Supplementation with mixed fruit and vegetable juice concentrates effectively increased plasma levels of important antioxidant nutrients and folate.

Despite ongoing improvements to regulatory and manufacturing guidelines, the potential for contaminated nutritional supplements to cause a failed doping test for an athlete remains a concern. Several surveys of supplements available through the internet and at retail have confirmed that many are contaminated with steroids and stimulants that are prohibited for use in elite sport. Suggested responses to this issue include the complete avoidance of all supplements. However, this approach seems to be unrealistic as many athletes use nutritional supplements for very different reasons. In addition, the number of publications describing trials that demonstrate the benefit of certain nutritional products has also increased over the last decade or so. This ensures that for many sports the use of supplements will remain a common practice. In response to the issue of contamination in nutritional supplements, many reputable manufacturers have their products rigorously tested by sports anti-doping laboratories to help ensure as far as possible that the risks to an athlete remain minimal. In this chapter we review the issue of supplements and contamination, and look at how this might be addressed through effective quality control procedures at the manufacturing facility and through the highly sensitive testing of finished products using appropriately accredited tests.

BackgroundCodex documents may be used as educational and consensus materials for member governments. Also, the WTO SPS Agreement recognizes Codex as the presumptive international authority on food issues. Nutrient bioavailability is a critical factor in determining the ability of nutrients to provide beneficial effects. Bioavailability also influences the quantitative dietary requirements that are the basis of nutrient intake recommendations and NRVs.Health claimsCodex, EFSA and some national regulatory authorities have established guidelines or regulations that will permit several types of health claims. The scientific basis for claims has been established by the US FDA and EFSA, but not yet by Codex. Evidence-based nutrition differs from evidence-based medicine, but the differences are only recently gaining recognition. Health claims on foods may provide useful information to consumers, but many will interpret the information to mean that they can rely upon the food or nutrient to eliminate a disease risk.Nutrient reference valuesNRVs are designed to provide a quantitative basis for comparing the nutritive values of foods, helping to illustrate how specific foods fit into the overall diet. The INL-98 and the mean of adult male and female values provide NRVs that are sufficient when used as targets for individual intakes by most adults.World Trade Organization agreementsWTO recognizes Codex as the primary international authority on food issues. Current regulatory schemes based on recommended dietary allowances are trade restrictive. A substantial number of decisions by the EFSA could lead to violation of WTO agreements.

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