Olympians’ dietary supplement use decreases, says survey
According to findings published in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, supplement use amongst Finnish Olympic athletes decreased from 81 to 73 percent between 2002 and 2009.
Researchers led by Anni Heikkinen from the Paavo Nurmi Centre Sports & Exercise Medical Unit at the University of Turku report that all supplement subgroups showed a decline, including vitamins, minerals, and nutritional supplements.
In 2002, the researchers surveyed 446 Olympic athletes, and in 2009 data for 372 athletes were available.
“The decrease in DS use may be partly explained with athlete´s increased awareness concerning purity issues and contamination of dietary supplements,” said the researchers. “Between study years, there were no policy changes made by the Finnish Olympic Committee concerning athlete’s DS use.”
A Trans-Atlantic Trend
Commenting on the findings, and offering a US perspective, Travis Tygart, CEO of the US Anti-Doping Agency, agreed that USADA are seeing “more informed decision making which has led to a decrease in usage of dietary supplements”.
“We have not performed a research study but as the contamination, spiked drug problem continues to be a focus from an education standpoint, I think you will see this trend,” he added.
Case study
The JISSN survey coincides with a case study of an elite swimmer in the British Journal of Nutrition. Scientists from the University Outpatient Clinic Potsdam, Sports Medicine and Sports Orthopaedics at the University of Potsdam report that “athletes with high-caloric intake may be at risk of exceeding upper level of particular nutrients if multiple supplements are added”.
Led by Anja Carlsohn, PhD, the researchers used a three-day dietary report to analyze the habitual dietary and supplement intakes of a “highly-trained male swimmer competing at international level”.
Using RDAs and ULs as defined by the European Scientific Committee on Food (SCF EU) and maximum permitted levels in supplements (MPL), the Potsdam-based researchers report that “the athlete’s diet provided adequate micronutrient content well-above RDA except for vitamin D”.
The athlete also consumed “ten different supplements”, said the researchers, and this resulted “in excess intake above tolerable UL for folate, vitamin E and zinc”.
“Additionally, daily supplement dosage was considerably above MPL for nine micronutrients consumed as artificial products”, they added. Risks and possible side effects of exceeding UL by the athlete are discussed.
“Educating athletes to balance their diets instead of taking supplements might be prudent to prevent health risks that may occur with long-term excess nutrient intake,” concluded the researchers.
Source: Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition
2011, 8:1
“Use of dietary supplements in Olympic athletes is decreasing: a follow-up study between 2002 and 2009”
Authors: A. Heikkinen, A. Alaranta, I. Helenius, T. Vasankari
British Journal of Nutrition
Published online ahead of print, doi: 10.1017/S0007114510005556
“How much is too much? A case report of nutritional supplement use of a high-performance athlete”
Authors: A. Carlsohn, M. Cassel, K. Linné, F. Mayer
