable how to check if athletes have taken Ecdysterone tablets or simply ate a lot of spinach. It is unlikely to put the vegetable itself on the doping list.
Anyone hoping to increase their performance with spinach would have to eat a lot of it. In the experiment, the athletes consumed up to 800 milligrams of Ecdysterone per day. To get the same amount, they would have needed to eat well over 6.6 kilos of spinach. Every day.
On the other hand, there are a lot of dietary supplements containing Ecdysterone – you just need to find some reliable and quality manufacturers. Bulgaria is a country nearby Russia which is also known for its athletes’ high sport performance and huge herbal diversity. Perhaps they are also aware of the Popeye’s secret.
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