From Chicago Trib:Researchers reported Thursday that cyclists may be able to increase their performance by taking Viagra–their athletic performance, that is.
Some cyclists have more trouble than others in sustaining high levels of exertion at mountainous elevations. The new study found that Viagra, a drug most commonly used to treat male impotence, helped overcome that problem.
For these cyclists, taking Viagra improved their performance up to 45 percent, which would allow a cyclist racing in the high Rocky Mountains to cover a stretch of road in 39 minutes that would otherwise take an hour.
The findings, published in the Journal of Applied Physiology, come at a time when competitive cycling has been struggling to prevent athletes from using banned drugs and other methods of bolstering performance. Viagra is not currently among the blacklisted drugs.
-Sean Philpott