Elite sport players in European and America are increasingly turning to intravenous nutrition products, experts warn today.
Although the prevalence of use is unknown, anecdotally some players are receiving these products as often as weekly before or after competing, despite a lack of evidence on their benefits.
Professor Charles Pedlar of St Mary’s University Twickenham, London, UK, and international colleagues who work with professional team sport players examine the issue in today’s *British Journal of Sports Medicine*.
They explain that the use of these products "is often evident in blood biomarker profiles where specific nutrients are beyond the upper-bound measurement limit of the clinical laboratory".
"So-called ‘drip bars’ and concierge intravenous nutrition services are easily accessible, although seemingly devoid of appropriate regulation," the authors add.
Players may be offered a "menu" of products containing B vitamins, amino acids, glutathione, vitamin C and electrolytes. The products claim to boost health and performance, restore hydration, and accelerate recovery.
Guidance on the subject is largely absent, say the authors. But sports nutrition courses around the world encourage the principle of reducing needle use in sport and taking a "food first" approach.
Occasionally limits are put in place, such as the ban on needle use by athletes at the Olympic Games, "however, these controls are not mirrored across all sports," say the authors.
"Given that the long-term effects of supra-therapeutic doses of B vitamins and other nutrients are unknown in athletes, it does not appear to be worth the risk," the authors write.
"The ‘food first’ and ‘no needle’ messages need to be amplified among all athletes and multidisciplinary support teams to avoid what was previously a last resort treatment becoming normal without scientific evidence of benefit."
Lewis, N. et al. Rise of intravenous nutrition products among professional team sport athletes: reasons to be concerned? *British Journal of Sports Medicine* 17 August 2022 doi: 10.1136/bjsports-2022-105883
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