“Food First,” Not “Food Only” in Competitive Sports: A Mini-Review

The use of supplements is commonplace in competitive sports. Nevertheless, sports nutrition experts keep reminding athletes to focus on a balanced basic diet with ‘natural foods‘, and not to overestimate the benefits of dietary supplements. However, depending on an individual’s training load, competition schedule, or health situation, a ‘food only‘ strategy may not be an adequate means to provide the energy and nutrients needed to win a competition. Therefore, a ‘food first‘ strategy is recommended . This approach endorses the personalized usage of certain dietary supplements (e.g., sports foods, immune modulators, performance enhancers) in specific situations in addition to a balanced basic diet. In this mini-review, we describe the circumstances in which dietary supplements can be considered ergogenic, and what kind of risks may be associated with their use.