Here are a few news releases about this story. One story says that it will
include about two dozen precursors. Does anyone have a complete list of which
supplements are involved? The last I heard was that DHEA was going to be
exempt from this legislation for now. Is that true?

Glenn

[It depresses me to see that it is probably going to pass by an overwhelming
majority... I don't know if it will include DHEA, but that is the
direction in which this is going. Ellis]



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_http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=148-06032004_
(http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=148-06032004)

Sensenbrenner: House Approves Legislation Cracking Down on Steroid Precursors

6/3/2004 1:37:00 PM
Contact: Jeff Lungren or Terry Shawn of the House Committee on the
Judiciary, 202-225-2492, Web: _http://www.house.gov/judiciary_
(http://releases.usnewswire.com/redir.asp?ReleaseID=31461&Link=http://www.house.\
gov/judiciary)
WASHINGTON, June 3 /U.S. Newswire/ -- The House today by a 408- to-3 margin
approved bipartisan legislation prohibiting over-the- counter sales of
steroid precursors as well as the use of such substances without a prescription
from a doctor. H.R. 3866, the "Anabolic Steroid Control Act of 2004," was
introduced by House Judiciary Committee Chairman F. James Sensenbrenner, Jr.
(R-Wis.) and cosponsored by Ranking Member John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.), Reps.
John
Sweeney (R-N.Y.), Tom Osborne (R-Neb.), Howard Coble (R-N.C.), Howard Berman
(D-Calif.) and others.
Chairman Sensenbrenner said, "The goal of this legislation is clear: we do
not want these harmful substances around our gyms, baseball stadiums, football
fields or our running tracks. We do not want our athletes to risk their
health to win. We want the way American athletes treat their bodies to be a
source of pride for our country, not a source of shame. We want our children to
be
able to look up to these athletes for their accomplishments."
Many precursor steroids are just as dangerous as steroids, but are not yet
illegal, leaving the erroneous impression that these precursors are safe
methods of enhancing athletic performance. This legislation will add these
drugs
to the controlled substance list, making it more difficult for adults and
adolescents to obtain these harmful drugs.
Use of steroids among adolescents has significantly increased since the
early 1990s with evidence suggesting that even middle school students have not
been immune to the perils of steroid abuse. Consequences of long-time steroid
use include heart attacks, strokes, liver tumors and cancer, high blood
pressure, liver disorders, kidney tumors, jaundice and extreme mood swings.
Other
side effects found in women are male pattern baldness, cessation of menstrual
cycle, and facial hair growth. Men can experience infertility and male breast
development. Adolescents also are at risk of premature skeletal maturation
and accelerated puberty changes which may result in stunted growth. H.R. 3866
now moves to the Senate for consideration.
----------------------------------------------------------------
_http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2001948989_rollcall06.html_

(http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2001948989_rollcall06.html)
Steroid trafficking: By a vote of 408-3, the House on Thursday passed a bill
(HR 3866) that would outlaw over-the-counter sales of drugs known as steroid
precursors. These performance-enhancing substances become steroids in the
body when ingested directly or with dietary supplements. This bill, which
awaits Senate action, would require prescriptions for obtaining about two dozen
precursors, one of which is androstenedione, or "andro." Steroid use has been
illegal in the United States since 1990.
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_http://www.sportsfeatures.com/PressPoint/show.php?id=8773_
(http://www.sportsfeatures.com/PressPoint/show.php?id=8773)

June 03, 2004

Offices of Rep. Osborne & Rep. Sweeney
Anti-Doping: House Passes Rep. Osborne's Legislation to Remove Serious
Health Threat Facing Youth

For Immediate Release

Thursday, June 3, 2004

Bill Works to Protect Youth by Banning the Over-the-Counter Sale of Steroid
Precursors
Contact: Erin Hegge (202) 225-6435
Washington, D.C. - Today, the House of Representatives passed the Anabolic
Steroid Control Act of 2004. In March of 2004, Rep. Osborne joined House
Judiciary Chairman Sensenbrenner, Ranking Member Conyers, and Rep. Sweeney in
introducing H.R. 3866, which would update the list of illegal dangerous
substances aggressively marketed as performance-enhancing drugs and increase
the
penalties for those who traffic these substances within 1,000 feet of a sports
facility.
H.R. 3866 modifies the current definition of an anabolic steroid to include
tetrahydrogestrinone (THG), androstenedione and androstenediol (andros), and
specific related chemicals, and requires a review of federal sentencing
guidelines with respect to offenses involving anabolic steroids. Rep. Osborne
and
Rep. Sweeney first introduced similar legislation in October of 2002 that
would list steroid precursors as controlled substances, thereby prohibiting the
over-the-counter sale of such substances.
"After Mark McGwire admitted to using androstenedione the year he broke the
single-season homerun record, performance enhancing supplements became
aspiring athletes' ticket to success for more than 1 million kids ages twelve
to
seventeen. Without fully understanding the risks involved, youth in high
school or even middle school are able to purchase steroid precursors disguised
as
"dietary supplements" at local nutrition stores. In an effort to gain an edge
over their competitors or classmates, youth are consuming dangerous steroid
precursors that metabolize in the body into anabolic, or illegal steroids,
which can lead to liver tumors, heart disease, capped bone growth, violent
behavior, or even suicide."
"If action is not taken, manufacturers of these drugs will continue their
ongoing masquerade of marketing drugs as 'dietary supplements' that promise to
magically build muscle. If the NCAA, NFL, and the U.S. Olympic Committee
recognize the health risks associated with steroid precursors by declaring
athletes who use such drugs ineligible for competition, Congress can certainly
not
ignore America's youth -- a group that needs our help the most. Not to
mention the side effects pose far greater risks for young people than they do
for
adults."
"Legislation to make the sale of steroid precursors illegal has been a top
priority of mine since my first term in Congress and I am pleased the House
was successful in passing the bill. I appreciate Rep. Sweeney for inspiring
this legislation and Chairman Sensenbrenner for carrying it forward. I am
hopeful the Senate will build on this accomplishment and move this legislation
forward."
Sen. Hatch and Sen. Biden have been actively encouraging the passage of
similar legislation in the Senate.