As both faithful readers of this humble blog know, I have a few recurring themes here. One is that cheaters aren't my favorite people. The second is that the NY Times' health coverage sometimes leaves something to be desired. So imagine my excitement when I saw a recent Times article on the high incidence of exercise-induced asthma among athletes that combines both of these themes.
According to the article "exercise-induced asthma has been diagnosed in as many as half of tall elite cross-country skiers and almost as many world-class ice skaters and hockey players." The author quotes Dr. Christopher Randolph, a clinical professor at Yale University who sees patients at the Center for Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. Dr. Randolph suggests intense exercise in a cold environment may contribute to the problem. He suggests that the "squeezing and loss of moisture prompt certain cells within the bronchial tube to release allergic chemicals that initiate an inflammatory process, slowly closing your throat."
Our own Dr. Horne is far better qualified that I am to determine if this hypothesis has any medical merit, so far be it from me to argue against it (or the Times' for including it.) However, the author ignores the fact that the rate of EIA in athletes in a variety of warm weather events including track and field and swimming is also higher than that of the general population.
Perhaps the reason that so many of these athletes are claiming to have EIA is that such a diagnosis gets them prescriptions to potentially performance enhancing drugs such as Albuterol, Clenbuterol and other drugs that are on the banned substance list unless prescribed by a physician. It's possible that Dr. Randolph's take makes sense. But why ignore the obvious answer that some of these athletes are lying in order to get a competitive advantage?
