Dietary Supplements vs Food - Do We Have a Winner?

What are dietary supplements?

Any food that supplements the diet and contains 'dietary ingredients', for example:

• Vitamins
• Minerals
• Amino acids
• Herbs
• Enzymes

Dietary supplements are intended to be food substitutes, they cannot match the benefits that whole foods provide.

Whole food benefits

Complex foods – contain a variety of macro- and micro-nutrients which work together to provide benefits.

Essential fibre – fibre naturally occurs in foods providing numerous benefits including digestive health, diabetes prevention and satiation (which helps with weight management).

Dietary supplements in athletes

Vitamins and minerals:

Immuno-suppression affects athletes undergoing strenuous physical activity; this compromises the immune system causing increased susceptibility to illness and infection.  Therefore, the recommended daily intake of vitamins and minerals is higher for athletes than the general population.  However, consuming a balanced diet with sufficient energy intake should account for this increased requirement and therefore healthy athletes should not need to take additional vitamins or minerals in supplement form.

Additional supplementation may be required by certain athletes:

• Athletes who are 'making weight' – those on a calorie deficit diet and therefore not consuming the quantity of food necessary to provide the required vitamins and minerals may need additional supplementation.
• Athletes with food intolerance/allergy – medical conditions may affect how the body absorbs or uses nutrients consumed and therefore supplements are required to maintain a balanced diet.

Protein:

Protein occurs naturally in foods such as meat, nuts and dairy products (milk, eggs) but it is often used as a supplement among athletes in the form of powder.  Protein is vital for preventing muscle breakdown and aiding muscle recovery and therefore intake both pre- and post-exercise is important for athletes to maintain a high performance level.

It is recommended that an individual wanting to build muscle should consume 0.7g of protein per pound of body weight per day.  For a 170lb individual this could amount to 119g of protein – the equivalent of 2 chicken breasts, 3 eggs and a 6oz steak – this not only contains a lot of other ingredients including cholesterol, fat and saturated fat, (adversely affecting body composition), but is also very expensive.  Protein is essential to aid recovery, but all athletes require a different amount of protein depending on their level of activity, intensity and goals.  Protein supplements offer a convenient, quick alternative with few added ingredients.

Furthermore, whey – the most popular protein supplement – is rapidly digested and absorbed by the body, whereas protein obtained from natural food is absorbed much more slowly.  Muscles need protein in the first 30 minutes post-workout for recovery and to prevent break down and thus whey is vital for muscle building.  As whey protein is rapidly absorbed, it will be used by the muscles quickly and therefore additional protein intake is required.  A high protein meal consisting of whole foods, 1-2 hours after exercise will provide the slow-release protein needed to fuel the muscles for hours and thus maintain lean body mass.

Future trends

Although protein is the most popular supplement in the sports industry, anti-oxidant (AOX) based supplements are predicted to grow in popularity in the coming years.  AOX are vital to protect the body from free radicals – chemicals which accumulate throughout the body.  Free radicals are produced naturally by the body through metabolism and immunity, but they are also produced via contact with cigarette smoke, radiation, pollution and endurance exercise.  An accumulation of free radicals can cause illness and infection in an individual.

Regardless of how much protein an athlete consumes, if they are constantly ill they will not be able to perform to their maximum potential and therefore they will not be able to build muscle.  AOX supplements aimed at athletes are likely to become hugely popular in the future.

This post was written by Sam Innes and is part of the Macro Man online fitness blog!