The Sport Supplementation Habits of NCAA Division II Athletes

Nova Southeastern University, Davie, Florida, USA

The following study was conducted to gain a preliminary understanding of the sport supplementation habits of NCAA Division II athletes. Incorporating sports supplements has previously been shown to increase physiological aspects of sports performance (Cameron et al., 2018) (Lun et al., 2012) (Shaw, Slater & Burke, 2016). Data for this study was obtained using a self-report questionnaire that measured supplement consumption, frequency, type, as well as some motivating factors for taking supplements. It was found that most athletes reported protein as their most consumed supplement, predominately in the form of protein bars and whey. Supplements were mostly taken daily and were used for recovery purposes. Also, worth noting, most athletes took into consideration recommendations from their coaching staff and teammates as their predominant reason for taking a sports supplement. This data serves to build a foundation for understanding the specificity of supplement use in elite-level female athletes.