Dietary Supplement Use by U.S. Athletes Participating in the 2000 Summer Games

Abstract

Introduction: The use of dietary supplements has been a common practice for US Olympians and Olympic hopefuls for well over two decades. However, data on dietary supplement use by US elite athletes is limited. Data that does exist indicate that use has increased, as has the variety of supplements used. Processing athletes for the Summer Olympic Games in Sydney offered the opportunity to collect data on dietary supplement use by athletes comprising the U.S. Olympic Team. Methods: Team processing was conducted at ASW Naval Base & Bayside Convention Center, San Diego, California from August 15 to September 13, 2000. Athletes were processed as teams, prior to departing for Sydney. One step of the physical exam process was completion of the Athlete Medical History Form. Three questions on dietary supplement use were included on the medical history form. A team physician or certified athletic trainer reviewed the self-reported data with each athlete after completion of the form. Questions elicited information on frequency of supplement use, types of supplements taken in the past year, and reasons for use. Each of the questions allowed for multiple answers. Frequencies were performed for all variables concerning supplement use, stratified by gender and sport. Correlations were computed to identify relationships between supplement use (frequency, type and reason) and sport classifications. Analysis of variance was used to determine differences in gender, sport, types of supplements and reason for supplement use. In 1988, 66% of the athletes on the U.S. Summer Olympic Team were surveyed on use of ergogenic aids (Miles, 1991). While the instrument utilized was different from the one used in the study reported here, some comparisons of data were possible. Results: There were 602 athletes from 28 sports on the Olympic Team roster who were processed for Sydney. Completed medical history forms were obtained on 543 (90%) of the athletes, 241 females and 302 males. Group size ranged from 123 athletes on the track and field team to one athlete on the badminton team. Two hundred and twenty-two female athletes reported using dietary supplements, whereas 272 male athletes said they did. This represents 92% of the females and 90% of the males, with a combined average of 91% from whom data were obtained. Responses to frequency of use ranged from “never” to “daily”. Reasons for using dietary supplements included: 1) to correct an inadequate diet 2) to increase muscle mass/body weight 3) to lose weight 4) to prevent illness and disease 5) to treat a medical condition or an injury 6) to increase energy 7) to enhance performance and 8) no specific reason. Of surprise to the investigators was that 33% of the athletes who reported taking supplements reported taking herbals. In 1988 only 1% of those completing a supplement survey reported taking herbals. Discussion: It is known that elite level US athletes have historically reported a higher use of vitamin/mineral supplements than the general public. Prior to this survey, it was not possible to estimate, with any degree of accuracy, the percentage of Olympic athletes taking dietary supplements. Comparing this data to data from surveys on limited numbers of Olympic athletes and a 1988 survey conducted during team processing, indicate that not only has the use of dietary supplements increased, but also the number of substances taken.