Growth hormone and insulin-like growth factor-1

Nicholls, A.R. and Holt, Richard (2016) Growth hormone and insulin-like growth factor-1. In, Sports Endocrinology. (Frontiers of Hormone Research, 47) Karger. (doi:10.1159/000445173).

Record type: Book Section

Abstract

Human growth hormone was first isolated from human pituitary glands in 1945 and found to promote the growth of children with hypopituitarism. Since the formation of the World Anti-Doping Association, human growth hormone has appeared on the list of forbidden substances.

There is a significant amount of anecdotal evidence that human growth hormone is misused by athletes to enhance performance and there have been a number of high profile cases of the use of growth hormone in professional sport. Growth hormone secretagogues, which increase growth hormone secretion, and IGF-I, which mediates many of the effects of growth hormone, are also misused, although there is less evidence for this.

The effectiveness of growth hormone, IGF-I, and growth hormone secretagogues as performance enhancing drugs remains unclear. Evidence from studies of the use of growth hormone in people with hypopituitarism show several desirable outcomes including increased lean body mass, increased strength, and increased exercise capacity. These anabolic and metabolic properties, coupled with the difficulty in detecting them, make them attractive as agents of misuse. Studies in healthy young adults have also demonstrated a performance benefit with growth hormone and IGF-I

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