Aztecs Can't Use Sponsor's Products
By Brent Schrotenboer, Union-Tribune, July 23, 2005

San Diego State recently acquired dietary supplements considered impermissible by the NCAA, just a month after the college sports governing body issued a warning to schools that distribution of such products to athletes would be considered a rules violation. Supplements containing amino acids are considered by the NCAA to be “performance-enhancing.” “Anything that is an amino acid blend is impermissible,” said Mary Wilfert, the NCAA’s assistant director of education outreach.

All Energice products contain glutamine, an amino acid, according to the company’s Web site and a salesperson who answered the phone yesterday at one of the company’s offices. The Energice drink contains “an amino acid recovery matrix,” which includes amino acids taurine and leucine, according to the ingredients label.  Amino acids aid muscle stamina and are considered the building blocks of protein. Proteins made up of amino acids occur naturally in many foods; the NCAA objects to supplements containing individual amino acids or blends.

The intent behind the NCAA rules on supplements, Wilfert said, is to allow student-athletes to get the calories and fluids they need to replace the ones lost during athletic activity. That’s why drinks such as Gatorade, which contains no added amino acids, are permitted by the NCAA.

According to the NCAA, “impermissible” means the school cannot distribute it to student-athletes. The governing body, however, does not have a rule against student-athletes purchasing and using Energice or similar drinks on their own.

The full article can be accessed at http://www.signonsandiego.com/sports/aztecs/20050723-9999-1s23sdsu.html