With five weeks until the Rio Games, ASADA has today repeated its warning to athletes about the risk of using supplements which may contain banned substances not listed on product labels.

The warning follows new research released today which found that, of 67 common Australian supplements analysed, almost one in five contained banned substances.

Conducted by life science company LCG and revealed at the Informed Sport conference in Melbourne, the research found 13 of the 67 supplements contained traces of anabolic agents or stimulants which would be prohibited in sport.

Importantly, none of the 13 products listed any banned substances on their ingredients list.
ASADA CEO Ben McDevitt said: “This research supports ASADA’s long-standing warning for athletes about the risks of using supplements.”

“There is no way for an athlete to be certain that any supplement is safe to use and under the World Anti-Doping Code’s principle of strict liability, athletes risk a doping violation regardless of whether they used an banned substance on purpose.”

“Supplements can put an athlete’s entire career at risk so I encourage all athletes to think seriously about whether the supplements they are taking are safe, effective and even necessary. In many cases, similar improvements can be made through changes to nutrition, training or sleep programs.”

For more information on the risks of supplements, visit ASADA’s website. The Australian Institute of Sport also publishes information and guidelines for athletes on informed supplement use.
Media contact: 0418 450 113 | media@asada.gov.au