'Augmentation' carries high cost

For as long as athletes have been battling for gold medals, they've been taking fortifying tonics - some stomach-churning, others downright dangerous - with little concern for their health.

As revelations of Russian doping have shown going into the Rio Olympics, top-level competitors are willing to take almost any concoction to be faster, higher and stronger, despite risks to body, mind and reputation.

Ancient Greek Olympians, researchers say, ate sheep's testicles for a testosterone boost, while gladiator physician Claudius Galen prescribed the boiled hind hooves of Abyssinian donkeys, flavored with rose petals.