What is inadvertent doping?
Inadvertent doping occurs when the athlete failed in a drug test because he/she unintentionally takes in the prohibited substances. This might happen when the athlete has been:
Using medication that contains prohibited substances to treat illness / injury
Consuming supplements that contain or are contaminated with prohibited substances
Passively inhaling drug smoke e.g. marijuana
Ingesting certain food substances that contain or are contaminated with prohibited substances
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What can I do to prevent inadvertent doping?
It is very important to always be alert and take all necessary precautions to protect yourself against inadvertent doping. Here are some useful tips:
When seeing a doctor…
| -Tell him/her that you are an athlete subject to doping control; and |
| -Show him/her the CURRENT prohibited list for substances and methods that you must not be prescribed with. |
Before taking any medicine…
| -Ask a doctor / pharmacist or use DruginSport (http://www.druginsport.hk) to check prohibited status of the medicine; and |
| -Check different products of the same brand separately as they may contain different ingredients; and |
| -For medicine purchased outside of Hong Kong, check the prohibited status by its ingredient(s) instead of the brand name. |
Use supplement with caution…
| -Consult your team doctors or sport nutritionists for choice of supplements; and |
| -Order supplements only from reputable sources; and |
| -Be aware of the potential risk of herbal substances. |
Beware of food contamination…
| -Avoid eating cattle and pig offal (e.g., livers, lungs and kidneys) where steroids and clenbuterol tend to accumulate; and |
| -Buy meats and food from reputable stores or restaurants. |
Never use prohibited substances without PRIOR approval…
| -In the absence of other alternatives, if you have to use prohibited substances for medical reasons, prior approval must be obtained through the Therapeutic Use Exemption process. |
To be on the safe side…
| -If you cannot find prohibited information of a substance or medication, you should never assume it is safe to use. |
| -Visit HKADC website (www.antidoping.hk) regularly for tips and updates that can help you to avoid inadvertent doping. |
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What are the results of inadvertent doping?
Under the World Anti-Doping Code, ignorance is not an excuse-athletes are responsible for checking the status of all medication and substances they use.
Athletes who have unintentionally taken a prohibited substance may still face sanctions. A tedious procedure to submit evidences for proving the unintentional mistake of taking in prohibited substances will be required before escaping from / reduction in sanction.
Even though the athlete can prove that he / she has used the prohibited substance unintentionally, competition results will be automatically removed if the drug test was conducted in-competition.
Furthermore, a positive drug test record will stay in his / her file and repeated violations of any anti-doping rules will lead to increase in sanction.
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