Table 2.
Dietary supplement use in high-performing athletes from 2010–2015
| Author, year | Athlete population (sport, level), country | Use of DSa | Main reasons for DS usea |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aljaloud and Ibrahim,92 2013 | Professional footballers (male, n=105), Saudi Arabia | 93.3% currently took DS Sports drinks – 88.7%; vitamin C – 82.6%; calcium – 68.3% |
Performance – 43.8%; improved health – 32.6%; physical appearance – 11.2% |
| Kim et al,93 2013 | National judo team members (male, n=107 and female, n=65), Korea and Japan | 59% of Korean athletes and 61% of Japanese athletes took DS | Korean: improve muscle strength – 45%; improve energy – 18% Japanese: maintain health – 32%; improve performance – 26% |
| Diehl et al,94 2012 | Elite adolescent athletes from 51 current Olympic sports (male and female, n=1138), Germany | 91.1% consumed at least one DS at least once per month Magnesium – 68.6%; dextrose – 64.0%; energy drinks – 63.9% 26.8% consumed at least one DS daily Magnesium – 82.9%; vitamin C – 76.2%; iron – 70.3% |
n/a |
| Lun et al,85 2012 | Athletes affiliated with Canadian Sport Centres from 34 sports (male and female, n=440), Canada | 87% declared having taken a DS within past 6 months Sports drinks – 24.1%; multivitamins and minerals – 16.1%; carbohydrate sport bars – 11.0% |
Health maintenance/prevent nutritional deficiency – 30.2%; increase energy – 20.5%; exercise recovery – 15.6% |
| Rodek et al,95 2012 | National representative sailors (male, n=39 and female, n=44), Croatia | 38.6% consume DS daily 38.6% consume DS (but not regularly) Vitamins and minerals – 40.9%; energy bars – 38.6%; protein/amino acids – 34.1%; isotonic drinks – 34.1% |
n/a |
| Heikkinen et al,96 2011 | Olympic athletes from 31 sports (male and female, n=446 in 2002, n=372 in 2008/2009), Finland | 2002: 81% reported DS use in the past 12 months Multivitamins – 54%; protein – 47%; vitamin C – 28% 2008/2009: 73% reported DS use in the past 12 months Multivitamins – 57%; protein – 38%; vitamin C – 24% |
n/a |
| Kim et al,97 2011 | National Sport University athletes from 21 sports (male and female, n=479), Korea | 46% used DS and 28% used TCM supplements within the past year DS: multivitamins – 70.0%; vitamin C – 37.7%; sports drinks – 18.4% TCM supplements: red ginseng – 70.2%; mixed TCM – 44.7%; ginseng – 10.5% |
Energy supplement – 33.3%; increase in strength, muscle mass, and muscle power – 17.4%; health maintenance – 14.6% |
| Dascombe et al,88 2010 | State-based sports institute athletes from seven sports (male and female, n=72), Australia | 87.5% reported using at least one DS Minerals – 45.8%; vitamins – 43.1%; iron – 30.6% | Maintain health; dietary routine; boost immunity; peer recommendations |
| De Silva et al,98 2010 | National-level athletes (male and female, n=113), Sri Lanka | 93.8% reported using DS Multivitamin preparations, vitamin E, calcium, energy foods and drinks, creatine | Enhance performance – 79.2%; improve general health status –19.8% |
Note:
a
Top 3 supplements, reasons for use, and sources of information provided where available.
Abbreviations: DS, dietary supplement; n/a, not available; TCM, Traditional Chinese Medicine.