Here's what you need to know:
- Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators (SARMs) are potentially dangerous and illegal for use in performance–enhancing products. SARMs have been found in a number of adulterated products masquerading as “dietary supplements.” SARMs are unapproved drugs, not dietary supplements.
- SARMs can pose a risk when taken for performance enhancement and without consulting a health care professional. SARMs should be avoided, as they can result in potentially life-threatening consequences.
- SARMs may be listed on the product label (with names like “ostarine” and “andarine”). Or they may not be listed in the ingredients at all. That’s why it’s important to purchase dietary supplements from companies you know and trust—those that don’t make drug-like claims.
- Sports nutrition dietary supplements can play a beneficial role in your workout routine. But keep this in mind: dietary supplements are not intended to have the same immediate or dramatic effects that you would expect from taking a drug. Labels that sound too good to be true, probably are.
2023: FDA recently issued a warning about the use of selective androgen receptor modulators (SARMs) by teens and young adults.
What they’re saying: FDA noted, “Although SARMs are often marketed as dietary supplements or ‘sold for research use only,’ they are considered unapproved drugs. SARMs cannot be legally marketed in the U.S. as a dietary supplement or drug at this time.”
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CRN’s Steve Mister explains: “SARMS are not legitimate dietary supplements; they are unapproved drugs. While some SARM-containing products masquerade as being supplements, these products are patently illegal. In 2018, as the industry was seeing an increase in these products, CRN developed a Voluntary Guideline with its members emphatically stating that CRN members should not distribute or market dietary supplement products containing SARMs—not that they ever were. Companies who continue to market these ingredients as dietary supplements should face swift and strong enforcement actions by the FDA.”
2020: CRN's Sport Nutrition Working Group reactivates. Members, learn more here.
2019: CRN Applauds Legislation that Promotes a Safer Dietary Supplement Marketplace
Consumer use of sports nutrition supplements has increased in recent years according to the CRN Consumer Survey. See our consumer tips for selecting supplements.
More about SARMS
Are you aware of Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators (SARMs)—unapproved, illegal, and dangerous compounds found in performance-enhancing products? When used in dietary supplement products, sometimes with names like “ostarine” and “andarine,” they can pose a serious threat to consumer safety, particularly in the bodybuilding and fitness communities. SARMs have no business being marketed to consumers as dietary supplements.
FDA has issued a warning about the dangers of products containing SARMs that are being marketed as dietary supplements. The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has prohibited SARMs—these ingredients can cause professional and collegiate athletes to lose their eligibility. A new study in the Journal of the American Medical Association has identified the prevalence of SARMs in the online marketplace. They’re often marketed as dietary supplements—but don’t be fooled. They’re not legitimate dietary supplements, they’re unapproved drugs. And not only can they cause you to test positive for an illegal substance, they can do serious harm to your health when misused.