Abstract
Introduction: The use of dietary supplements is increasing among athletes, year after year. Related to the high rates of use, unintentional doping occurs. Unintentional doping refers to positive anti-doping tests due to the use of any supplement containing unlisted substances banned by anti-doping regulations and organizations, such as the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). The objective of this review is to summarize the presence of unlabeled doping substances in dietary supplements that are used in sports. Methodology: A review of substances/metabolites/markers banned by WADA in ergonutritional supplements was completed using PubMed. The inclusion criteria were studies published up until September 2017, which analyzed the content of substances, metabolites and markers banned by WADA. Results: 446 studies were identified, 23 of which fulfilled all the inclusion criteria. In most of the studies, the purpose was to identify doping substances in dietary supplements. Discussion: Substances prohibited by WADA were found in most of the supplements analyzed in this review. Some of them were prohormones and/or stimulants. With rates of contamination between 12 and 58%, non-intentional doping is a point to take into account before establishing a supplementation program. Athletes and coaches must be aware of the problems related to the use of any contaminated supplement and should pay special attention before choosing a supplement, informing themselves fully and confirming the guarantees offered by the supplement.
Highlights
The use of dietary supplements is increasing among athletes, year after year
Column 2 shows that the goal of most of the studies was to identify doping substances in dietary supplements
Despite offering guarantees in terms of pollutants, the population must be cautious about using ergonutricional substances, since not all these products are free of doping substances
Summary
The use of dietary supplements is increasing among athletes, year after year. The “Sports Nutrition and Weight Loss Report”, published by the Nutrition Business Journal, showed that sales of sports nutrition and weight loss products have increased year-on-year in the North American market, with nutritional supplements being in second place in the sales ranking [7]. This indicates that the sale and consumption of supplements have increased both in the general population and in the sports population.
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