Nutrition and Legal Supplementation

Greg Rasmussen MBA

Nutrition and Legal Supplementation

How many coaches here either recommend, or have swimmers, who are taking nutritional supplements (vitamins, shakes, greens, etc.) and what are your thoughts on using them?

Cu 2 zile în urmă

Dvs., Carlampio Fresquet apreciați aceasta

3 comentarii

Barb Augustin • Don't do it!
1. The supplement industry is not regulated in the same way drugs are, so your favourite supplement could easily be contaminated (accidentally or deliberately) by a banned substance. (Some supplement manufacturers include banned substances deliberately to make their supplement achieve better results - eg add steroids into a protein powder.)
2. The science behind many supplements is non-existent or questionable. Many people take supplements simply because they're scared they're missing out on something.
3. If eating a well-balanced diet, supplements should be unnecessary.
4. Taking supplements can be a 'silver bullet', and if athletes are looking for 'silver bullets', what will their next step be? Something illegal?
5. The exception to all this is if the athlete in question has some medical reason for taking a supplement (eg anaemia as assessed by a reputable physician) or is on a restricted diet for religious, ethical reasons (eg vegan). In these cases, supplements should be 'prescribed' by a reputable, qualified nutritionist/dietitian.
For more info go to http://www.ausport.gov.au/ais/nutrition/supplements

Cu 22 de ore în urmă • 1

Greg Rasmussen MBA • Hi Barb, you have some fantastic points, Many of which I agree with completely. I have however noticed from both personal experience and much research that high quality supplements are not only beneficial but in many cases necessary due to depletion of minerals in foods and the challenges of getting protein and nutritional requirements in athletes in the quantities and qualities required. I was reading on the Australian Institute of Sport website that they had them broken into four categories from recommended to 'don't touch'. You are definitely correct that quality and safety are major issues and anything needs to come from an NSF approved facility for sport (not sure if there is an equivalent in Australia). Anyone else have thoughts?

Cu 11 ore în urmă