Health Claims for Sports Drinks—Analytical Assessment according to European Food Safety Authority’s Scientific Opinion
2024
Rodríguez-Hernández, María Dolores | Gil-Izquierdo, Ángel | García, Carlos Javier | Gabaldón, José Antonio | Ferreres, Federico | Gimenez-Monzo, Daniel | Martínez Sanz, José Miguel | Gimenez-Monzo, Daniel | Martínez Sanz, José Miguel | Universidad de Alicante. Departamento de Enfermería Comunitaria, Medicina Preventiva y Salud Pública e Historia de la Ciencia | Universidad de Alicante. Departamento de Enfermería | Grupo de Investigación en Alimentación y Nutrición (ALINUT) | Grupo de Investigación en Dietética Aplicada, Nutrición y Composición Corporal (DANuC)
In Europe, sports food supplements (SSFs) are subject to specific laws and regulations. Up to 70% of athletes are highly influenced by the information on the label or the advertisement of the SSF, which often does not correspond to the scientific evidence, such as health claims. The aim is to analyze such claims relating to sports drinks (SDs) in commercial messages. To this end, an observational and cross-sectional study was conducted based on the analysis of the content and degree of adequacy of the health claims indicated on the labelling or technical data sheet of the SDs with those established by the European legislation in force according to the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). The SSFs were searched for via Amazon and Google Shopping. A total of 114 health claims were evaluated. No claim fully conformed with the recommendations. A total of 14 claims (n = 13 products) almost conformed to the recommendations; they were “Maintain endurance level in exercises requiring prolonged endurance”, “Improve water absorption during physical exercise”, and “Improved physical performance during high intensity, high duration physical exercise in trained adults”, representing 12.3% of the total (n = 114). The vast majority of the claims identified indicated an unproven cause–effect and should be modified or eliminated, which amounts to food fraud towards the consumer.
显示更多 [+] 显示较少 [-]This study formed part of the AGROALNEXT programme and was supported by MCIN with funding from European Union NextGenerationEU (PRTR-C17.I1) and by Fundación Séneca with funding from Comunidad Autónoma Región de Murcia (CARM) (22015/PI/22).
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