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Cited by 540Doping in SportsNutrition and Health StudiesSports Performance and Training

IOC Consensus Statement: Dietary Supplements and the High-Performance Athlete

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Maughan, Ronald J., Burke, Louise M., Dvorak, Jiri, Larson-Meyer, D. Enette, Peeling, Peter, Phillips, Stuart M., Rawson, Eric S., Walsh, Neil P. +17 more·2018·International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism
DOI 10.1123/ijsnem.2018-0020
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Abstract

Nutrition usually makes a small but potentially valuable contribution to successful performance in elite athletes, and dietary supplements can make a minor contribution to this nutrition program. Nonetheless, supplement use is widespread at all levels of sport. Products described as supplements target different issues, including the management of micronutrient deficiencies, supply of convenient forms of energy and macronutrients, and provision of direct benefits to performance or indirect benefits such as supporting intense training regimens. The appropriate use of some supplements can offer benefits to the athlete, but others may be harmful to the athlete’s health, performance, and/or livelihood and reputation if an anti-doping rule violation results. A complete nutritional assessment should be undertaken before decisions regarding supplement use are made. Supplements claiming to directly or indirectly enhance performance are typically the largest group of products marketed to athletes, but only a few (including caffeine, creatine, specific buffering agents and nitrate) have good evidence of benefits. However, responses are affected by the scenario of use and may vary widely between individuals because of factors that include genetics, the microbiome, and habitual diet. Supplements intended to enhance performance should be thoroughly trialed in training or simulated competition before implementation in competition. Inadvertent ingestion of substances prohibited under the anti-doping codes that govern elite sport is a known risk of taking some supplements. Protection of the athlete’s health and awareness of the potential for harm must be paramount, and expert professional opinion and assistance is strongly advised before embarking on supplement use.

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Registry

Crossref · 10.1123/ijsnem.2018-0020

Cites

198 of 198 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

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  • CrM is the most extensively studied and effective form of creatine found in nutritional supplements that professional organizations recommend for use.

    “The most extensively studied and effective form of creatine found in nutritional supplements that professional organizations recommend for use is creatine monohydrate (CrM) [14,15,17,18].”

    From Bioavailability, Efficacy, Safety, and Regulatory Status of Creatine and Related Compounds: A Critical Review (2022) · cites this paper as [18]

    The 'Supplement Proposed Mechanism of Action Evidence for Efficacy' section identifies creatine monohydrate and gives a recommended dose; the 'Overview' describes performance benefits from creatine loading. Our copy does not establish that monohydrate is the most extensively studied or most effective form relative to other forms, or that multiple professional organizations recommend it. (LLM, conf=0.86)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • Professional organizations, athletic governing bodies, and the Office of Dietary Supplements at the National Institutes of Health recognize creatine monohydrate as a safe, effective, and legal nutritional strategy to enhance performance and training adaptations.

    “Based on this evidence, professional organizations [12,16–18], athletic governing bodies [19]; and the Office of Dietary Supplements at the National Institutes of Health [20] recognize CrM as a safe, effective, and legal nutritional strategy to enhance performance and training adaptations.”

    From Safety of creatine supplementation: analysis of the prevalence of reported side effects in clinical trials and adverse event reports (2025) · cites this paper as [19]

    The IOC consensus statement’s Overview reports that creatine improves repeated high-intensity performance and training adaptations, and notes no negative health effects with appropriate long-term use. Our copy does not explicitly establish the claim that creatine monohydrate is legal in sport; it also cautions that supplements can contain prohibited substances. This citation is attached to the athletic-governing-body portion of the sentence, not the claims about other organizations or the NIH. (LLM, conf=0.84)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • The commonly recommended caffeine dose for enhancing athletic performance is 3-6 mg/kg.

    “The commonly recommended caffeine dose for enhancing athletic performance is 3–6 mg/kg [5,82].”

    From Pre-Exercise Caffeine as a Modulator of Exercise-Induced Acute Cardiometabolic Responses: A Narrative Review (2026) · cites this paper as [82]

  • D-aspartic acid is not included in the IOC consensus statement or the AIS recommendations.

    “DAA is not included in the IOC consensus statement or recommendations of the AIS.[Citation16,Citation19]”

    From Ergogenic properties, safety evaluation and regulations of selected ingredients in testosterone booster dietary supplements (2024) · cites this paper as [19]

  • Ecdysterone was not included in IOC or AIS statements.

    “Ecdysterone was not included in IOC or AIS statements.[Citation16,Citation19]”

    From Ergogenic properties, safety evaluation and regulations of selected ingredients in testosterone booster dietary supplements (2024) · cites this paper as [19]

    The supplied passages and searches for “ecdysterone” and “ecdysteroids” found no discussion of ecdysterone in the IOC statement. The absence of a matching passage does not, under this rubric, establish the claim; this source also cannot verify what the separate AIS statement includes. (LLM, conf=0.72)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

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Cites

1 retracted

Flagged first, then by citations

Research works printed but not linked: 7

  1. [38]38. Erdman, J., Oria, M., & Pillsbury, L. (2011). Nutrition and traumatic brain injury: Improving acute and subacute health coutcomes in military personnel. Washington, DC: National Academies Press.
  2. [59]59. Heaton, L.E., Davis, J.K., Rawson, E.S., Nuccio, R.P., Witard, O.C., Halson, S.L., . . . Carter, J.M. (2017). In season nutritional strategies to enhance recovery for team sport athletes. Sports Medicine, 47(11), 2201-2218. PubMed
  3. [127]127. Rawson, E.S., & Persky, A.M. (2007). Mechanisms of muscular adapta- tions to creatine supplementation: Review article. International SportMed Journal, 8(2), 43-53.
  4. [129]129. Rawson, E.S., & Volek, J.S. (2003). Effects of creatine supplementation and resistance training on muscle strength and weightlifting perfor- mance. Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 17(4), 822- 831.
  5. [134]134. Rowlands, D.S., & Thomson, J.S. (2009). Effects of beta-hydroxy-beta- methylbutyrate supplementation during resistance training on strength, body composition, and muscle damage in trained and untrained young men: A meta-analysis. Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 23(3), 836-846.
  6. [153]153. Sullivan, P.G., Geiger, J.D., Mattson, M.P., & Scheff, S.W. (2000). Dietary supplement creatine protects against traumatic brain injury. Annals of Neurology, 48(5), 723-729. PubMed
  7. [169]169. Wilkinson, D.J., Hossain, T., Hill, D.S., Phillips, B.E., Crossland, H., Williams, J., . . . Atherton, P.J. (2013). Effects of leucine and its metabolite beta-hydroxy-beta-methylbutyrate on human skeletal muscle protein metabolism. The Journal of Physiology, 591(Pt 11), 2911-2923.

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Authors
Maughan, R. J., Burke, L. M., Dvorak, J., Larson-Meyer, D. E., Peeling, P., Phillips, S. M., Rawson, E. S., Walsh, N. P., Garthe, I., Geyer, H., Meeusen, R., van Loon, L., Shirreffs, S. M., Spriet, L. L., Stuart, M., Vernec, A., Currell, K., Ali, V. M., Budgett, R. G. M., Ljungqvist, A., Mountjoy, M., Pitsiladis, Y., Soligard, T., Erdener, U., & Engebretsen, L.
Affiliations
  • University of St Andrews (GB)
  • Australian Institute of Sport
  • Schulthess Clinic
  • University of Wyoming
  • The University of Western Australia (AU)
  • McMaster University (CA)
  • Messiah University (US)
  • Bangor University (GB)
  • Norwegian Olympic and Paralympic Committee and Confederation of Sport
  • German Sport University Cologne (DE)
  • Vrije Universiteit Brussel (BE)
  • Mary MacKillop Institute for Health Research
  • University of Guelph (CA)
  • BMJ Group (United Kingdom) (GB)
  • World Anti-Doping Agency (CA)
  • English Institute of Sport (GB)
  • International Olympic Committee
  • International Olympic Committee (CH)
  • Anti-Doping Foundation
ORCID
Venue
International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism
Publisher
Human Kinetics
Published
2018-03-01
Volume
28
Issue
2
Pages
104-125
ISSN
  • 1526-484X (ISSN-L)
  • 1543-2742
DOI
10.1123/ijsnem.2018-0020
OpenAlex
W4247945508
Cited by
540
References
198
Citations by year
2026: 57 · 2025: 70 · 2024: 81 · 2023: 77 · 2022: 77 · 2021: 70 · 2020: 58 · 2019: 38 · 2018: 12
FWCI
101.11
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism (publishedVersion)
  • Liverpool John Moores University (acceptedVersion)
  • University of Brighton Repository (University of Brighton) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
  • Research Publications (Maastricht University) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
  • VUBIR (Vrije Universiteit Brussel) (submittedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Doping in Sports
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Nutrition and Health Studies
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Orthopedics and Sports Medicine › Sports Performance and Training
Keywords
dietary supplements, elite athletes, anti-doping rule violations, caffeine, creatine, nitrate, buffering agents, micronutrient deficiency, athlete health, nutritional assessment

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