Table 4.
Heat map of placebo-controlled randomised controlled trials and systematic reviews examining the effect of ergogenic aids according to the supplement and reported outcomes (n 87 studies)
| Nutritional ergogenic supplement | Study design | Exercise/performance outcome | Anthropometric outcome | Body composition outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Branched chain amino acids (n 10) | RCT (n 6) | 6(92,93,132,146,159,173) | 2(93,132) | 3(93,132,173) |
| Systematic reviews (n 4) | 3(17,24,33) | 0 | 3(17,33,45) | |
| Caffeine (n 25) | RCT (n 20) | 20(54,58,68,70,81,84,96,122,124,131,134,136,152,153,155,157,166–168,175) | 0 | 0 |
| Systematic reviews (n 5) | 5(25–27,36,38) | 0 | 0 | |
| Carbohydrate replacement (n 4) | RCT (n 4) | 4(50,53,85,118) | 1(118) | 0 |
| Systematic reviews (n 0) | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Collagen (n 2) | RCT (n 2) | 2(116,178) | 2(116,178) | 2(116,178) |
| Systematic reviews (n 0) | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Creatine (n 28) | RCT (n 22) | 21(55,57,60–67,72,75,79,88,98,105,117,118,164,165,179) | 10(60,61,72,86,88,98,105,118,164,179) | 13(55,60–63,67,72,75,86,88,117,164,165) |
| Systematic reviews (n 6) | 4(17,28,29,39) | 0 | 4(17,20,23,39) | |
| Exogenous ketones (n 3) | RCT (n 2) | 2(114,137) | 0 | 0 |
| Systematic reviews (n 1) | 1(41) | 0 | 0 | |
| Multivitamins (n 0) | RCT (n 0) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Systematic reviews (n 0) | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| n-3 (n 17) | RCT (n 15) | 14(71,73,77,82,99,110,112,115,125,127,135,156,163,170) | 5(82,107,115,127,163) | 5(73,77,127,163,192) |
| Systematic reviews (n 2) | 2(16,31) | 1(31) | 1(16) |
Red colour = >5 studies identified; orange colour = 1–5 studies identified; light yellow colour = no studies identified.