NFL Players Fail Drug Tests From Eating Imported Meat

A drug-testing program administrator for the National Football League (NFL) recently issued a warning to players that consuming meat from China or Mexico might cause them to fail drug tests, as meat from those countries has been found to contain clenbuterol—a weight-loss and muscle-building steroid prohibited by the league. Houston Texans player Duane Brown was recently pardoned from a 10-game suspension due to testing positive for clenbuterol, which he attributed to beef he consumed on vacation in Mexico. While Mexican farmers are barred from using clenbuterol as a growth agent, in 2011 five soccer players on Mexico’s national team along with nearly every player in the U-17 World Cup held in Mexico tested positive for the contaminant. The NFL advised players that consuming meat in China or Mexico can result in the violation of NFL’s policy on performance-enhancing substances and stated, “Players are responsible for what is in their bodies.”