Supplements

Nutritional Supplements

Extreme caution is recommended regarding supplement use. A number of positive tests have been attributed to the misuse of supplements, poor labelling or contamination of dietary supplements, including minerals, vitamins, ergogenic aids and herbal remedies.
 
The use of dietary supplements by athletes is a concern because in many countries the manufacturing and labelling of supplements may not follow strict rules, which may lead to a supplement containing an undeclared substance that is prohibited under Anti-Doping regulations. In addition to a poorly labelled supplement, most of the industry is served by third party manufactures that produce products for many different brands. Poor cleaning procedures and quality control procedures could lead to cross contamination.
 
Taking a poorly labelled or contaminated dietary supplement is not an adequate defence in a doping hearing.
 
Neither WADA nor the IIHF is involved in any supplement certification process and therefore do not certify or endorse manufacturers or their products. WADA and the IIHF do not control the quality or the claims of the supplements industry. However, there are a few programs and organizations checking and certifying products.
 
www.informed-sport.com
www.nsf.org
 
Athletes who insist on using dietary supplements should consider the following prior to using any form of dietary supplement.
 

• Not many claimed benefits of dietary supplements are supported by scientific research.
• Consider a healthy, well balanced diet over supplement intake. A qualified nutritionist can help you put a nutrition plan in place.
• Seek professional guidance to assess your needs and get the appropriate supplements.
• Research well known products and avoid purchasing supplements over the internet.
• Avoid purchasing products from a manufacturer who also produces supplements that contain prohibited substances.
• Avoid sharing supplements with other athletes or friends.
• The only way to remove the risks of supplement intake is to completely avoid them.

 
Important note: The above points do not abdicate a player’s responsibility. The player is solely responsible for any prohibited substance found in his or her body and the consumption of any nutritional supplement remains at the player’s own risk. Lack of intent is not a defense to testing positive to a prohibited substance because of contaminated supplements.

Speak Up !

Whistleblowers

WADA has launched the “Speak-up” Program which is a secured whistleblower platform for everybody who would like to report detected, identified, witnessed, know of or has reasonable grounds for suspecting doping misconduct. The Speak-up team is experienced in intelligence and investigations and treats all information that is shared with utmost confidentiality.

If you like to report doping misconduct, please visit the Speak-up! Webpage or get in contact with the IIHF.