Why elite athletes take supplements despite anti-doping risks — Report

Supplements have become a routine part of elite sport, with athletes using products such as creatine, protein powders, vitamin D, and carbohydrate gels to support performance, recovery, and nutrition.

Creatine, once viewed with suspicion when it emerged among elite British athletes at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, is now one of the most widely used and scientifically researched sports supplements.

Its rise illustrates how the search for small performance gains has changed elite sport, where athletes and teams increasingly examine every aspect of preparation, from nutrition and training to recovery and sleep.

Prof Graeme Close, professor of human physiology at Liverpool John Moores University, said some studies suggest that as many as 90% of athletes use supplements.

“The sports teams that I’ve worked in, I think that’s probably closer to 100% of athletes will be taking some form of supplementation,” he said.

Creatine’s rise in elite sport

Creatine occurs naturally in the human body and is also found in foods such as meat and fish. It provides a rapid source of energy for muscles and is particularly relevant to short-duration, high-intensity activities such as sprinting.

Its breakthrough in elite sport came in the 1990s after scientists studying creatine shared their findings with Steve Jennings, whose Maxim sports nutrition company supplied products to the British Olympic team.

During the 1992 Barcelona Games, investigative reporter Doug Gillon reported on a trial involving British athletes using Ergomax C150, effervescent creatine tablets.

At the time, claims that creatine could improve explosive athletic performance by 1-3% attracted attention. By the 1996 Olympics, an estimated 80% of athletes were using creatine.

ALSO READ: Why Europe is becoming destination for Nigerian athletes

The supplement has since become mainstream, with research also examining possible cognitive benefits.

According to the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, the breakthrough helped launch a new era in sports nutrition and encouraged further research into other supplements.

Food remains the priority

Despite the growing use of supplements, experts stress that they should not replace a balanced diet.

Close describes supplements as the “final piece of the jigsaw”, arguing that athletes should first get the basics of nutrition, training, sleep, recovery and hydration right.

“What we’re talking about is small margins of benefit, where actually these athletes who focus on the food, I think what you often find is that they’ve got the big-ticket items right,” he said.

“So they’re seeing great performance benefits because their overall diet is immaculate.

“They might be missing out on the one per-centers, but they’ve really nailed the 99 per-centers. And they often do better than those who chase the one per-centers but have not given enough attention to the 99 per-centers.”

Australian cyclist Nicole Frain also supports a food-first approach.

“I’m a pretty big believer that they are called sport supplements. They are there to supplement the things you already do right,” she said.

“I don’t think supplements are the answer to fix my problems.

“You need to be eating a balanced diet, training well, sleeping right, recovering well, hydrating – all of those things – before we add in all of the extras.”

Protein, vitamin D and carbohydrate

Close said protein powders are the most common supplements among the athletes he works with, followed by creatine and vitamin D.

Protein powders can support muscle repair and growth, while vitamin D is important for bone health and muscle function.

Carbohydrate gels are also widely used, particularly in endurance sports, where maintaining energy levels during competition is critical.

Close said sports drinks and gels played an important role in the fuelling strategy used by Kenyan long-distance runner Sebastian Sawe during his recent sub-two-hour marathon.

He said calculations for breaking the two-hour barrier involved consuming more than 100 grams of supplemental carbohydrate per hour, with reports indicating that 110 grams per hour was achieved.

Supplements and anti-doping rules

The use of supplements also creates risks for elite athletes because they are subject to strict anti-doping rules.

The World Anti-Doping Agency determines whether substances should be prohibited based on criteria including potential health risks, performance enhancement and whether their use violates the spirit of sport.

Creatine is not prohibited because, although it can support performance, it does not meet the criteria for inclusion on the banned list.

However, athletes can still face serious consequences if a supplement is contaminated with a prohibited substance.

UK Anti-Doping warns that no guarantee can be given that a particular supplement is free from prohibited substances and advises athletes to remain vigilant.

An athlete who tests positive for a banned substance can face a sanction even if the substance was consumed unintentionally.

Supplement-testing programmes such as Informed Sport test batches before products reach consumers, but such certification does not eliminate the risk entirely.

For British rower Heidi Long, managing that risk involves keeping detailed records.

“I’ve recorded the batch number of every product that I’ve taken and its expiry date because if you take it after the expiry date the Informed Sport [certification] is no longer viable,” she said.

Close said he has also visited supplement factories to examine manufacturing processes because of the consequences of a failed drugs test.

He warned that consumers buying supplements online may have little information about how or where products were manufactured.

Studies have also found cases where products labelled as containing creatine contained little or none of the substance, while contaminated products can pose health risks.

A return to whole foods

As the supplement industry grows, some athletes and nutritionists are also turning back to traditional foods as sources of performance nutrition.

Turmeric, pickle juice and nitrate-rich foods such as beetroot are among the whole-food options used by athletes.

Another food attracting growing attention is teff, an ancient Ethiopian grain that has been part of East African diets for thousands of years.

Teff contains calcium, iron and vitamin C and is naturally gluten-free. It is also a complete protein, providing all nine essential amino acids required by humans.

Its nutritional qualities have attracted athletes including Olympic champion marathon runner Haile Gebrselassie and seven-time Grand Slam singles champion Venus Williams.

British boxer Fran Hennessy was introduced to teff by her nutritionist and has incorporated it into her daily diet.

“I’ve never looked back,” she said. “What I’m putting in my body is good fuel and energy and teff has so much. It energises you so much before a workout and it gives you the fibre you need.”

Hennessy also credits the grain with supporting her recovery.

“Each meal I’m having there’s a reason behind and everything that’s in it there’s a reason behind… I know what I’m putting in my body is fuelling me, recovering me, energising me,” she said.

Cost and practicality

Cost is another factor in how athletes use supplements.

Long said the expense of sports nutrition means athletes have to decide when supplements provide enough value to justify the cost.

“The supplement industry is really expensive,” she said. “And we’re definitely not made of money. So I think it’s really picking and choosing when you want to put that investment in.”

She said supplements can be particularly useful around competition, when performance is critical, but athletes can often meet their nutritional needs through ordinary meals.

“I would much rather enjoy a coffee in the morning with friends or while I’m working rather than have one of the gels,” she said.

“I guess it’s just like the enjoyment of what you’re taking, you know, it’s nicer to eat food than it is to take supplements.”