Research funded by the World Anti-Doping Agency has determined the time advantage that unscrupulous athletes can reap from the "extensively abused" natural substance.
"We found a four per cent improvement in sprint capacity," said Professor Ken Ho from Sydney's Garvan Institute of Medical Research.
Produced in pituitary gland
"So, over a 10-second (100-metre) sprint that would equate to a .4 second advantage ... For sprinters that's a long gap."
Human growth hormone, or HGH, is produced by the pituitary gland and it is vital for healthy bone, muscle and organ growth.
It is used legitimately to treat growth disorders in children or as hormone replacement therapy for people with a deficiency.
Anti-doping officials also suspect the abuse of HGH by athletes has been going on "over many decades", Prof Ho said, while an ability to detect this has only emerged over the past six years.
'Extensively abused'
Athletes were "supplementing the body with huge amounts of a natural hormone" to gain a performance benefit in training that would carry over to the track, field or swimming pool, he said.
"It is widely believed that it is quite extensively abused ... and if you take a hormone which is identical to what the body makes it becomes very difficult to detect it."
Prof Ho's study into the effect of HGH on physical performance involved 103 fit people, aged 18-40 and Sydney-based, who had daily injections of either HGH or a placebo.
Those given the HGH had a dose "on the low end" compared to levels typically used in sports doping, and over eight weeks they reported the expected symptoms of fluid retention and joint pain.
Link: World News Australia - Impact of human growth hormone confirmed
"We found a four per cent improvement in sprint capacity," said Professor Ken Ho from Sydney's Garvan Institute of Medical Research.
Produced in pituitary gland
"So, over a 10-second (100-metre) sprint that would equate to a .4 second advantage ... For sprinters that's a long gap."
Human growth hormone, or HGH, is produced by the pituitary gland and it is vital for healthy bone, muscle and organ growth.
It is used legitimately to treat growth disorders in children or as hormone replacement therapy for people with a deficiency.
Anti-doping officials also suspect the abuse of HGH by athletes has been going on "over many decades", Prof Ho said, while an ability to detect this has only emerged over the past six years.
'Extensively abused'
Athletes were "supplementing the body with huge amounts of a natural hormone" to gain a performance benefit in training that would carry over to the track, field or swimming pool, he said.
"It is widely believed that it is quite extensively abused ... and if you take a hormone which is identical to what the body makes it becomes very difficult to detect it."
Prof Ho's study into the effect of HGH on physical performance involved 103 fit people, aged 18-40 and Sydney-based, who had daily injections of either HGH or a placebo.
Those given the HGH had a dose "on the low end" compared to levels typically used in sports doping, and over eight weeks they reported the expected symptoms of fluid retention and joint pain.
Link: World News Australia - Impact of human growth hormone confirmed
