Abstract
Introduction: The current literature provides no consensus that nutritional supplements (NS) may provide a gateway to doping. In particular, studies in recreational athletes are lacking. Within a previous cross-sectional empirical study, our group provided first evidence that the use of NS may provide a gateway for the use of doping substances in recreational triathletes. For the present paper, we refine the analysis of the triathletes’ survey in order to provide evidence for a NS gateway hypothesis in recreational athletes.Methods: A self-report, paper-and-pencil questionnaire was distributed to a sample of 2,997 competitive ironman and half-ironman (n = 1,076; 36.1%) triathletes. The randomized response technique (RRT) was used to assess the 12-month prevalence estimate for the use of doping substances. The prevalence for the use of NS was assessed by using direct questioning. Two-tailed (α = 0.05) large-sample z-tests were performed to assess whether the estimated prevalence for the use of doping substances differs significantly between users and nonusers of NS.Results: The 12-month prevalence estimate for the use of doping substances is significantly higher in athletes who report using NS (20.6%) compared to those who do not (11.4%; z = 2.595, p = 0.0097).Conclusion: The present results are consistent with the hypothesis that the use of NS provides a gateway to the use of doping substances. Therefore, doping prevention concepts should not primarily focus on preventing the use of doping substances per se, but should start one step earlier, namely by the use of NS.
Highlights
The current literature provides no consensus that nutritional supplements (NS) may provide a gateway to doping
A previous survey by the authors of the present paper indicates that almost 50% of the athletes who participated in two elite athletic competitions used doping substances during the previous 12 months (Ulrich et al, 2018)
These numbers support the results of a review on the prevalence of doping in adult elite athletes, summarizing studies based on different methods for pharmacological and biological parameters as well as questionnaires to assess doping, in which estimates for the prevalence of doping between 14 and 39% are reported
Summary
The current literature provides no consensus that nutritional supplements (NS) may provide a gateway to doping. A more recent paper by Faiss et al (2020) reveals a blood-doping prevalence between 15 and 18% among elite track and field athletes based on analyses of blood samples from two world athletics championships. These numbers support the results of a review on the prevalence of doping in adult elite athletes, summarizing studies based on different methods for pharmacological and biological parameters as well as questionnaires to assess doping, in which estimates for the prevalence of doping between 14 and 39% are reported (de Hon et al, 2015)
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