What is Blood doping?
'''Blood doping''' is a way of increasing the number of [[red blood cells]] in the bloodstream. This is done to improve athletic performance. Because blood cells carry [[oxygen]] from the [[lung]]s to the [[muscle]]s, a having more red cells in the blood can improve an athlete's [[aerobic capacity]] (VO<sub>2</sub> max) and [[endurance]].<ref>W. Jelkmann, C. Lundby. Blood doping and its detection. ''Blood'', 2011, 118(9):2395-404. doi: 10.1182/blood-2011-02-303271. PMID 21652677. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21652677</ref> Many methods of blood doping are illegal, particularly in professional sport. There are a number of different methods. Frozen blood taken from the individual previously can be used for a later transplant; [[packed red cell]]s from a [[blood group|compatible]] [[Blood donor|donor]] may be used, and [[blood substitute]]s may be used. The growth area in illegal blood doping of [[Sportsperson|athletes]] is blood substitutes. == Related pages == * [[Doping in sport]] == References == {{reflist}} {{multistub|sports|med}} [[Category:Doping in sport]] [[Category:Blood]]