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Metandienone and Dietary Supplements / 1
1
High Doses of the Anabolic Steroid Metandienone
Found in Dietary Supplements
Hans Geyer, Michael Bredehöft, Ute Mareck,
Maria K. Parr, and Wilhelm Schänzer
Three nutritional supplements with “1-T matrix” were purchased by telephone
order. The supplier of these supplements is a company from the UK, and the
manufacturer is from the U.S. Aliquots of 1 g each were analyzed with gas
chromatography / mass spectrometry and high pressure liquid chromatography
with UV detector. In all supplements analyzed were found the anabolic-andro-
genic steroid metandienone. Metandienone, only available by prescription,
was not declared on the labels. The concentrations of metandienone were 17.30
mg/g, 0.41 mg/g, and 0.96 mg/g for supplements 1, 2, and 3. In supplement 1,
the concentrations of metandienone varied from capsule to capsule. Maximum
concentrations of metandienone of 28.9 mg/g were detected. In addition to
enormous health risks, the use of the analyzed supplements can lead to positive
doping results for metandienone. The results of this study show that it is of
major importance to improve the surveillance of the production and trade of
dietary supplements. The first step should be a warning to be issued to consum-
ers and the withdrawal of dietary supplements containing prescription drugs.
Key Words: anabolic steroid, metandienone, dietary supplements, drug testing
Key Points:
•All supplements analyzed contained the anabolic-androgenic steroid metandienone.
•The use of metandienone is associated with a large number of adverse effects,
especially in women, adolescents, and children.
•The results of this study show that it is of major importance to improve the surveil-
lance of the production and trade of dietary supplements.
Introduction
Metandienone (17-hydroxy-17␣-methylandrosta-1,4-dien-3-one) is an anabolic
steroid only available on prescription. Medical indications for its use are: aplastic
anaemia, delayed puberty, climacterium virile, treatment of bone fractures and
burns, negative nitrogen balance, and so on. In sports metandienone is misused by
athletes to increase strength and muscle size beyond the effect of strength training.
Therefore, metandienone is on the International Olympic Committee’s list of pro-
hibited doping substances (1).
European Journal of Sport Science, vol. 3, issue 1
©2003 by Human Kinetics Publishers and the European College of Sport Science
The authors are with the Institute of Biochemistry at the German Sport University
Cologne, Carl-Diem-Weg 6, 50933 Cologne, Germany.
2/Geyer et al.
In a recent follow-up study of a positive doping case, a dietary supplement
was found to contain the anabolic steroid metandienone, although metandienone
was not declared on the supplement label (2). The declared ingredients were “AD-4-
Complex Nutrients”, “MetX Synergistic Blend”, “1-T Matrix”, creatine, and ri-
bose. Except for ribose and creatine, the names of the other ingredients were not
approved.
Based on this knowledge, we analyzed dietary supplements with similar con-
tents, especially with “1-T matrix”, for anabolic androgenic steroids.
Methods
Description of the Dietary Supplements
Three nutritional supplements with “1-T matrix” were purchased in June 2002 by
telephone order. The supplier of these supplements is a company from the UK, and
the manufacturer is a U.S. company. The products were delivered by regular mail
without customs intervention.
Supplement 1: Capsules with 0.5 g powder. Declared ingredients: Met-AD17-
diol/1-T proprietary blend of 300 mg per capsule.
Supplement 2: Powder. Declared ingredients: AD-4-complex nutrients, MetX
synergistic blend, 1-T matrix, hydroxypropyl-beta-cyclodextrine, creatine mono-
hydrate, thermogenic proprietary blend, ribose-4 matrix.
Supplement 3: Powder. Declared ingredients: AD-4-complex nutrients, MetX
synergistic blend, 1-T matrix, hydroxypropyl-beta-cyclodextrine, creatine mono-
hydrate, branched chain amino acids (BCAA), L-glutamine, taurine, ribose-4 matrix.
Analyses of the Dietary Supplements
The sample preparation was performed according to a recently published method (3,
4). One gram of each supplement was dissolved in 5 ml methanol. Aliquots of the
methanolic layer were evaporated to dryness, and an alkaline extraction with n-
pentane was performed. The n-pentane layer was transferred to another test tube,
and 2 ml of 95% methanol were added. After mechanical shaking for 5 min and
centrifugation, the n-pentane layer was discarded. The methanolic residue was
evaporated to dryness. The dry residue was derivatized with 100 L N-methyl-N-
trimethylsilyltrifluoracetamide/NH4I/ethanthiol (1000:2:3 v:w:v) 15 min at 60 °C.
Three micro liters of the sample were analyzed with gas chromatography / mass
spectrometry (HP6890/HP5973) in the full-scan mode. For the quantification of
metandienone, 10 L of the methanolic layer were analyzed with high pressure
liquid chromatography with UV detector (HP 1090) at 245 nm. As a reference
compound, metandienone from Sigma Chemical Co., St. Louis, MO, USA was
used.
Results
Metandienone was found in all supplements analyzed. The concentrations are pre-
sented in Table 1. In supplement 2, caffeine (in a concentration of 13.3 mg/g),
ephedrine, and pseudoephedrine were additionally found.
Metandienone and Dietary Supplements / 3
The results of the analyses of five different capsules of supplement 1 are
presented in Table 2. The concentrations varied from capsule to capsule.
Discussion
Several studies have shown that non-hormonal dietary supplements such as vita-
mins, amino acids, creatine, and so on may contain anabolic androgenic steroids not
declared on the label. The anabolic androgenic steroids found in these studies were
so-called prohormones in very low concentrations (3–5). Prohormones are legally
sold on the U.S. dietary supplement market. The present study shows that also the
anabolic androgenic steroid metandienone, although it is a prescription drug, is sold
on the dietary supplement market. Three different supplements were found to con-
tain metandienone, which was, however, not declared on any of the supplements’
labels. The results confirm observations of a follow-up study of a positive doping
case (2) but indicate 30–50-fold higher concentrations of metandienone.
According to the recommended dosage the concentrations of metandienone
are supra-therapeutical. With the maximum supplement dosages recommended—3
Table 1 Metandienone Concentrations in the Three Dietary Supplements
Concentration of
Supplement metandienone (mg/g)
1 17.30*
2 0.41
3 0.96
*Concentration of a homogenisate of 10 capsules.
Table 2 Concentrations of Metandienone in 5 Different Capsules
of Supplement 1
Concentration of
Capsule metandienone (mg/g)
1 28.93
2 19.30
3 27.38
4 16.98
5 17.65
4/Geyer et al.
capsules per day for supplement 1, and 20 g of powder per day for supplements 2 and
3—metandienone doses of 25–43 mg, and 10 and 20 mg per day, respectively, are
achieved. These concentrations are above the recommended therapeutical dose of
5–10 mg per day for this drug (6).
Supplements containing metandienone can be purchased without restrictions
by everyone, including women, adolescents, and children. Especially for these
groups the use of metandienone is associated with a large number of adverse effects.
Known symptoms after metandienone intake include abnormal liver function, men-
strual disorders, virilization, gynaecomastia, severe psychological or psychiatric
disorders, and an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. Long term application of
large doses has been shown to result in dependence, associated with an acute with-
drawal syndrome. The use of metandienone in children can lead to virilization and
premature closure of the epiphyses with a derogation of linear growth. In women
metandienone can result in irreversible adverse effects, such as deepening of the
voice and growth of the clitoris. During pregnancy, the use of metandienone may
result in a virilization of the fetus. Due to the fact that metandienone is a 17-
methylated compound, its use is associated with a high liver toxicity and carcinoge-
nicity (6). With regard to the supra-therapeutical doses, additional health risks can
be expected.
In addition to enormous health risks, the use of the analyzed supplements can
lead to positive doping results for metandienone (7). The application of the recom-
mended dose of supplement 2 may also lead to positive doping results for caffeine
and ephedrine. The supplier of the supplements is located in the UK, which implies
that the distribution of these products within the European market cannot be suffi-
ciently controlled by customs authorities.
The results of this study show that the surveillance of the production and trade
of dietary supplements is insufficient. For customers’ protection, this surveillance
must be improved, and new regulations for trade, production, and labeling must be
adopted. The first step should be the issuance of a warning to consumers and the
withdrawal of dietary supplements containing prescription drugs.
References
1. International Olympic Committee. Prohibited classes of substances and prohibited meth-
ods 2001–2002. September 2001.
2. Gmeiner G. 2002. Methandienon in Sportnahrung. Österreichisches Journal für
Sportmedizin 2:33-34.
3. Geyer H, Mareck-Engelke U, Reinhart U, Thevis M, Schänzer W. 2000. Positive
Dopingfälle mit Norandrosteron durch verunreinigte Nahrungsergänzungsmittel. Dtsch.
Z. Sportmed. 11:378-82.
4. Geyer H, Mareck-Engelke U, Wagner A, Schänzer W. 2001. Analysis of “non-hor-
monal” nutritional supplements for prohormones. In: Schänzer W, Geyer H, Gotzmann
A, Mareck-Engelke U, editors. Recent advances in doping analysis (9). Sport und Buch
Strau, Köln 63-72.
5. Gmeiner G, Hofer H. 2002. Untersuchung auf mögliche Verunreinigungen von
Nahrungsergänzungsmitteln mit anabolen Steroiden. In: Forschungsberichte des
Österreichischen Bundesministeriums für soziale Sicherheit und Generationen. ARC
Seibersdorf research GmbH, Seibersdorf 2.
Metandienone and Dietary Supplements / 5
6. Royal Pharmaceutical Society. 1996. Martindale—the extra pharmacopeia –31. Rev.
London: Royal Pharmaceutical Society.
7. Schänzer W, Geyer H, Donike M. 1991. Metabolism of metandienone in man: identifica-
tion and synthesis of conjugated excreted urinary metabolites. J Steroid Biochem Molec
Biol 38:441-64.
