Abstract
Background: International studies reveal a high consumption of nutritional supplements amongathletes in order to improve their performance. However, despite its popularity, there is little
scientific evidence to support the benefits and risks related to its consumption. Many athletes opt for
these products following advertising trends and without considering their individual nutritional
needs. The lack of studies on the relationship between diet, supplements and nutritional knowledge
in athletes from Monterrey highlights the need to investigate this topic in depth.
Objective: To evaluate the habits of consumption of nutritional supplements, knowledge about
supplementation and diet quality in young adults from Monterrey, Nuevo León.
Methods: A descriptive study was carried out through two questionnaires applied through an online
platform. Both questionnaires are validated for the Spanish-speaking population and were approved
by the Research Committee of the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Monterrey. The first
questionnaire was based on the frequency of consumption of food groups of the sample population
and the second questionnaire was carried out based on understanding the knowledge of the
population regarding their consumption of food supplements, the amount and type of physical
activity that they do. The sample used consisted of 119 athletes, in an age range of 18-44 years from
the city of Monterrey, Nuevo León. To interpret the variables obtained, a Spearman correlation test
was performed in the statistical software SygmaPlot 12.0. Values of P < 0.05 were interpreted as
significant.
Results: An equitable gender distribution was demonstrated (50.4% women and 49.6% men).
53.7% of participants do not know how many calories they consume, 46.2% claim to consume
vegetables twice a day, and only 41.7% are aware of their protein intake, suggesting a lack of
knowledge about their usual diet. 45.8% of the participants considered the use of sports
supplements necessary to achieve their goals. Protein powder is the most reported supplement, and
95% of the sample believes that if they were provided with an individualized meal plan, they would
not need to resort to it. The high consumption of supplements in young athletes highlights the
importance of providing adequate nutritional education and personalized plans to optimize results
and reduce risks in athletes.
Conclusion: The study revealed a high consumption of nutritional supplements in young athletes
from Monterrey. However, low knowledge about the proper use of these products was found, as
well as an unbalanced diet. It is suggested to improve the nutritional education of athletes so that
they make better decisions regarding their diet.
Keywords: Supplement consumption, young athletes, usual diet and nutritional knowledge.
| Date of Award | 4 Dec 2024 |
|---|---|
| Original language | Spanish |
| Awarding Institution |
|
| Supervisor | Lilia Marcela Figueroa Del Valle (Supervisor), Mario Daniel Caba Flores (Supervisor) & César Huerta Canseco (Asesor) |