Some adult male athletes drink human breast milk

(Image credit: CC by: Brian Fitzharris)

last updated 8 January 2015

Anthony thinks he's found a safe, legal, natural performance-enhancing substance that wouldn't appear on any doping test. He used to buy his supply of the substance, breast milk, from a nursing neighbor, but now has to seek it out online, he tells New York's Chavie Lieber. And he's not alone: The Queens man says he's met a lot of fellow athletes at different gyms who drink human breast milk for health and stamina purposes.

"I don't believe in steroids or other energy supplements, none of that garbage," Anthony tells New York. But breast milk "gives me incredible energy I don't get from other food and drinks." He and other men buy the liquid through sites like Only the Breast, Eats on Feets, and Human Milk 4 Human Babies.

If you're grossed out by this, you're not alone. When Sarah Murphy signed up to donate her unused milk at Only the Breast, "I was shocked men were asking for my 'nutritious milk,'" she tells New York. "It creeped me out.... I wondered whether there were even women on this thing, or just men trolling for milk." If you're interested in the other reasons adult men have for drinking breast milk, head over to New York.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.

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