Good day, comrades! Today I would like to touch on the topic of so-called “pharmacy” pharma. That is, those products that are popular among natural athletes who want to improve their athletic performance. After all, few are willing to take the risk of using steroids for the sake of results.
And I understand such people one hundred percent! In search of effective drugs, athletes, as a rule, turn their attention to non-steroidal anabolic agents. The most popular among them is Riboxin. Today we’ll talk about how effective Riboxin is in bodybuilding.
What is Riboxin?
Riboxin (or inosine) is a chemical belonging to the purine class that acts as a precursor to adenosine, an important molecule for energy production.
It is found in large quantities in yeast and in the internal organs of animals (liver, kidneys), and is sold in purified form in tablet form in pharmacies.
In the 1970s, Riboxin was actively used by Soviet athletes as a doping drug to increase athletic performance. However, subsequent clinical tests showed it to be completely ineffective for this purpose, including increasing muscle strength.
The reality is that it seems that the driving force behind the spread of Riboxin in sports today is solely the “reviews” of athletes , especially from Russia and Eastern Europe, about its benefits and effectiveness (the effect of a kind of sports “word of mouth”), as well as marketing statements from manufacturers and sellers.
Riboxin is promoted in the world of bodybuilding almost exclusively thanks to the work of sports “word of mouth” radio
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Indications for use
Riboxin is prescribed for the treatment of many diseases and conditions associated with tissue metabolism disorders and hypoxic manifestations. Indications for use may include the following conditions and pathologies:
- Prolonged physical activity. Any overload that has a negative effect on the body.
- In sports. The use of Riboxin is recommended to maintain the vitality of athletes during long-term heavy training.
- Uroporphyia. Used to improve metabolic processes.
- Open angle glaucoma. Efficiency was noted in complex therapy of pathology.
- Ischemic pathology of cardiac activity. Treatment can begin at any stage of the disease, as well as during the rehabilitation period after a myocardial infarction.
- Various types of arrhythmias. The greatest effectiveness was recorded in the treatment of conditions provoked by drug overdose.
- Cardiomyopathy. Treatment with Riboxin in this case is long-term.
- Cirrhosis, hepatitis, fatty liver. Prescribed in complex therapy.
- Oncology. It is used during radiation or radiation therapy to reduce negative side effects.
In addition, it is possible to prescribe a solution for intravenous administration during surgery on a completely isolated kidney. This is necessary to protect the organ when the blood circulation is turned off.
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Why is Riboxin needed in bodybuilding?
In bodybuilding and sports in general, Riboxin is promoted as a sports supplement that:
- increases energy levels and physical endurance;
- good for the heart;
- prevents the accumulation of lactic acid in muscles during intense training.
It actually performs several important functions in the body, which one way or another could, theoretically, improve some athletic performance:
- Riboxin (inosine) restores communication between damaged nerve cells and healthy ones in the brain and spinal cord 1;
- Riboxin penetrates into muscle and heart cells, where it stimulates the creation of energy molecules ATP, which are needed for muscle contraction 2,3. Increased ATP production should improve respiration and oxygen transport to cells and therefore have a positive effect on performance in all sports (both aerobic and anaerobic, including bodybuilding).
- Riboxin improves the function of red blood cells to transport oxygen from the lungs to the cells. This happens by increasing the concentration of a certain compound (diphosphoglycerate) in red blood cells, which facilitates the release of oxygen from them into the tissue, which should increase energy levels, prevent the accumulation of lactic acid in the muscles and generally improve athletic performance.
- Riboxin acts as a vasodilator ; taking it increases blood flow to the heart and muscles, which also improves their supply of oxygen and nutrients 4.5
But this is a theory. But what really?
There is NO indisputable and convincing scientific evidence of the positive effect of Riboxin on athletic performance .
The situation is very similar to that observed when taking a closer look at some other popular sports supplements, in particular the fat burner L-carnitine: the theoretical basis for its effectiveness in losing weight is very strong, but in practice, taking it as a supplement is absolutely useless for weight loss.
Riboxin performs many important functions in the body, which, theoretically, should have a positive effect on athletic performance when supplemented with it.
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Release form
- 2% solution for injection in ampoules of 10 ml (total content of the main active ingredient – 200 mg). The cardboard box holds 10 ampoules.
- tablets are yellow, coated with a biconvex surface. In the cross section, two layers are clearly visible. The drug is packaged in contour cellular blisters made of aluminum foil or PVC, 10 tablets each. A pack contains 1, 2, 3, or 5 plates.
- Riboxin Lect - capsules containing Inosine - 0.2 g. 20, 30 or 50 pieces are placed in a cardboard package.
Scientific evidence of the uselessness of Riboxin in bodybuilding and sports
The effectiveness of riboxin (inosine) has been studied in several experiments, but none have shown any benefits .
One demonstration study involved 9 highly trained runners; scientists studied how riboxin affects the time to cover a distance of 3 km and oxygen consumption (VO2). Some runners took 6 g of Riboxin throughout the day (3 doses of 2 g), others took a placebo. Result: no significant differences in distance completion time or maximum oxygen consumption VO2max 6.
A similar result was obtained in another experiment involving cyclists, in which the daily dose of riboxin was 10 g. The scientists' conclusion: no ergogenic effect , riboxin does not affect performance in any way, but more importantly, it can be harmful to health if taken for long time 7.
Same here 8: long-term use of Riboxin has no effect on athletic performance or short-term power during cycling.
And here's 9: Taking Riboxin (along with some other drugs) in 11 highly trained triathletes had no effect on the time to exhaustion on a bicycle after 90 minutes of running on a treadmill.
In fact, some scientific studies show that riboxin (inosine) may even impair athletic performance 8,10.
One possible reason for this is the accumulation of inosine monophosphate in the muscles, a high concentration of which is a sign of fatigue. Another possible reason is an increase in the concentration of uric acid, one of the byproducts of riboxin metabolism.
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The general conclusion is this: the statements made by sports nutrition manufacturers and individual athletes and bodybuilders (apparently for self-conviction), proving the benefits of Riboxin in bodybuilding and sports, have little to do with reality.
Scientific research clearly refutes the effectiveness of Riboxin in sports
But that's not all.
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Benefits of Riboxin for the Heart
Japanese scientists showed back in 1981 that riboxin is beneficial for heart health.
They examined its effect on the functioning of the heart muscle with certain diseases in 102 patients and found that Riboxin, both in the form of injections and tablets, improved the condition of the heart muscle after a heart attack 11.
Moreover, everything is not limited to heart attacks; Riboxin (inosine) is useful for treating a considerable number of other heart diseases 4.
Most likely, it is precisely this positive and scientifically proven effect of Riboxin on the heart that is the basis for its use by bodybuilding athletes on a course of steroids (see below).
Scientific studies indicate the benefits of Riboxin for the treatment of certain diseases of the heart muscle, which may be the basis for its use in bodybuilding during a course of anabolic steroids
pharmachologic effect
What is Riboxin?
Riboxin is an anabolic that has nonspecific antihypoxic and antiarrhythmic effects. The main active component of the drug is Inosine (Inosine - INN or international nonproprietary name of pharmaceutical products) - a chemical precursor of adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which is directly involved in the metabolism of glucose and promotes the activation of metabolic processes in conditions of oxygen deficiency (“oxygen starvation”).
Mechanism of action of the drug
The biologically active substances included in the drug activate the metabolism of pyruvic acid (PVA), which ensures the normalization of tissue respiration even in the absence of the required amount of ATP. The active components also affect the enzymatic component of metabolic processes - when they enter the human body, they stimulate the activity of xanthine dehydrogenase , which in turn catalyzes oxidative reactions with the subsequent formation of uric acid from hypoxanthine.
The benefits and harms of Riboxin
The positive effects of the pharmaceutical drug include the effect of the main components of Riboxin on metabolism in the myocardium (heart muscle). Thus, the therapeutic properties of the drug are manifested in an increase in the energy balance of cardiomyocytes , accelerated formation of nucleotides, which manifests itself in enhanced processes of physiological regeneration of cardiac tissue. That is, the medicine helps to normalize the contractile activity of the myocardium and a more complete course of diastole, when the heart completely relaxes due to the ability to bind with chemical chains of calcium ions that penetrate into the intracellular space during systole.
The negative effects of Riboxin include a change in the physiological sequence of the metabolic cycle . That is, the active components of a pharmaceutical drug, coming from outside, make adjustments to metabolic processes. As a rule, qualified specialists try, if possible, not to interfere in this area of biochemistry of the human body, since therapeutic effects can cause very adverse consequences for the patient. However, in the presence of a pathological process that destructively affects the heart muscle (the vital “pump” of the circulatory system), a change in metabolism is necessary, because non-intervention will lead to a much worse outcome.
Wikipedia about Riboxin
The free encyclopedia of knowledge on the Internet also reveals some aspects of the pharmacological action of the drug. In particular, all the cardiac effects of the biologically active components that make up Riboxin are described. In addition, on the page about this medicine there is information about the effect on the cellular component of the blood coagulation system - Inosine reduces platelet aggregation, which reduces the risk of developing thrombosis and thromboembolism . The regenerative therapeutic properties of the pharmaceutical drug extend not only to the heart muscle, but also to the mucous membrane of the gastrointestinal tract.
Separately, it should be noted that Inosine pranobec s is a type of drug that has immunostimulating activity and a nonspecific antiviral effect. The drug suppresses such harmful pathogens as herpes simplex virus, CMV (cytomegalovirus), measles and T-cell lymphoma virus type 3, human enterocytopathogenic virus and many others. The mechanism of this action lies in the inhibition of ribonucleic acid and inhibition of the biological catalyst dihydropteroate synthetase, which manifests itself in the suppression of viral replication and increased production of interferons by lymphocytes that destroy pathological organisms.
Reviews from amateur athletes about Riboxin
Now let's look at the Internet noise that surrounds this pharmaceutical drug, which is quite widespread in bodybuilding.
Below are reviews from amateur athletes about Riboxin. We took them from one of the forums of a sports nutrition store to demonstrate the inconsistency. Grammatical and punctuation errors are deliberately retained to enhance the effect of disbelief in the authors' statements.
“I take Riboxin 2 tablets 3 times a day. Really working teacher.”
“I also take 2 rounds 3 times a day, after meals.
Z.Y. From my practice, I can say that it actually causes an increase in strength in dry skinned people. More powerful guys don’t have it or it’s less noticeable, but in any case it invigorates the heart.”
“Without Riboxin, after strength training, the heart ache. It’s not a fact that the heart is, but the fact is that it hurts regularly. After a week of taking Riboxin, the pain stops. That’s how it is for me.”
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“I spoke with a sports doctor (cardiologist). I was told that when taking a course (AS - anabolic steroids), it is not advisable to take Riboxin, but to start taking it after the end of the course.
Editorial: one of the side effects of anabolic steroids is damage to the heart muscle, or rather, its degeneration into connective tissue. Therefore, it is quite possible that Riboxin helps its recovery.
*The daily dose when taken orally for bodybuilding is 1.5 - 2.5 g. That’s 8-10 tablets.”
“Riboxin is a good product. In addition to the fact that it has an effect on positive processes in the heart, it also has an antitoxic effect on the liver, which is no less important when using oral juice.”
“Placebo is everything, guys! At one time I ate buckets of all these riboxin-asparkams and didn’t feel anything. The best riboxin is methane))”
“I take 5 tabs of reboxin before training. Significantly increases endurance. You work noticeably longer and get less tired. The effect is noticeable. You feel it especially during natural training.”
“Riboxin does not have an evidence base; there is such a thing as evidence-based medicine, which, unfortunately, is not officially acceptable in the CIS countries (such as Ukraine and Russia). Because it will cause damage to pharmaceutical companies producing holy water such as Riboxin, Mildronate, Essentiale, Mexidol and other bullshit. As our doctors say, where ryboksin helps, it will go away on its own, but if it doesn’t go away, ryboksin won’t help either))) Conduct an experiment with friends who take this crap. Give them some glucose or sodium chloride tablets instead of Ryboxin and look at the effect of them. Nothing works better than a placebo. In our veterinary medicine, many doctors have abandoned these pseudo-drugs, since placebos do not work with animals, only really effective drugs. There is nothing better than Omega 3 acids for the heart and the whole body. And it’s good for the heart to be supported by a sufficient load of carbohydrates and fluids during and after training.”
Explanations are unnecessary. There is a contradiction in the conclusions of scientists.
“Bratva” claims that with Riboxin “the heart hurts less” during a course of steroids, someone says that there is no effect or that it is purely individual.
The last statement of the community “expert” negates all the arguments of his colleagues, but does not stop trying to prove that he is right.
Reviews of amateur athletes about Riboxin contradict both each other and the opinion of scientists about the drug
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Pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetics
When taken orally, Riboxin is well and almost completely absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract. When administered intravenously, the pharmaceutical drug is quickly distributed into tissues that need ATP. Regardless of the route of administration, unused active ingredients are metabolized in the liver, where the final stages of metabolic biochemical reactions take place. A small amount of Riboxin is excreted in urine, feces and bile.
Side effects of Riboxin (inosine)
In some people (primarily those who are hypersensitive to riboxin), taking it can lead to an increase in uric acid levels.
Uric acid is a byproduct of the metabolism of riboxin, and its increase can be accompanied by unpleasant pain symptoms such as gout, arthritis of the joints and fingers caused by the formation of uric acid crystals.
Long-term use of Riboxin can lead to side effects such as arthritis of the joints due to the formation of uric acid crystals in them
