ANSES warns of health risks that can lead to “death”

The French National Agency for Food Safety (ANSES) is warning about the health risks that dietary supplements for athletes can pose, France Inter reported on Wednesday, July 17. Used in bodybuilding circles, these products are now consumed by top athletes, but also by amateurs attracted by the promise of developing muscle mass while reducing fat mass.

Sold without a prescription, some of these products, intended to improve physical performance, can have undesirable and sometimes very serious side effects.

Nearly 160 new cases of adverse effects have been reported since the previous ANSES alert in 2016. These effects can range from stomach aches to dizziness, “with effects ranging up to loss of consciousness”warns Irène Margaritis, responsible for the evaluation of nutrition and nutritional risks at ANSES. “At the cardiovascular level, it can be palpitations, arrhythmias, up to cardiac arrest.” Two deaths linked to dietary supplements have been recorded by the agency.

Most of these products are enriched with proteins, amino acids and plant extracts. But they sometimes contain dangerous and prohibited substances. Some manufacturers “add clearly doping substances”says Irene Margaritis, like sibutramine or anabolic steroids. “These are substances that are not on the label. We don’t know they are in the supplement, but they are there, and they have adverse effects.”

Anses recommends that athletes seek the advice of a health professional before consuming food supplements and, above all, avoid purchasing them online.