Revealed within the journal Frontiers in Vitamin, the report revealed roughly 60% of the research reviewed centered completely on male athletes, and solely 10% on feminine athletes, “highlighting a notable hole in our understanding of complement results on feminine athletes on the elite stage.”
Reviewed information revealed complement effectiveness varies considerably based mostly on a number of elements together with the kind of complement, dosing protocols, timing of administration and particular person athlete traits.
“The findings underscore the important significance of individualized supplementation methods, shifting past generic protocols to think about athlete-specific elements reminiscent of coaching standing, competitors schedule and physiological response patterns,” the report famous. “This customized method turns into significantly related given the noticed variations in complement effectiveness throughout totally different sporting contexts and athlete populations.”
The Chinese language researchers concluded that caffeine, sure amino acids and probiotic formulations demonstrated essentially the most constant advantages.
The assessment of 46 research encompassing 928 elite athletes famous additional information gaps with sure sports activities.
“The focus of analysis in particular sports activities, significantly biking (17.4% of research), creates one other vital limitation,” the researchers reported. “This uneven distribution of proof throughout sporting disciplines signifies that some sports activities are underrepresented within the analysis base, doubtlessly limiting the applicability of findings to those sports activities.”
The report factors out that 40% to 100% of skilled athletes use dietary supplements, usually with out correct steering or evidence-based info, within the pursuit of marginal efficiency positive aspects, making this data all of the extra essential.
Efficacy of dietary supplements
The assessment’s search yielded 94 doubtlessly related articles, with 46 assembly inclusion standards.
“This comparatively small variety of eligible research, regardless of the widespread use of dietary supplements in elite sports activities (47.8% to 93.7% prevalence) highlights the restricted high-quality analysis obtainable on complement use particularly in elite populations,” the researchers wrote.
Most research reviewed employed double-blind, placebo-controlled trials, randomized and crossover designs. Research included a median of 20 members, starting from eight to 57, which the authors stated mirrored the challenges of recruiting elite athletes for analysis functions.
The efficacy of caffeine supplementation confirmed notable variation throughout totally different sports activities and efficiency metrics suggesting that the ergogenic results could also be sport-specific or influenced by athletes’ recurring caffeine consumption.
Likewise, beta-alanine supplementation confirmed various levels of efficacy throughout totally different sports activities and protocols with its results in staff sports activities settings much less pronounced than in particular person sports activities.
Vitamin D supplementation (50,000 IU fortnightly, equal to three,570 IU/day) demonstrated restricted ergogenic advantages in skilled rugby gamers regardless of significantly increasing serum 25(OH)D concentrations. Up to date meta-analyses report that vitamin D3 supplementation can enhance lower-limb muscle energy in athletes, with larger effects in those deficient at baseline. This implies that vitamin D’s ergogenic results could also be extra particular to athletes with insufficient baseline standing, the report famous.
Iron supplementation confirmed advantages, however these weren’t sustained after supplementation cessation, indicating the significance of long-term supplementation methods.
The combination of probiotics with vitamin D demonstrated synergistic benefits in MMA athletes with the mixture enhancing whole work output and imply energy throughout high-intensity train whereas enhancing lactate utilization
The authors famous that a number of systematic evaluations recommend that probiotics might not directly assist coaching diversifications and aggressive efficiency by enhancing gastrointestinal consolation, immune operate and fatigue-related markers.
A number of research investigated dietary supplements focusing on mobile well being and oxidative stress. Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) supplementation confirmed effectiveness in modulating inflammatory responses throughout intensive coaching. Equally, ubiquinol supplementation (200 mg/day) enhanced plasma and cellular antioxidant defenses in rugby players, although it didn’t enhance bodily efficiency or stop exercise-induced muscle injury markers.
“Proof-based evaluations additional point out that CoQ10—together with ubiquinol—can enhance oxidative stress and sure performance-related outcomes, however total results look like moderated by heterogeneity in populations and dosing,” the report said.
Reviewed randomized managed trials indicated omega-3 supplementation helps attenuate post-exercise irritation and muscle injury and should facilitate efficiency restoration and research involving n-3 PUFA supplementation demonstrated promising outcomes for neuromuscular operate.
The authors famous that each acute and persistent supplementation protocols have their place, however their effectiveness relies upon closely on the precise complement and desired final result.
“Whereas caffeine exhibits constant advantages with acute administration, different dietary supplements like beta-alanine require structured loading protocols for optimum outcomes. This temporal consideration ought to inform how supplementation methods are built-in into coaching and competitors schedules.”
Transferring ahead, they stated practitioners ought to concentrate on growing built-in supplementation methods that contemplate coaching periodization, competitors schedules and particular person athlete traits.
Supply: Sport and Train Vitamin, Quantity 12, 2025. do: 10.3389/fnut.2025.1675654. “Efficacy of dietary dietary supplements on sports activities efficiency outcomes: a scientific assessment of proof in elite athletes”. Tongwu, Y., and Chuanwei, D.,
