Nutrition in Combat Sports

70 F. Halabchi
There are still approximately one in five supplements on sale that are contaminated
– whether accidental or deliberate – with products that are not declared on the
label [46] .
Clearly, athletes take a considerable gamble when using nutritional supplements,
because WADA adopts the rule of zero tolerance or strict liability, whereby athletes
must take responsibility for what is present in their body, from whatever source [26] .
It has been shown that the controls made on the purity of dietary supplements are
not sufficient. Authorities and sports federations should be aware of this problem
and should dictate new regulations for production, sale, and use of supplements.
This is also crucial to inform athletes of the possible contamination of dietary supplements
and to prevent the misuse of such products [46] .
Athletes and coaches should always know that the use of supplements is completely
at their own risk, even if the supplements are claimed to be approved or verified [47] .
Further Reading
Mottram DR. Drugs in sport, 3rd ed. London: Routledge Taylor & Francis; 2003.
Yesalis CE. Anabolic steroids in sport and exercise, 2nd ed. Champaign, IL:
Human Kinetics; 2000.
British Medical Association. Drugs in sport: The pressure to perform. London:
BMJ publishing group; 2002.
Tokish JM, Kocher MS, Hawkins RJ. Ergogenic aids: a review of basic science,
performance, side effects, and status in sports. Am J Sports Med. 2004;
32(6):1543–1553.
Hartgens F, Kuipers H. Effects of androgenic-anabolic steroids in athletes.
Sports Med. 2004; 34(8):513–554.
Web sites
www.wada-ama.org
www.usantidoping.org
www.asada.gov.au
www.uksport.gov.uk/pages/drug_free_sport/
www.drugfreesport.org.za
References
1. Silver MD . Use of ergogenic aids by athletes . J Am Acad Orthop Surg. 2001 ; 9 (1) : 61 – 70 .
2. Finlay M , Plecket H . The Olympic Games: The first hundred years . London : Chatto and
Windus ; 1976 .
3. Berentsen A . The economics of doping . Eur J Polit Economy. 2002 ; 8 : 109 – 112 .