Cosmetic doping: The problems of intramuscular application of oils

Abstract

Doping in sports world and in the subculture of professional and recreational bodybuilding athletes is very much known and also studied by the academic and scientific community. However, a new problem, which we defined as cosmetic doping, was introduced some decades ago and has grown in importance in Brazil in recent years. It is the systematic injection of oily substances by intramuscular routes, known as ADE (liposoluble vitamins A, D and E), with the purpose to enlarge the muscle volumetrically, what could lead to necrosis, physical deformities or even death. This article introduces the history of the cosmetic use of body fillers and the review of the possible deleterious and lethal effects that could result as a consequence of the use, as well as the mechanisms that are involved after the injection of these substances. Moreover, simple methods for potential observation of its use in athletes are presented. This paper also suggests that health professionals should report cases when these users are submitted due to their complications, since the studies and cases documented until the present time are only a small part of a reality of public health that tends to considerably increase.