athletes' medical information - Coca-Cola

Supplements and
sports foods
athletes’ medical information
Athletes look to sports foods and nutritional
supplements for many benefits, including:
Promoting adaptations to training
Increasing energy supply
Allowing more consistent and intensive
training by promoting recovery between
training sessions
Maintaining good health and reducing
interruptions to training due to chronic
fatigue, illness or injury
Enhancing competitive performance.
Providing a convenient source of nutrients
that is easy to consume when everyday foods
are unavailable or impractical to eat. This is
most often the case just prior to, during or
after an exercise session
Sports foods are generally manufactured to
achieve the last of these goals, and by
providing a practical way to meet special
nutrition needs they may indirectly assist
the athlete to achieve some of the benefits
on the list. Examples of useful sports foods
include:
Sports drinks (providing fluid and
carbohydrate during exercise)
Sports gels (additional carbohydrate intake,
especially during exercise)
Liquid meals (carbohydrate, protein, vitamins
and minerals for a pre-event meal,
post-exercise recovery or a high-energy diet)
Sports bars (carbohydrate, protein, vitamins
and minerals – often a solid form of the
liquid meal)
Of course, the cost of these sports foods
must be taken into account when deciding to
use them. Furthermore, the athlete should
recognise that the sports food market includes
products that are carefully manufactured to
provide nutrients to meet well-documented
goals right through to gimmicky items that have
a poor composition or the addition of
ingredients with a poor evidence base.
The use of pills, potions, powders and other
sports supplements is widespread among
athletes but few products are supported by
sound research and some may even be harmful
to the athlete. Athletes should look carefully at
the risks and rewards of individual supplements
before trying them.
Interactions with various medications need
to also be considered. Athletes should work with
their physician and dietitian to look closely at
possible interactions.
Where there is a demonstrated deficiency of
an essential vitamin or mineral, and an
increased intake from food is not possible, a
supplement may be helpful. For example, other
sections of this booklet have noted that athletes
with a diagnosed deficiency of iron or Vitamin D
may benefit from a course of supplements, but
this should be done only if a blood test shows it
to be necessary. The use of supplements,
however, does not compensate for poor food
choices and an inadequate diet. A much better
option is to learn about nutrition and foods so
that you can choose your foods to ensure that
all your nutritional needs are met. A well-chosen
diet will promote an adequate intake of all the
essential vitamins and minerals.
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