HGH detection faces new hurdle

USA TODAY, May, 2008 by A.J. Perez

Anti-doping researchers worked the better part of a decade to find a way to identify athletes who augment their body's normal level of human growth hormone by using a synthetic form of the substance.

Now the sports world's fight against illicit HGH use might have a new venue -- the pursuit of a way to detect an emerging slate of compounds called HGH releasers.

HGH releasers stimulate the pituitary gland into overproducing the natural form of the hormone, which influences the body's growth, cell production and metabolism. This potentially gives users the same physiological advantages they could get by using synthetic HGH.

The synthetic form can boost muscle growth, decrease body fat and aid in recovery from strenuous workouts. So world drug testing...