Though she is not a doctor, Victoria Felkar's professional research and consultation with medical professionals has given her a strong understanding of the health of female athletes. In the previous video, Felkar discussed the many myths of the menstrual cycle, and now in this video she talks about the use of exogenous substances and the effects they can have on the bodies of female athletes.
Felkar's first point to understand is that, as humans, we develop in many ways, especially early on in the course of life. Puberty is one of several very important phases in the developmental process of human hormones. Young girls typically go through this phase earlier in life than boys, with most girls starting by the age of 10 and most boys starting by the age of 12. This is the phase during which girls first experience menarche, or begin to have a period. For women this is an important marker in time, because the menstrual life course is incredibly important to remember when thinking about exogenous substances — including birth control. Felkar's use of the term "exogenous substances" refers to estrogen, progesterone, and androgens, because they are all steroids. This fact is hugely forgotten, and many individuals are unaware of the effects birth control can have on a woman.
While growing, a young female athlete goes through certain hormonal adaptations and changes that happen as a result of exercising and being physically fit. As this happens, certain bodily processes become altered, or shunted, or even increased. If, in addition to these ongoing changes, you decide at 18, for example, to go on an androgenic substance, you're throwing another variable into the mix that your body very well may not now how to deal with. It may not know what to do with that substance. In your late teens, your body is still very much developing and going through a lot of changes even without this substance. Similarly, immediately after having a child, the female body attempts to regulate and find a baseline after all of the changes it has gone through. To throw drugs into the mix at this time can be a recipe for disaster.
The point to take away is that the neuroendocrine system is incredibly complex and will not always respond in only the ways you want it to. When you take a certain substance, it doesn't stay in a tidy performance-enhancing box and affect nothing outside of that box. It can have dramatic effects on your entire body; the reality is that these substances influence everything in your body. When your hormones become screwed up, it can affect everything in your life, from your digestion to your sleep to your cognition. So is there a right time to take them? That depends on the individual.
WATCH: Menstrual Cycle Myths
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