The World Anti-doping Agency (WADA) is the independent body that monitors, controls and fights drug use in sport.
It has identified six different classes of prohibited substances: stimulants; narcotics; anabolic / androgenic steroids; diuretics; peptide hormones and other performance-enhancing drugs.
Currently, there are two methods available for steroid testing and only method used for HGH detection.
The first is through urine testing, which is by far the cheaper of the two. It is non-invasive, which means people with needle anxiety prefer this method of testing. It also has fewer complications compared to blood testing.
The second is blood screening. With this method, more banned substances can be detected and is proven to be sensitive compared to urine testing. Blood screening results are harder to “masked”.
HGH detection on the other hand, can only be done through blood screening.
A new kind of urine test is currently being developed by the George Mason University. It uses nanotechnology, which makes urine testing more sensitive. It can also detect HGH in urine for a longer period, up to two weeks time. However, it is still in the process of being approved by the World Anti-doping Agency.