Sports Supplements - Part 3 (The UGLY Side of Supplements)
I always like focusing on the positive. But its crucial for you to know about the negative side of supplements. As an athlete you need to be armed with this information so you know what to avoid putting in your body. Remember that your body is your engine! You wouldn't be able to play your sport without your body so you need to take care of it. Dangerous supplements can derail your goals as an athlete, negatively impact your health and put you at risk for testing positive for banned substances. One negative test can take you out of the sport that you love and have worked so hard on... completely...forever.
The supplement industry is very good at making promises that are difficult to turn down. They promise speed and power and strength and endurance and improved body composition. They know what we want. They know how desperate we are. The problem is that most of the promises we are told- are empty promises. The products don't deliver on their promises. They only deliver on taking our money. And...too often these unregulated products are harmful to our performance and to our health.
Consuming products that are not 3rd party tested will put you at this risk. Choosing products that are on the NSF (https://www.nsfsport.com ) or Informed Choice (https://www.wetestyoutrust.com) websites is the only way to ensure you know what you are consuming is safe.
In the end it is your responsibility, as an athlete, to educate yourself and take full ownership of your choices. Get familiar with WADA (aka The World Anti-Doping Program) so that you are well aware of the "Prohibited List" as well as what's required of "Clean Sport". Spend some time on their website and bookmark it: https://www.wada-ama.org/en
Ingredients to be aware of
Caffeine. Caffeine (as I started in an earlier installment of this series) can be very helpful to athletes. BUT....there is a limit. Caffeine has a rate of diminishing returns. This means that the right amount works really well to increase power, speed and endurance. But too much of a good thing is not a good thing. Too much caffeine can cause dehydration, heart palpitations, jittery feelings, lightheadedness, and nausea (to name a few). This is the reason that the NCAA has put a 500mg limit on caffeine. Consuming too much caffeine is not only dangerous but if it shows up on a drug test you will get red flagged. The main culprit for excess caffeine are energy drinks and pre-workout products. It's not enough to read labels. The supplements industry is un-regulated. Companies will tell you there is 150mg of caffeine in their product when there is really 600 mg of caffeine.
Guarana. This is a hidden source of caffeine. It's usually used in addition to other caffeine sources to raise the caffeine content of a product without you realizing. It is banned by the NCAA.
Aspartame/Sucralose. These two artificial sweeteners have been linked to a number of negative health consequences ranging from GI Distress to cancer. Research is ongoing and we will know more in time. For now, my advice is try to choose products without these artificial sweeteners as much as possible. Especially if you have Gi distress or if it leaves a bad aftertaste.
Ingredients to avoid
Proprietary Blends. This is a tricky one! What a supplement company is saying by putting this on a label is "This is our blend and we are not going to tell you what's in it". This inability to be transparent is a red flag. They are allowed to do this because of the fact that the supplement industry is unregulated. As an athlete you need to outsmart this marketing tactic and use it to make smart purchases.
Herbal Supplements. This, like a proprietary blend is shady! They will list an ingredient as an herb that sounds promising. But we have no idea if that herb is actually in the product (unless its listed on the NSF and/or the Informed Choice websites). So it is always smart to steer clear of herbs in supplements that are not this party tested.
Stimulants and Banned Substances. Most "ugly" products use stimulants
to cover up for the ineffective ingredients that are put in the product. Once again I will steer you to the websites listed above. Familiarize yourself with these websites and the ingredients to avoid. Doing so will save you not only from a positive drug test, but also from negative performance consequences AND serious health consequences.
Use your brain! If a product sounds to good to be true-it likely is! If a supplements actually made you a world class olympian...we would all be world class olympians! Supplements are just that-a supplement to your diet that should enhance your intake or absorption. Working with a Sports RD will help you get a clear picture regarding what you need and how much of it you need in order to improve your performance, maximize your health and be safe.
