Fitness, Nutrition and Healing
What's the deal with supplements?
The scientific publication of the American Academy of Pediatrics, reports that 8 % of girls and 12 percent of boys surveyed admitted to using supplements in an effort to enhance their physical conditioning. Turning to supplements of one variety or the other is pretty common if either sex is not satisfied with their body type, composition but retraining specialist Ross has a better way. Athletes must be informed on the value of optimal nutrition first and then adding in supplements for optimal exercise performance - not the other way around. Long term results will not be achieved by short term thinking in relation to nutrition. Leslie Bonci, MPH, RD, who is the director of Sports Nutrition at the University of Pittsburgh has given these tips on optimal performance eating for success. Planning training and competition meals, whether you are feeding one person or an entire team, requires creativity and flexibility that allows for the individuality of each athlete. Your Certified Athletic Trainer may be of more help with this process. You can also find great information and more examples at www.choosemyplate.gov. You should try to eat a well rounded healthy meal with fats and proteins – very little sugar if any – and within and hr of waking in the morning. Eating every three to four hours throughout the day and eating within two hours following exercise – some snack ideas might include: a glass of chocolate milk, yogurt, or a smoothie tastes good, is an easy way to get calories in your body and costs less than a protein shake. My favorites: a granola or high carbohydrate sports bar, or a sports drink prior to exercise will provide energy for sport. We need to remind athletes that they need fuel the most when they want it the least. Muscles need to be fueled for performance and body composition changes can not occur without some focus on the best food choices as well as cultivating the best eating habits. What are supplements? The addition of supplements to an athlete's diet is a hotly debated topic. Products in the categories listed above may promise rapid, unrealistic, and potentially unsafe changes in body composition and/or appearance. Athletes-- especially those who are young, impressionable, and are concerned with their body image-- may be easily influenced by media and become prime targets for nutrition fraud. TRUE or FALSE: If a dietary supplement is sold commercially to the public, it is effective and safe. Supplements are products such as protein powders, creatine, amino acids, mega-dose vitamins/minerals, weight loss aids, energy boosters, and more. Specific examples include (but are not limited to) creatine products, energy drinks like Monster and 5-hour energy, protein powders, and glucosamine-chondroitin. To use, or not to use? " In general, the risks of using supplements far outweigh the perceived benefits," states Dr. Steven Cuff, a sports medicine physician at Nationwide Children's Hospital. "Supplements are often expensive, are unregulated, and in many cases have side effects that can actually inhibit athletic performance." Advertisements for supplements tend to target young adults and even kids. Just like anything in the advertising business, companies may use deceptive tactics to get consumers to buy their products. Nutritional supplement specialty stores and their employees may not be able to give unbiased, accurate, or reliable information and opinions about their products, uses, and side effects. The Real Danger with Supplements Supplements, whether found in grocery stores, nutrition specialty stores, or on-line, are not regulated by the FDA. Companies and manufacturers of these products do not need to prove they are safe before they are available to the public. There is no organization that holds the manufacturers of these products responsible for the accuracy of the labels and the contents of their products. A supplement's label may be deceptive in a few ways: Ultimately, be very cautious about supplement use. If it is decided that a multi-vitamin or supplement would benefit your young athlete, do your research. And lastly, beware of products that make outlandish claims (example: "Build 25 pounds of muscle and lose fat in two weeks!"). Many athletes are worried about getting optimal nutrition to achieve their goals in physical training. If you believe your young athlete would benefit from a multi-vitamin or a supplement, seek out the advice of a physician, registered dietician, or athletic trainer. The product may not contain what is listed on the label (Example: a multivitamin could actually be a sugar pill). The product may contain different amounts of the substances than listed on the label (Example: a product that states it has 60 mg of caffeine may actually contain 120 mg). The product may contain (sometimes illegal) compounds that are not listed on the label (Example: a product that claims to be creatine could be laced with steroids). Athletes can get closer to their healthy and athletic living goals by properly fueling their bodies with a well-balanced diet first, not supplements. They are factors that help to regulate energy production in the body, but these nutrients themselves do not provide calories and therefore can not provide energy. What's the bottom line? The amount and type of substances in these products can be hazardous to a young athlete's performance and health if used even as directed-- and especially if used inappropriately. It is vital that parents and athletes understand the potential dangers associated with supplement use! |
True Fitness will never be a magic bullet. It requires a natural balance of diet, supplements and alot of hard work