05.02.11
A new NCAA rule set to take effect August 1 will require all Division I institutions to designate a staff member to answer student-athlete and staff questions about dietary supplements and NCAA banned drugs. The rule also obligates institutions to educate athletic department staff members who have regular interaction with student-athletes about the NCAA list of banned drug classes and to advise them that any nutritional supplement use may endanger a student-athlete’s health and eligibility.
To assist in the effort, the NCAA subscribes to the Resource Exchange Center, a service of the National Center for Drug Free Sport, the NCAA’s third party drug-testing administrator. The service provides both a toll-free number and website for NCAA student-athletes and athletics administrators to contact with questions about medications, supplements and NCAA banned drugs. “The safest approach for student-athlete health and eligibility would be to avoid the use of unregulated dietary supplements,” said Mary Wilfert, NCAA associate director for health and safety. “We encourage institutions to support this approach since there is no way to guarantee purity and safety of any supplement product.”
To assist in the effort, the NCAA subscribes to the Resource Exchange Center, a service of the National Center for Drug Free Sport, the NCAA’s third party drug-testing administrator. The service provides both a toll-free number and website for NCAA student-athletes and athletics administrators to contact with questions about medications, supplements and NCAA banned drugs. “The safest approach for student-athlete health and eligibility would be to avoid the use of unregulated dietary supplements,” said Mary Wilfert, NCAA associate director for health and safety. “We encourage institutions to support this approach since there is no way to guarantee purity and safety of any supplement product.”